When Stewart Vogel is paroled in August of 1983, after spending twenty-five years in the Eddyville Prison in Kentucky, he is mildly surprised, but grateful, for his freedom. Though serving a life sentence for committing a homicide during a felony, Vogel has always maintained his innocence and has been a model prisoner. In this fast-moving novel, full of new turns at every corner, we follow the adventures of newly-paroled Stu. As an ex-Marine who served in the Korean War, Stu leaves prison with three hundred dollars and a modest trust fund, established by his mother. His dreams are to see his sister and her two children, do some boating, and visit a loyal friend in Florida. Within weeks of being paroled, Stu enjoys what may seem like a Tom Sawyer adventure, down the Mississippi River, never knowing that someone wants him returned to prison.