Jonathan Kraag, profiler, former FBI, CIA and emotionally fragile, is persuaded by his former Army partner, Phil Dorland, mayor of Ravensburg, an affluent suburb of Chicago, to try to find the serial killer who is at large in his town.

A series of killings: an unknown John Doe, a teenage girl, an activist minister, a suburban socialite, are all well-planned, well-executed with no witnesses and no apparent motive.

Working with Detectives Jackie Marius and Dan Dubrowski he must find a connection between the murders, and he must get into the mind of the killer to try to apprehend him before he continues his rampage.

This is a very complex story delving into the psychological problems not only of Kraag and the two detectives but also of the killer. The attempt to profile the killer threatens the stability that Kraag has struggled to maintain. The plot is well-constructed. The action moves at a suspense filled pace. The story is tense and emotion packed.