It's the summer of 1953, and Elizabeth Grady is settling into Haggerman's Catskills Resort. Although her ostentatious but well-meaning mother is new to running the resort, Elizabeth is eager to help manage her, the guests, and the entertainment acts. But Elizabeth will have to resort to untested abilities if she wants to save her mother's business. When a reclusive guest is found dead in a lake on the grounds, and a copy of The Communist Manifesto is found in his cabin, the local police chief is convinced that the man was a Russian spy. But Elizabeth isn't so sure.