Brandon Blake is a young boatbum in Portland, Maine. Orphaned when his mother was lost at sea with the crew of a sailing yacht, Brandon was raised by his alcoholic grandmother. He learned early to rely on no one and depend only on himself.
 
Brandon sets out to become a cop, to work in a world where there are rules and clear lines between right and wrong--he thinks. He soon runs afoul of two vengeful hoodlums, a young woman and aspiring writer who seems to care for him, or at least his stories. And then his dark past comes very much alive.
 
This is the first in the Brandon Blake series, by the author of the Jack McMorrow mysteries.