'As his eyes adjusted to the light, what appeared at first to be a can of ivory-coloured sticks proved to be a can of disarticulated bones, some long and thin, flared out delicately at the ends, others roundish, like irregularly-shaped stones, and still others short, with conical tips. They were, of course, the bones of a human hand. If he'd counted, he'd have found twenty-seven of them - eight carpals, five metacarpals, and fourteen phalanges.'
Although officially retired, ex-Special Agent Pender can't ignore a plea for help from an old friend - especially when there's an all-expenses-paid vacation in the Caribbean attached.
Three corpses have been found on the island of St Luke - with one thing in common: the victims' right hands have been severed at the wrist. Desperate not to damage the lucrative tourist industry, St Luke's chief of police needs Pender's help to catch the killer they call the 'Machete Man' before he strikes again.
In the course of his long police career, Pender has encountered some dangerously warped and vicious criminals - but the truth behind the identity of the 'Machete Man' is stranger and more horrifying than anything he's come across before . . .
