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Miller's first novel is set in the pre-Civil Rights South of the 1960s. A young and inexperienced sheriff must find the murderer of a black prostitute. When a respectable white woman is subsequently killed, the small town divides along racial lines and the crosses start burning. Will our hero find the killer before the town is destroyed by racial intolerance?

Characterization: The author draws his characters primarily through their actions and dialog, and through descriptions of their surroundings. His characters interact frequently with members of the community, giving readers a chance to see how they are perceived.

Point of View: Omniscient. The author invokes two primary characters: the sheriff, and the librarian who helps him with his investigation. The author devotes chapters to each character, describing the world from alternate points-of-view.

Motivation: The sheriff is motivated to catch the killer and ensure his re-election-and to prove that he is not so young and inexperienced as he may seem. The librarian is motivated to help him because he, too, seems interested in justice, regardless of race. The killer's motivation is a fatal mixture of hubris and desire.

Conflict: There are two primary conflicts. The community wants the killer stopped; but more importantly, they want him to be black, and they want him lynched for killing a white woman. The larger conflict, therefore, is the racism and politics of the South: the sheriff knows that to find a black killer will damage the entire black community, but to find a white killer will be highly unpopular with his voters.

Dialog: The dialog between the main characters, and between themselves and the community, shapes the reader's understanding of the characters. Dialog does not advance the plot.

Imagery: The setting is a small town on the banks of the Cape Fear. Descriptions of homes, buildings and the town square remind readers that segregation was still very much in effect in the pre-Civil Rights South.

Symbolism: The author subverts traditional symbols to show a dysfunctional environment: justice should represent impartiality toward the killer's race, but does not; homes should represent sanctuary, but are unsafe; and the church should be a respite from politics, rather than the center of political machinations.

Tone: The tone of the imagery and dialog conveys the unease, insecurity, and underlying fear that envelops the town and its inhabitants.

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