Retired covert operatives living in a small town in the Smoky Mountains. What could go wrong? From the bestselling authors of Agnes and the Hitman and the Liz Danger series.

Rose Malone’s landlord and employer, Ozzie Oswald, just died, and now she has no idea if she has a job or if she and her daughter, Poppy, have a place to live, and that’s on top of the arrest warrant that’s been out for her for nineteen years. Then a stranger shows up claiming to be Ozzie’s son and tries to throw her out, so she swings a reproduction of the Maltese Falcon at him, and just as she’s about to finish him off in a rage, somebody grabs him and throws him into the street.

Max Reddy just wants his boots. He’s walking the Appalachian trail with his dog Maggs and stopping for them in Rocky Start when he sees a feisty middle-aged woman swinging a Maltese Falcon at a guy who backhands her. Max throws the guy into the street and continues on his way, determined to get his boots and get out of town, even if Feisty is pretty cute. He’s been alone on the Trail a long time. Some trees are looking good to him.

All Rose wants to know is what’s going on, so she follows Max to the post office, no ulterior motive, honest. Except to pick his pocket to find out who he is, then he can go. But by nightfall, she’s invited him under her roof for her own protection since they’re dealing with a town full of retired spies, including a sly-eyed moocher, a suspicious sheriff, a knife-wielding bakery owner, a strange woman who looks like a vampire, a conniving teenager, and a dog who’s decided she’s done with the Appalachian Trail. And Max is starting to think his dog is right.

The thing with reading Crusie and Mayer is that they are obviously each writing specific parts. Mayer writes the male POV and the action. Crusie writes the really good stuff.

One of the things I love about Crusie's writing is that her heroines are all strong but through the course of the story they have to grow, they need to become the even stronger, more independent versions of themselves. When a Crusie heroine falls in love, she saves him more often that he saves her.

Max and Rose are a great couple. But what becomes even better about the books as they continue is that the community that is Rocky Start needs to pull together to really save themselves and much of the focus of the story in book three becomes more about the next generation and how they deal with both the trauma the town has visited upon them as well as they knowledge that they need to bring the town forward.

So I jumped forward. The books are on a story arc that the reader isn't really aware of until book 3. Beginning the story with Max showing up in the small town of Rocky Start which is a town full of ex-operatives and previously guarded by Oz, who has died when the story begins, and Pike, former Ops partner.

Rose, our heroine has been living in Oz's home, working at his store and raising her daughter Poppy. Rose is a people pleaser. A little bit lost. A whole lot of scared.

The story develops with Rose and Max coming together but Max is on track to finish the Appalachian Trail. Rose needs to figure out her life without Oz (and with Poppy becoming an adult). 

Bad things happen. Rose starts to lose her desire to please others and starts concentrating on who she really wants to be. Poppy is kidnapped and threatened and the PTSD she experiences puts her on a similar track as her mother. What does she need? What will make her happy?

By the third book families have changed. People have died. Some people have left town. Those who remain have to decide if they're willing to fight for their community, their neighbors and themselves. And despite the violence and mayhem, love and family and community are the most important part of the story. People find themselves, their homes and who they love by risking everything.

I love Jennifer Crusie. Everyone is redeemable and those who reject redemption get what they deserve.