The once promising author Jacob Fintz Boner teaches in a creative writing graduate program, struggling to salvage what remains of his self-respect as he has not published - or even written - anything worthwhile in years. When Evan Parker, the most arrogant of his students, declares that the novel he is writing will ensure him enormous success, Jake thinks it's just a typical case of an amateur's narcissism... until he hears the plot.

Within a few years, all of Evan Parker's predictions for the success of his story come true, but the author enjoying unprecedented fame is Jake. But at the height of his glory, he suddenly receives a laconic message: You are a thief!

Who is the sender threatening him? Who was Evan Parker ultimately and where did he get the idea for this plot, which was a sure ticket to success? What story is hidden behind his novel and who stole it from whom?