Christmas has come early to Paterson, New Jersey, in the form of a storm that dumps two feet of snow on the ground. When lawyer Andy Carpenter's golden retriever, Tara, goes to play in the snow and instead discovers a body, Andy calls the local newspaper editor. The murder victim is Mayor Alex Oliva, who had an infamous relationship with the newspaper. Last year a young reporter published an expose, and Oliva had him fired for libel. In this 24th outing (after Dog Eat Dog), the reporter—and prime suspect—is in need of a lawyer, and Andy is close at hand.