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Rochester, New York, 1999: An arsonist is loose on the streets of a city in decline. Gone are the days of Rioting in the Vomit Cruiser, searching for a possible Tokyo Rocking Horse. In this hilarious, wildly original debut novel, Nathan Gray and best friend Necro live by the code of Joke Royalty, a system of in–jokes known only to a select few. But as the reality of full–time employment, possible spouses, and Neo–Nazis encroaches, their friendship unravels, threatening their dreams of becoming Kodak Park Winjas.
Among the gravest Hellstacheries: Necro’s strangely vicious drawings and his sudden interest in a group of weapons enthusiasts who may or may not be responsible for the fires erupting through downtown. With no Holy Grail Points left to his name, Nate ventures into Rochester’s strangest corners to find out if his best friend is a domestic terrorist Pinning Bow Ties on the Dead or simply Maverick Jetpantsing on with his life—perhaps even beyond The City of Quality.
"Bill Peters belongs in the ranks of serious literary artists."—The New York Times Book Review, Editor's Choice
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
October 9, 2012 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781936787036
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781936787036
- File size: 1447 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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August 20, 2012
After graduating from high school on the eve of the millennium, childhood pals Nate and Necro lead a small band of friends through angst-ridden late-night crawls in decaying Rochester, N.Y., where Peters grew up. This proves to be a particularly dangerous occupation, as someone is blowing up local buildings in what is being called in some papers a "race-war amalgamation." The group's routine is cut short when, while exploring a derelict building, an explosion injures one of their own. Soon, a pattern emerges in the blazes, and someone in the group is implicated, threatening to blow the tight group of friends apart. Domestic terrorism, absent fathers, and real estate all play a part in the twists and turns leading to the truth about the fires. This story could have been disjointed, but Peters' prose is powerful enough to bring the reader along. A rich slang employed by the friends is a central feature of the novel. Such phrases as "Colonel Hellstache," "pinning bowties on the dead," and "fires gone wild Runaway Cockdrama" become a private language signaling the group's alienation from the Rochester community. They are the smart, weird, wounded boys of countless small towns. By turns funny and moving, this debut richly captures life in a decaying American city.
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