Disgraced journalist Max Raban is reduced to raking though bins for celebrity stories, a thankless task that suits him because of his phobia of daylight. His condition has already driven his wife and daughter away and he's desperate for a real story. When he uncovers the murder of two Iranian cousins, Max starts to suspect that there is a death squad at work, targeting pro-Islamists and backed by an organisation bent on waging perpetual war. Is Max an investigative journalist at last?