After fleeing the States, ex-homicide cop Mitch Sharp now has a great life as a commercial photographer in a Costa Rican resort town. He describes his new life in picturesque Quepos with a local saying, pura vida, “this is living.” His comfortable existence in the expatriate art community is shattered when someone begins attacking women and cutting them with a razor-like knife, deliberately splattering their blood on nearby walls. The local police are loath to investigate. The Latin macho society wants to ignore the socially uncomfortable crimes against women. Mitch is also reluctant to help, thinking he left that life behind. When the attacks escalate to murder, and Mitch's new love is targeted by the slasher, he can't avoid being drawn in. Isolated in a foreign country, Mitch must combine an unusual team of ex-pats with his investigative and photography skills to stop the killer from striking again.