Gravesend
William Boyle

Ray Boy Calabrese is back in Gravesend: some people worship him, some want him dead ... but none more so than the ex-con himself.

Ray Boy Calabrese is released from prison 16 years after his actions led to the death of a young man. The victim's brother, Conway D'Innocenzio, is a 29-year-old Brooklynite wasting away at a local Rite Aid, stuck in the past and still howling for Ray Boy's blood. When the chips are down and the gun is drawn, Conway finds that he doesn't have murder in him. Thus begins a spiral of self-loathing and soul searching into which he is joined by Alessandra, a failed actress caring for her widowed father, and Eugene, Ray Boy's hellbound nephew.

'Gravesend is a taut exploration of the ways we hurt and save (or try to save) one another. With unforgettable characters, a fist for a plot and a deeply evocative setting, Boyle navigates alleys and streets with the best of them, Lehane, Price, and Pelecanos.' — Tom Franklin, author of Poachers, Hell at the Breech, Smonk, Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, and The Tilted World

'Gravesend is a book that hits you in the guts the same way David Goodis or Charles Willeford's books do. Boyle's mining that dark edge of America where no one is safe, not even from themselves. A dark ride but a seriously great ride.' — Willy Vlautin, author of The Motel Life, Northline, Lean on Pete, and The Free