Arkansas By John Brandon

Arkansas is a biting first novel full of wet T-shirt contests, illicit drugs, and cross-country road trips. There are the the dappled grounds, the aimless yardwork, the hours in the booth giving directions to families in SUVs. And then there are the crisscrossing the South with illicit goods, the shifty deals in dingy trailers, the vague orders from a boss they've never met. Before Kyle and Swin can recognize how close to paradise they are in this neglected state park in southern Arkansas, the lazy peace is shattered with a shot. Night blends into day. Dead bodies. Crooked superiors. Suspicious associates. It's on-the-job training, with no time for slow learning, bad judgment, or foul luck.