Tourist Season Summary: A Dark, Addictive Serial Killer Romance
A Dark, Addictive Serial Killer Romance
Tourist Season by Brynne Weaver is the first book in The Seasons of Carnage Trilogy.
This summary breaks down the plot, characters, themes, and ending without personal commentary.
The story follows Harper Starling, a gardener and part-time serial killer in Cape Carnage, Maine, and Nolan Rhodes, a man hunting the driver who killed his brother.
The novel blends dark romantic comedy with revenge, memory loss, and small-town secrets.
👉 Watch on YouTube: Tourist Season SummaryÂ
TL;DR: Two Predators, One Bloody Vacation
For hurry readers, here is the high-level snapshot without spoiling the final reveal.
- Harper Starling kills predatory tourists in Cape Carnage, Maine, and feeds the remains to her raven Morpheus.
- Nolan Rhodes arrives to hunt the driver who killed his brother, convinced that driver is Harper.
- A reluctant alliance forms around protecting Arthur Lancaster and driving an amateur investigator out of town.
- Their stalking and blackmail turn into intense physical attraction and a shared understanding of violence.
- The story ends on a cliffhanger with an identity reveal and a larger threat closing in on the town.
Tourist Season Summary: A Deadly Maine Courtship
Spoiler Warning: This section reveals the ending and major plot events.
Set in Cape Carnage, a remote fishing village in northern Maine, the town profits from its shipwreck history and macabre tourist attractions.
Harper Starling works as gardener for Lancaster Manor and uses a blue woodchipper called Cookie Monster to kill predatory tourists. She feeds the remains to her hand-raised raven Morpheus.
Nolan Rhodes arrives from Tennessee. Four years earlier, a hit-and-run killed his brother Billy, and Nolan has already murdered every occupant of the car except the driver, whom he believes is Harper.
After a staged meeting in a coffee shop, he identifies her and begins his hunt.
Nolan leaves a severed head in Harper’s bird feeder, but she responds with mild annoyance and retaliates by stealing his murder-trophy scrapbook and weapons from his hotel room.
This creates a stalemate because Nolan wants the scrapbook back to protect his family from the truth of his identity.
A new threat emerges when Sam Porter of the Sleuthseekers arrives to prove Arthur Lancaster is the serial killer La Plume.
Harper blackmails Nolan into helping protect Arthur and drive Porter out of town in exchange for the scrapbook. They begin exhuming sixteen bodies Arthur buried on recently sold land.
Their nightly work turns animosity into attraction. After Harper accidentally drugs Nolan with psilocybin-laced fake blood, their relationship becomes physical.
They see each other as two predators sharing the same darkness.
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During the Carnival of Carnage festival, Sam reveals he knows Harper’s true identity. Harper’s race car malfunctions and she plunges off a cliff into the sea. Nolan rescues her and performs CPR, and he admits to himself he loves her.
Arthur, disoriented by Alzheimer’s, murders a tourist in the cemetery. While preparing to dispose of the body, Nolan is ambushed and kidnapped by Sam.
Harper tracks them to the abandoned distillery and saves Nolan; Sam falls from a railing and dies or is severely incapacitated.
Nolan finds a vehicle identification number on a submerged van and learns the woman he hunted is actually Autumn Bower, not Harper Starling.
The real Harper died in the hit-and-run, and Autumn assumed her identity to disappear.
The book ends with the Sleuthseekers mobilizing, while Sheriff Yates, revealed as La Plume, murders Sam’s assistant Vinny and frames the scene.
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Summary by Chapter
Spoiler Warning: This section groups chapters by narrative movement and includes major plot details.
The Arrival and the First Threat (Chapters 1–7)
Harper is introduced as the protector of Cape Carnage, disposing of predatory tourists while caring for Arthur, whose Alzheimer’s is worsening.
Nolan arrives with a scrapbook of death and targets Harper as the woman who destroyed his life. Their initial coffee shop encounter carries a dangerous attraction that masks their shared identity as predators.
The Alliance Takes Shape (Chapters 8–15)
Nolan reveals himself with a gruesome gift, and Harper steals his murder trophies and weapons. They form a reluctant partnership when Sam Porter investigates Arthur as La Plume.
The two killers begin exhuming bodies to hide Arthur’s past, finding that their shared darkness creates unexpected intimacy.
Desire, Danger, and the Festival (Chapters 16–24)
Tension between revenge and desire peaks as Nolan and Harper move from enemies to lovers. Harper nearly dies in a sea-bound accident during the town festival, forcing Nolan to choose between his mission and her life.
This section focuses on their defenses crumbling and their bond solidifying.
Revelations and New Enemies (Chapters 25–Epilogue)
Arthur commits a fresh murder, leading to Nolan’s abduction by Sam. Harper rescues Nolan in a violent finale at the distillery, and the town’s deepest secret is exposed: Sheriff Yates is the real La Plume.
Nolan learns Harper’s true identity as Autumn Bower, and the book ends with the Sleuthseekers preparing to descend on Cape Carnage.
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Characters In Tourist Season
| Character | Role |
|---|---|
| Harper Starling (Autumn Bower) | Gardener for Lancaster Manor who kills predatory tourists and hides the remains. |
| Nolan Rhodes | Search and Rescue specialist from Tennessee who hunts the driver he blames for his brother’s death. |
| Arthur Lancaster | Elderly owner of Lancaster Manor with Alzheimer’s who has buried bodies on his land. |
| Lukas Lancaster | Arthur’s grandson and Harper’s friend who is restoring the town distillery. |
| Sam Porter | Investigative filmmaker and founder of the Sleuthseekers who comes to expose the Lancaster family. |
| Sheriff Yates | Local sheriff who appears inept but is revealed to be serial killer La Plume. |
| Morpheus | Harper’s pet raven that aids in disposing of human remains. |
| Vinny | Sam Porter’s drone operator and assistant. |
| Billy Rhodes | Nolan’s brother, killed in a hit-and-run that drives Nolan’s revenge. |
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Tourist Season end?
Tourist Season ends with Nolan discovering that Harper is actually Autumn Bower, a missing social media influencer who survived a different serial killer; the real Harper Starling died in the hit-and-run. The novel closes on a cliffhanger as the Sleuthseekers mobilize and Sheriff Yates, revealed as La Plume, kills Vinny and frames the scene.
Is Tourist Season part of a series?
Tourist Season is the first book in The Seasons of Carnage Trilogy by Brynne Weaver. It ends on a cliffhanger that sets up the next installment.
Does Tourist Season have a happy ending?
Tourist Season does not have a fully resolved happy ending; Nolan and Harper survive and admit their feelings, but the Sleuthseekers are closing in and a new threat emerges. The final scene involves Sheriff Yates framing a murder scene.
What genre is Tourist Season?
Tourist Season is a dark romantic comedy with elements of romantic suspense and new adult college romance. It combines graphic violence, dark humor, and a central romance between two serial killers.
Who is La Plume in Tourist Season?
La Plume is the serial killer identity of Sheriff Yates, not Arthur Lancaster. The epilogue reveals that Sheriff Yates has killed Vinny and staged the scene to protect his killing spree.
