When a rash of murders sweeping the city goes unsolved, Monk is called upon to find a correlation with the victims and stop a killer before he strikes again.

When his paperboy is murdered, Monk turns to the pages of the newspaper for clues to solve the baffling crime.

A law student promises to get Monk reinstated to the police force in exchange for his help in finding the kidnappers of her beloved grandmother.

Monk takes a new medication that alleviates the symptoms of his obsessive-compulsive disorder but impairs his ability to solve crime.