In this fast-paced psychological thriller, someone is brutally murdering female college students on Midwestern campuses. When a police sketch of the killer shows a remarkable resemblance to Ethan Hamilton, a prominent professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin who specializes in the psychopathic personality disorders, Ethan is at first a suspect. Initially cleared, he agrees to help the FBI hunt down the killer. The killings continue and Ethan begins having troubling dreams about the crimes, and other signs of severe stress. He quits his work with the FBI but gets drawn back into the hunt. A shocking development puts Ethan and his family in jeopardy.