Cover of Night by Linda Howard

After her husband dies, a young widow, Cate Nightingale, moves with her twin infant sons to the back of beyond town of Trail Spot, Idaho. Believing the move to this rural outpost from urban Seattle is in the best interests of her young family, Cate opens a bed and breakfast that caters to hunters, rock climbers and other tourists.

One day, a guest, Jeffrey Layton, apparently to avoid being seen by someone in the dining room, climbs out of his bedroom window, leaving his belongings behind. When he fails to return, Cate reports his disappearance to the local authorities, and then stores his suitcase and his shaving kit in her attic.

It turns out that Layton has taken something vital to the economic interests of local mobster, Salazar Bandini. The Chicago crime boss hires hit man, Yuell Faulkner to retrieve the stolen article. Faulkner sends two of his goons to Trail Spot and the Nightingale Bed and Breakfast.

Upon arriving at the rural B and B, the hired guns promptly take Cate and her friend, Neenah, hostage, demanding that Layton’s belongings be given to them. Local handyman, Calvin Harris, rescues the two women, and then sends the assassins on their way with Layton’s suitcase
Unfortunately, when the two killers search the suitcase, they do not find Bandini’s missing item. Realizing that the shaving kit was not included with the suitcase, they erroneously conclude that Cate has deliberately kept it from them. In order to get the kit, they hire local muscle and then place the town of Trail Spot under siege.

How Cate, ex-marine, Calvin and his former commander, Joshua Creed, band the citizens of Trail Spot together to resist the deadly assault makes for an exciting and fast-paced story. The plot is somewhat typical of the romantic thriller genre, yet the plight of the main characters engages your sympathy and holds your attention as the story unfolds. Additionally, the evolving romance between “silent” Cal and the lovely widow, Cate generates the right emotional sparks. Whether they are dodging bullets, climbing rocks, or enjoying a romantic interlude, the heroine, emerging from her grief to find happiness and the taciturn hero, saving the town by vanquishing the bad guys do not fail to please. Linda Howard’s Cover of Night is a light but entertaining novel.

Cover of Night by Linda Howard