Payton's battle of the bands should mark the end-of-summer celebration and the engagement of her best friends, but finding a dead body in the town square ruins those plans. Madis has the misfortune of finding the councilman's dead body beside her landscaping truck, but she's much more unsettled by the fact someone used her shovel to murder him.

Randy Gowen leaves a life with more twists and surprises than anyone can expect, but it's anyone's guess who could have clocked him in the head with a gardening tool. Ex-wives unhappy about how he spent his money? Rivals competing in the local election? Angry business owners who disliked his decisions on the council?

After the only witness to the crime faces similar danger—and death—Madis worries that time is running out to find the killer, especially when a grand gesture of a proposal can't be delayed again.