A teenage boy searches for revenge on the streets of Oakland The battle is nearly over. The outsiders—who came to Oakland looking for excitement—are about to get back on the highway and go home. But they hurt 1 of Zach’s friends, and he can’t let that stand. He hurls a chunk of concrete at their car, starting a fight that turns into a riot. The police flood the streets with teargas, and Zach gets lost in the chaos. In the melee, he finds something someone left behind—something that will poison his life. It’s a .38 pistol, and once he picks it up, he can’t let it go. Zach hates violence, but since he quit high school, he feels its power creeping into his life every day. When his father is shot during a robbery, Zach’s newly found pistol gives him the power to take revenge—if his heart will let him pull the trigger.
Michael Cadnum has had a number of jobs over the course of his life, including pick-and-shoveler for the York Archaeological Trust, in York, England, and substitute teacher in Oakland, California, but his true calling is writing. He is the author of thirty-five books, including the National Book Award finalist The Book of the Lion. His Calling Home and Breaking the Fall were both nominated for the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award. He is a former Creative Writing Fellow of the National Endowment for the Arts. Also a poet, he has received several awards, including Poetry Northwest's Helen Bullis Prize and the Owl Creek Book Award. Michael lives in Albany, California, with his wife Sherina.