Another re-read, though this one was apparently only five years ago. It seems longer. Minor spoilers ahead.

Right, the scene: Reece Gilmore is the lone survivor of a spree killing massacre. After recovering for being shot, she had a breakdown and spent time in a mental hospital. It’s been two years and she’s been traveling across the country on the run from her personal demons. When her car breaks down in Angel’s Fist, Wyoming, she’s low on cash. She sees a wanted sign in a local diner window for a cook and applies. The boss, Joanie, is a curmudgeon with a heart of gold and hire’s her with brusque and definite rules. It’s relatively easy work for a one-time gourmet cook.

The residents of Angel’s Fist are friendly folk who are kind to the new girl in town. Even Brody, the author-in-residence manages a kind word or two. Just as she’s starting to settle in the rhythm of things, Reece goes on a hike up a mountain trail and while looking through her field glasses, sees a man and woman arguing in the distance, across the river. The argument becomes are physical fight and the fight becomes a murder.

The first person she meets is ten minutes down the trail. Brody, who follows her to the spot and looks through the field glasses. He doesn’t see anything, but takes her down to his cabin to call the sheriff. No evidence turns up and no body either. The sheriff investigates not only the murder but Reece’s background. Reece realizes he doesn’t believe her; he thinks it’s a flashback to her previous trauma. The only one that seems to truly believe her is Brody.

The character of Reece is really compelling. A lot of broken-but-healing heroines in romance novels tend to be the survivors of domestic abuse. Reece is the victim of a truly horrific random act of violence that isn’t going to be resolved. Every day things can be hard for her to work her way through. She is paranoid and scared of a lot of things. She’s afraid of the dark, she’s afraid of closed spaces, she’s afraid the door might be unlocked, and she’s even afraid that she might lose her mind again.

The love of a good man doesn’t cure her, which I appreciated. Meeting Brody doesn’t make everything better. This novel is a mystery, a romance, and in its own way, a coming-of-age novel. Reece comes to the realization (a couple of times) that she’ll never go back to what she was before the massacre. She is one determined woman and I greatly admired her.

If you were trying to convince a mystery reader to start reading romances, I’d say this is a good one to start with. Give it a shot.