Jesse Stone

The Paradise Men's Softball League has wrapped up another game, and Chief of Police Jesse Stone is lingering in the parking lot with his teammates, drinking beer, swapping stories of double plays and beautiful women in the late-summer twilight. But then someone makes a horrifying discovery at a nearby lake: At the water's edge, facedown, is something that used to be a girl. The local cops haven't seen anything like this, but Jesse's L.A. past has made him all too familiar with floaters. This girl didn't commit suicide and she didn't drown. She'd been shot and dumped, discarded like trash. Before long, it becomes clear that the young woman had a taste for the wildlife. Her own parents can't be bothered to report her missing or even admit that she once was a child of theirs. All Jesse has to go on is a school ring on a gold chain - and a hunch or two.

Police Chief Jesse Stone has a problem - actually, several problems: dead bodies keep turning up. A man takes his dog out for a run on the beach, only to be discovered later with two holes in his chest. A woman drives to the mall to purchase groceries and her body is soon found crumpled in a heap behind her loaded shopping cart. A commuter takes a shortcut home from the train but never makes it back alive. Investigating a serial killer in an affluent suburban town is difficult, and with the added pressures from the town selectmen and media, the heat is turning up on Jesse. The harder these outside forces push against him, the more Jesse retreats into himself. Despite all the odds, he's convinced it is up to him alone to stop the killings.