When the amiable and mysterious Charlie Kelly wanders into the oil boomtown of Bluff Falls, North Dakota, it takes less than twenty-four hours for the body count to start. Driven by motives known only to himself, Charlie charms, punches and detonates his way through the stark landscape and filthy back alleys of a town surviving solely on oil money. From bar parking lot to strip club to trailer park, Charlie's warm smile and friendly candor hides a vicious vendetta. Charlie eludes police and plays a complex game of cat-and-mouse with meth dealers and killers alike culminating in a series of climatic showdowns that shake the ground itself.