One sultry, summer night in Florida in 1979, the three young Barton brothers hop into the family station wagon and head out for a night on the town. Fueled by high hopes, hormones, and alcohol, their adventure takes a dangerous turn when they stumble into a violent situation that changes the very nature of their familial relationships. In the months and years after, the brothers set out on disparate paths and find themselves scattered—is the pull of family enough to keep them together? This is the first book in a two-part series. The second is ONLY THE TRYING.