Cordell Burgess is the writer Jack Mathis has been waiting for--a genius who crafts fiction of gripping intensity and powerful insights. But the young Chicago book editor doesn't even know Burgess's name. The mysterious author lives in a rural farmhouse far from the skyscrapers of the North Loop, mailing in his stories anonymously. When Jack decides to dig a little deeper, he doesn't like what he finds.

Burgess is a serial killer. Committing brutal murders inspires him to write his extraordinary fiction. He feels that he has found a kindred spirit in Jack and puts in motion a series of events to lure his unsuspecting editor into a creative partnership, one from which Jack--and those closest to him--may not emerge alive.

How far will Jack go in his desire to own the next Cordell Burgess story...and the next one...and the one after that...?

"The most frightening novel I've read this year "
Chris Rickert / Rickert & Beagle Books