A serial killer stalks the streets of Liverpool. He brutally rapes and murders hapless women as they walk alone in the night. The city lives in fear, the media are rising a veritable storm of hysteria and the police seem powerless as they continually fail to make any progress with their investigation. Action must be taken, quickly, the killer must be stopped before making his next deadly move. Enter John Rook, newly promoted Detective Inspector. For years, this ambitious lawman had been forced to squander his talents on small town criminals in some forgotten corner of Shropshire. Out of his depth and desperate to make a name for himself, John must bring the killer to justice whilst teaching his greenhorn partner what it really means to serve the law.