John Owen returns to the Choir School at the start of term to find that he is the youngest Singing Boy in the school. This means he must also be Beekeeper - a traditional role. One of the traditional duties of the Beekeeper is to sing a solo in the Cathedral. Owen hates and dreads the prospect, so he persuades the smallest boy in the school, Iddingley, to take his place. Then, while exploring one of the Cathedral towers without permission, Owen finds something which makes him change his mind, and solves a mystery which has been baffling people for hundreds of years...

Middle-class parents have bought a run-down school in the country. Their two children, plus an assortment of friends, are staying there over the summer. One day an old lady is found in the school, claiming she used to work there. The children hold her to ransom, but no-one takes any notice.