James McCloud always believed his father committed suicide after being diagnosed with terminal cancer. Now, eight years after going missing, his police officer father's body has been found. The evidence leaves no doubt: Daniel was murdered. James, a Seattle D.A., returns to Cold Falls, New York, to be with his family. His mother, Ada, seems worn out and blank with disbelief. James's brother, Billy, is twenty-one, gay, and even more troubled than James remembers. His sister Celeste's husband, Nate Derry, is the town sheriff charged with investigating the case, and the mistrust that has hovered between them--ever since James dated Nate's stepsister Nancy years ago--still exists. When James's high school ring is discovered with Daniel's body, making him the prime suspect, the McCloud and Derry families are both thrust into controversy and chaos.