Matt Maxwell spent a lot of time wondering if he should change his first name to Former: Former Marine. Former minister. Former husband. Former son and sibling. Because one by one, he'd lost them all. After losing his wife to his church deacon, he'd filled his battered military duffel with a few meager possessions, gassed up the ancient motorcycle willed to him by his beloved grandfather, and put Baltimore in the Harley's rearview mirrors.

He's been on the road more than a year when, on an uncharacteristically cold and snowy Texas night, the Sportster breaks down along the Interstate. Out of luck and nearly broke, he's lured by a spinning, bright-yellow sign that says SUNDOWN DINER. Inside, he's welcomed by the owners, the town's three-man sheriff's department, and a mechanic who thinks he can fix the old bike.

Icy weather and the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday make that impossible, though, and Matt finds himself stranded in Reliable, a place that seems to live up to its name, until escaped prisoners, an ailing pastor, and a newspaper job to pay for lodging at the All Tuckered Out Inn seem determined to keep him from his destination-anywhere that isn't Baltimore.

Once the Harley is roadworthy, will he put Reliable behind him, too?

Or does God have other plans for the down-on-his-luck pastor?