Rebel Angels, published in 2003, is the first novel by Massachusetts native James Michael Rice. It is the story of six teenagers whose lives are forever changed after they cross paths with a serial killer, thus unraveling the grim truth behind a local urban legend.

For more than a decade, "The Hacker" murders have haunted the residents of the small New England town called Hevven. Many residents quietly believe that the police apprehended the wrong man. But the suspect, a drifter who maintained his innocence until the bitter end, took his own life before the truth could be told. Some believe the real killer is still out there, preying on young women, though not so much as a shred of evidence has ever been found—until now.

Mike Swart, 18, is a natural born leader; strong, handsome, charismatic and the former star quarterback for his high school football team. One night, Mike is out joyriding with his friends when a chance encounter with a local cop causes the boys to seek refuge in an abandoned house. Inside they discover the mutilated body of The Hacker’s latest victim, and suddenly Mike Swart and his friends are thrust into a world they never knew existed – one of darkness, corruption, and deceit.

Now, wanted by the police for a murder they did not commit and stalked by a madman they cannot escape, Mike Swart and his friends make a desperate decision that will alter their lives forever.

They decide to flee.

At a remote cabin in the mountains of New Hampshire, six teenagers make a stand against an evil from which they cannot escape. But, can they survive long enough to prove their innocence?

A novel that offers suspenseful action and intense drama, Rice’s Rebel Angels is an emotional roller coaster that keeps the reader glued to its pages well into the wee hours of the morning.