Kate Hollister has worked hard to build the life she always wanted. As an analyst in a federal law enforcement agency, she's become an expert in researching crime and criminal behavior. From the safety of her cubicle, it all seems predictable and manageable. After her latest heartbreak, Kate looks for a way to escape the confines of her sedate, comfortable life and jumps at a chance to work in the field.

Kate goes undercover as Kate Sooner in Lawless, a remote mountain town in northern California. In a run-down trailer park on the outskirts of town, Kate works to infiltrate a small-time drug ring purportedly run by her new neighbor, Stoney Randall. Though she doubts the value of pursuing such a minor criminal, Kate befriends Stoney's girlfriend, Sierra Finn, and her best friend, Maggie Herndon.

Kate soon finds that Lawless more than lives up to its name. Everywhere she turns, she finds drugs, stolen goods, creepy criminals, mysterious animal disappearances, and the overwhelming odor of marijuana. The crime behind the data she manipulated so easily in the office turns out to be a lot more complicated now that she's in the middle of it.