For Cass, it is a place to escape the dull grind of her lonely life, where she can run its twisted laneways and live out her violent fantasies.

For Detective Poe, it is a beat to walk, a dark and dangerous environment in which to hunt down clues and get closer to whoever, or whatever, is haunting its streets.

For Adlai, sitting drunk in a bar on the border between the River and the real world, it is a place to watch his creation transform from a theatre of heroism into, hopefully, something more vital.

While these three stories intertwine throughout the novel, one thread binds them all: a nightmare vision stalking the streets. A rogue musical virus infects its users and feeds on their fears, growing stronger with each kill.

Originally designed to take down the corporate powers of the Grid, a powerful governing entity on the banks of the River, the weapon has gone rogue. It now harvests any user it encounters, threatening to collapse the entire structure of the River itself.

As they face this escalating threat, each character is altered and drawn into the lives of others, all searching for something real to hold onto in a world of technology and fantasy.