It's only F.X. Shepherd's second day on the job, writing about pets for at the infamous tabloid the New York Mail. In this series debut, Shepherd accidentally finds himself on the trail of the Hacker, a serial killer targeting unpleasant celebrities in inventive—and sometimes decorative—ways. As bodies and suspects accumulate, he finds himself running afoul of cutthroat office politics, the NYPD, and Ginny Mac, an attractive but ruthless reporter for a competing newspaper. Worse, Shepherd may be next on the Hacker's list.