The first book of McClelland's Gangster Rising saga follows 12 year old Denny through his summer of exile at his Grandma's house while his parents contemplate divorce. Denny is at a crossroad in his young life. He has grown up surrounded by criminals, his father a degenerate drunken gambler, his parents' friends a collection of thieves, hijackers, and loansharks, his Godparents a mob boss and his wife, his Uncle a pimp and even his Grandma is a bootlegger. Denny seems predestined for a life of crime. But the summer of 1959 offers Denny choices in the form of two new friends. First there is Timothy; the perfect boy with a perfect family who is destined for university and a perfect life. Yet always at his side is Frankie; a boy whose highest ambition is to one day be a gangster and work for Denny's Godfather. Denny envies Timothy's family, yet finds excitement as he learns to be a criminal in his own right with Frankie at his side, and together they form the 7th Avenue Gang. In the midst of his moral tug-of-war, Denny falls in love with Carrie; a broken little girl whose sweet innocence captures his heart and will hold it tight for all of his days. Where does Carrie fit into the choice he must make? What will Denny do as he learns alarming secrets about his own family, and sees the crumbling dark side of perfection?

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