The Shotgun Rule

Four friends go looking for a little trouble—and find it—in this “dark but brilliant portrait of the way many teenage boys live in America” (The Washington Post Book World), from the acclaimed author of Caught Stealing.

“[An] unforgettable blend of humor and horrific violence.”—Chicago Tribune

“[The Shotgun Rule is] Greek tragedy on speed.”—San Francisco Chronicle

Blood spilled on the asphalt of this town long years gone has left a stain, and it’s spreading. Not that a thing like that matters to teenagers like George, Hector, Paul, and Andy. It’s summer 1983 in a northern California suburb, and these working-class kids have been killing time the usual ways: ducking their parents, tinkering with their bikes, and racing around town getting high and boosting their neighbors’ meds. Just another typical summer break in the burbs. Till Andy’s bike is stolen by the town’s legendary petty hoods, the Arroyo brothers.

When the boys break into the Arroyos’ place in search of the bike, they stumble across the brothers’ private industry: a crank lab. Being the kind of kids who rarely know better, they do what comes naturally: they take a stash of crank to sell for quick cash. But in doing so they unleash hidden rivalries and crimes, spilling dark secrets that the town—and their own families—would rather stay buried.