by Ethan Canin
First published 2010
Orno Tarcher steps off the train in New York City with Missouri dust still on his shoes and his family's small-town expectations weighing on his shoulders. The city overwhelms him until he encounters Marshall Emerson, a magnetic New Yorker from a sophisticated family who seems to possess everything Orno lacks. Marshall draws Orno into his world of privilege and possibility, but beneath his charm lies something darker. When both men fall for the same woman, their friendship fractures along the fault lines of class, ambition, and desire. Orno must choose between the safety of his Midwest values and the dangerous allure of Marshall's universe. The novel examines how friendship and rivalry intertwine, how fathers shape sons, and how the pull between ordinary life and grand dreams can destroy what we hold most dear.
Genres: literary-fiction, american-fiction, 20th-century, contemporary, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Missouri, New York City
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
352 pages · Paperback · Random House Publishing Group