"There's something wrong with this place." Several seemingly unrelated stories, all set in a western, modern, futuristic town in the middle of a frosty Summer, unfold about an unassuming poet, Judas Iscariot, who lost his parents as a child and drinks milk alone in his apartment above the town's saloon. One story is set in two frames of time as Judas is feverishly attempting to solve violent murders in a suddenly booming Clock Shop, another story involves a Wolf and a form of secret communication through a Wastebasket (all in the form of one, epic poem), and yet ANOTHER story takes place on a gallant pirate spaceship, crossing multiple dimensions of time and space. However, the one story that binds them all together is a mere love story that is stock full of dangers and impossibilities, all to meet a single end that will tie up a saga of heartache and unrealistic injuries, all taken by a slightly chunky and incredibly deadly poet.