Don Wilson, a successful mystery writer, and his brother Tom, a retired New York City police detective attend a writer's award show honoring a friend, Paul Connor, who is being honored that evening for being the writer of an award winning murder mystery novel. After speaking with the author Don becomes curious as to how Paul researched the three murders in the book and the towns associated with them. He is also on a deadline for his new book and decides to combine researching Paul's writing methodology with trying to find a new idea for his own into one road trip. Within a very short time the brothers trace the path Paul took during his research. After Don speaks with a detective in one of the towns Paul used as a model for a town in his book, the detective reads Paul's book and discovers there might be information in the book that was never released to the public. The detective contacts Paul to find out how that happened and while not accusing Paul of anything, insinuates he might somehow be connected to the murders that inspired the book. When Don and Tom return from their road trip a very upset Paul contacts Don, telling him about the detective's query. Don reassures him there is nothing to worry about and offers to do some research of his own to see if he can find the same information that concerns the detective. The trouble is, the more information Don discovers the more it looks like his friend, Paul, may be more than just a writer of fiction. How could Paul possibly know the closely guarded information included in Paul's book, and how can Don clear any suspicions regarding his friend?When two other murders which seem to relate to the ones in Paul's book turn up, every new scrap of evidence Don finds seems to point back to Paul Connor as the murderer. The more Don and Tom look into the murders the more the author becomes the prime suspect and Paul seems to have no defense for the accusations. Even when new clues begin to surface that might exonerate Paul from committing these crimes, Paul is still in the crosshairs as the person responsible for the deaths.What starts as a simple road trip for Don turns into much more than just a leisurely drive. From New York City to Utah and back, Don and Tom discover more than how Paul researched his book and more than Don thinking of any new ideas for his book. Don finds out that sometimes the old saying, "With friends like you, who needs enemies" is something he is going to have to remember.
