The possibility of drilling for oil in an Alaskan wildlife preserve near the home private investigator Kate Shugak has battle lines drawn. When a ranger loses his job for political reasons and a passionate conservation spokesperson is found poisoned, the war begins in earnest.

"'... though there is no fixed line between wrong and right, There are roughly zones whose laws must be obeyed.' ... It is New Year's Eve, nearly six weeks into an off-and-on blizzard that has locked Alaska down, effectively cutting it off from the outside world. But now there are reports of a plane down in the Quilak mountains. With the National Transportation Safety Board unable to reach the crash site, ex-Trooper Jim Chopin is pulled out of retirement...

Kate is investigating a murder committed in Niniltna community where she lives, by Louis Deem who has managed to avoid justice for past crimes.

Aleut private investigator Kate Shugak and Alaska State Trooper Liam Campbell--the heroes of "New York Times" bestseller Stabenow's most beloved series--team up for the first time ever when Liam needs Kate's help to clear his wife of the murder of a wealthy aviation entrepreneur.

On the first day of spring a young man?s fancy turns to thoughts of massacre when he takes a .30-06 and kills nine of his neighbors in the Park. Or did he kill only eight? And if so, who killed the ninth victim, and why? It?s up to Kate to find out.