Sun Li, a young, brown skinned detective of uncertain ancestry is on his first major investigation. A young man has been found dead at a local hot springs resort in rural Mendocino County in northern California. After a perfunctory investigation the Sheriff and Coroner have concluded that he died of an overdose of heroin. Sun is hired by the dead man's father who doesn't believe that his son would have taken heroin. He takes the case but with trepidation since he has never handled such an investigation where he is pitted against the local authorities. Sun is assisted by a young lady who is also of mixed but known ancestry-- part Mexican, Filipino and Pomo Indian. She has aspirations to be a detective herself and by carefully following the case is able to point out leads Sun is overlooking. Pursuing the case the two become immersed in the primary business of the county-the growing and marketing of marijuana. As they dig into the investigation, they discover that they are threatening people in the county who are willing to injure or even kill to get them to quit. But Sun, the classic "soft-boiled" detective, together with his strong willed lady friend, persist to the surprising and dramatic conclusion of the case. The story is played out in the beautiful and weird county of Mendocino with its rugged and remote landscapes and its diverse and quirky population of whackos, pot growers, aging hippies, back-to-the-landers, old cowboys, Indian survivors, and deranged scholars who have taken refuge in these hinterlands.
