A dark, brutal, and captivating story of a mid-level rural crime family dealing in catalytic converters, pills, meth, and whatever else they can stake a claim on in a dry, dusty, and fire-prone inland area in California. Luke is the estranged son of the currently incarcerated head of the family. He drops out of college and has no better idea than to move back home to the family compound where he is treated with suspicion until he can prove himself.
The author must have spent some time in prison or with prisoners (and with crime families?) to have such seemingly realistic depictions of life inside and out.
Well written and well narrated, I was uncomfortable at times to be inside the heads or homes of some of these characters. I will definitely be reading more books by Jordan Harper!
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook for review purposes. Publication date: Nov 19, 2024.

This book managed to be very well written, full of violence and evocative imagery, and unbelievably boring. I made the mistake of listening to the audiobook while driving, and even on 3x speed, I nearly had to pull over. I imagine that anyone who likes The Godfather would probably like this.

I’m a big fan of Jordan Harper’s other books and was excited for his new one. In this one, the son of a crime “king” returns to his home and family after years of estrangement (and battling serious PTSD) reclaim his position. The audiobook narrator did a great job with the different POV characters. The author also included Easter eggs alluding to the his other novels which I enjoyed. Overall, I found the characters and story engaging but it didn’t quite land the same punch as Harper’s other crime novels.

This book was fantastic. Jordan did a beautiful job writing this story! I loved every part of it. The characters were so beautifully portrayed. Wonderful job!