'Susie Hollins may have been no great shakes as a karaoke singer, but I didn't think that was enough reason for anyone to want to kill her.' Charlie Fox makes a living of sorts teaching self-defence to women. It's a skill she picked up of necessity having been kicked out of the army for reasons she prefers not to go into. So when Susie Hollins is found dead only a few hours after she mistakenly tussles with Charlie at the New Adelphi Club, Charlie knows it's only a matter of time before the police come calling. Only the police reveal that the unlucky Hollins has become the latest victim of the homicidal rapist stalking the local area. Charlie finds herself inadvertently drawn into the investigation when the Adelphi's enigmatic owner Marc Quinn offers her a job. Viewed as an outsider by the existing all-male security team, her suspicion that there is a link between the club and the serial killer doesn't exactly endear her to anyone. Charlie has always taught her students that it's better to run away from a danger than fight unnecessarily. But when the killer starts taking a very personal interest in her it becomes clear that he isn't going to give her that option ...