Matthew Scudder is finally leading a comfortable life, one of stability and respectability— even the New York streets don't look so mean anymore. He's married to a woman he loves, and wonder of wonders, he's actually gotten around to becoming an officially licensed private investigator. Then all hell breaks loose. Matthew' s best friend from Hell's Kitchen asks for his help, and Scudder' s world is suddenly turned upside down once again. Instead of a beautiful world where old neighborhoods are being spruced up, Scudder discovers he's living in a war zone, and New York is a random universe where no one's survival can be taken for granted— not even his own.