But it doesn't work that way. When a young Native American woman comes to him asking for help, McKnight feels bound to protect her. He ensconces her in an unoccupied cabin that he owns -- and finds her gone the following morning.

McKnight is convinced that the woman's ex-lover, a particularly vicious member of the reservation hockey team, who McKnight outfaced in a recent game, has kidnapped her. Fearing for her life, he begins a frantic search, swatting away his self-appointed "partner" -- the town's favorite fool -- until the man surprises him. It's a search that leads to encounters with a variety of unsavory types, each with his own agenda, and to some extremely unpleasant discoveries by McKnight himself as he forcibly learns that criminal sadism knows no geographic boundaries and that the motives of both good and evil people can lead to disaster.

The response to Alex McKnight's first appearance was rousing cheers. Readers were delighted to be in at the start of this beautifully written series with its engaging hero, colorful cast, and edge-of-the-seat action hot enough to melt the freezing Michigan winter at its worst.