The Summer Guests

The Summer Guests opens in July 1972. Officer Randy Pelletier is eating breakfast at the Marigold Café in Purity, Maine, a small vacation town on the coast. He reads the newspaper and notes the number of vacationers who have been charged with minor infractions like public drunkenness, which is typical for the time of year. Just then, two out-of-towners come in wearing leather jackets. Randy thinks they look suspicious, but before he can approach them, a truck driven by a local man named Sam Tarkin crashes into several pedestrians on Main Street. Randy goes to assist, approaching Sam, who reaches for Randy’s gun and shoots him.

50 years later, a group of retired CIA agents who live in Purity, Maine, gather. These former agents—Maggie Bird, Declan Rose, Ben Diamond, and Ingrid Slocum—call themselves the Martini Club, and they are at Maggie’s house for their monthly book club meeting. Maggie is a devoted birder, and she has selected that month’s book, The Genius of Birds. As they sit outside, Callie, a 14-year-old girl who lives next door, waves at the group while walking her goats and cow to the barn. They wave back.