Life at St Halibuts Home has been idyllic for two months, ever since the children buried their matron (dont look like that it was an accident!) Helpfully, the not-so-dear departed matron left behind a surprisingly large stash of money, which will keep them in black-market lemon sherbets for the rest of their lives. Tig, Stich and Herc just have to make sure nobody finds out theyre on their own,
But when they find out that St Halibuts is to be inspected by DEATH (the Department for Education, Assimilation, Training and Health), they start to panic. Theyll need to convince the inspector that everything is peachy or theyll be sent to the Mending House where badly-behaved orphans go, never to return. As the big day approaches, the children start to think they might just pull it off. But when the inspector arrives, things dont just go wrong, they get spectacularly out of hand . . .