On the surface, things appear tranquil in Moose County. Jim Qwilleran, newspaper columnist and the county's richest resident, has moved back in to the remodelled apple barn with his two remarkable felines, Koko and Yum Yum. And the newly built gazebo is providing an idyllic opportunity for all three to commune with nature.

But then an elderly woman dies in a suspicious fire. Next, the newly opened art centre falls victim to a mysterious break-in. Throw in a scandal involving an unscrupulous local politician and an anti-computer uprising at the town library and life in Pickax is anything but peaceful ...