Larchfield is rocked to its core when its wealthiest and most powerful citizen is found dead. A preliminary analysis of DNA gathered at the crime scene points to Billy Tate, whose hatred for the victim was well known. Except that Tate fell from the roof of a local church and was declared dead by the medical examiner the day before the killing. When police rush to the mortuary, they discover Tate's coffin has been broken open from the inside, and the body is gone. A series of murders soon follow. Gun sales explode. Conspiracy theories and religious fundamentalism spread. His quiet retirement shattered, ex-NYPD detective Dave Gurney finds himself not only facing down a murderer, but struggling to restore order to the town rapidly spiraling out of control.