One psychopath. One killer. The Stabber.

Six victims. Six wife-abusers. Each stabbed to death through their left eye.

The cobbled lanes and back streets of St Andrews provide the setting for these brutal killings. But six unsolved murders and mounting censure from the media force Detective Inspector Andy Gilchrist off the case. Driven by his fear of failure, desperate to redeem his career and reputation, Gilchrist vows to catch The Stabber alone.

But what is the significance of the left eye? How does an old photograph of an injured cat link the past to the present? And what exactly is our little group? Digging deeper into the world of a psychopath, Gilchrist fears he is up against the worst kind of murderer. A serial killer on the verge of mental collapse.

Can Gilchrist alone unravel the warped mind of a crazed killer? Can he alone work out where the next victim is to be slain? With reckless resolve, Gilchrist risks it all in a heart-stopping race to catch The Stabber, knowing that any mistake could be his last.

When DCI Andy Gilchrist is called to a crime scene on the Old Course of St Andrews to find an amputated hand clutching a note addressed to him, a note that contains only one word - MURDER - he is pulled into an investigation that will test him to the limit. 

When more single word clues are found along with other amputated body parts, the murderer's vengeful intent becomes all too clear.  But when someone close to Gilchrist disappears, he realizes he has not acted soon enough.  Together with Nance Wilson, the sexy DS with her own agenda, Gilchrist battles on, only to discover that the answer to the present murders lies within the secrets of the past.

Forced to confront his demons, Gilchrist must solve the cryptic clues before the next victim, a woman whose life means more to him than his own, is served up piece by slaughtered piece.