A small Southern college is shocked by the brutal murder of an eccentric student obsessed with Richard III and the occult. As rumors spread, Dr. Emily Goldman, Professor of Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Studies, is once again called upon to assist campus police and local law enforcement in their investigation. Along with her former student and protege Jud Sharp, Dr. Goldman puts herself in harm's way as she explores the world of snake handlers and drug dealers in the mountains of Northeast Alabama.