After Chris Landrum survives the first hurricane to hit Folly Beach, South Carolina, during this century, he breathes what he is about to discover to be an overly optimistic sigh of relief. When the body of his acquaintance Lester Patterson is discovered- with an arrow plunged straight through his heart-Chris's formerly peaceful retirement on the tiny barrier island suddenly goes from bad to worse.

With the help of his remaining quirky acquaintances, Chris launches a relentless mission to stop an imperfect murderer who has already made one critical error in judgment. A weird boardinghouse and a country music bar are all that connect the victims-and now it is up to Chris to determine which one of his misfit friends is the killer and which one is vulnerable enough to be the next victim. Is it Country Cal, a washed-up musician; Harley McLowry, whose name matches his '99 Road King Classic; or songstress Heather Lee, whose friends think a half-dead hog carries a better tune than her?

When Chris discovers the police chief is bent on running him off the island, he soon realizes there will be no shortage of roadblocks to finding a ruthless killer who will stop at nothing.