Description:
The Talented Mr. Ripley meets the Wu-Tang Clan: An American Saga in this dark psychological thriller.
Thomas "Maz" Kincaid lives a lavish life as a rising rap star: money, influence, and fame. But Maz's success rests on a lie--his lyrics to his chart-topping album belong to someone else, his foster brother, Adonis.
Adonis, fresh out of prison is done watching his brother live off his talent and launches a calculated campaign of vengeance. But Maz won't let all he's worked for be taken away. He's willing to lie, manipulate, and even kill to protect the fraudulent life he's built.
As the rivalry escalates, the line between victim and villain blurs. With both men--damaged, cunning, and ruthless, locked in a psychological war where only one can survive the spotlight. Who will rule the stage, and who will end up in a grave?
Dark, complex, and suspenseful, All the Smoke is a cautionary tale, exploring identity, trauma, and the psychopathy behind stardom in the music industry.
Brief description:
Aaron Philip Clark is a USA Today bestselling novelist, screenwriter, professor, and host of The Culture Point podcast. He has a BFA in writing for film and television and an MFA in fiction. His fiction explores themes of race, marginalized characters, justice, identity, and redemption. He is the author of seven novels, including the International Thriller Writers Award-nominated Trevor Finnegan series: Under Color of Law, inspired by his experiences as an LAPD recruit, and the follow-ups, Blue Like Me, The Bluest Night, and the forthcoming, Blues for the Dead. Clark has collaborated on novels with entertainment mogul Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson (The Accomplice) and renowned civil rights attorney Ben L. Crump. A rising voice in neo-noir, Clark's work brings authenticity and literary flair to the crime genre. In addition to writing fiction and screenplays, Clark teaches a variety of creative writing courses at UCLA Extension and The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA). He resides in Los Angeles, where he finds inspiration while exploring the many facets of the city. For more information, visit www.aaronphilipclark.com and find him on social media @realapcbooks.
Review Quotes:
"Aaron Philip Clark has written a novel that challenges us about our ideas about success ambition and who we are when we give in to our darkest impulses. All the Smoke is a propulsive terrifying descent into the depths of madness. Not to be missed!" -- S.A. Cosby, New York Times bestselling author of King of Ashes
"Aaron Philip Clark keeps it real in this twist-and-turn revenge saga." -- Teri Woods, New York Times bestselling author of True to the Game II and True to the Game III
"Aaron Philip Clark does it again! A propulsive page-turner, All the Smoke brings the pain, the poetry and the promise, and just like good hip-hop, smashes it between dread and hope. A brilliant read!" -- Rachel Howzell Hall, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Mist and Malice and Fog and Fury
"From the first page to the shocking ending, All the Smoke is a riveting psychological thriller." -- Bakari Sellers, New York Times bestselling author of My Vanishing Country
"All the Smoke will end up your favorite rapper's favorite novel. Maz The God's saga is a hip-hop love letter, powerful exploration of toxic ambition and examination of the meaning of family all expertly woven together by Aaron Phillip Clark, with prose as slick and lyrical as his protagonist's pilfered bars." -- James Queally, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author of acclaimed Russell Avery novels
"Aaron Philip Clark has created a mystery masterpiece that is cinematic in scope filled with unforgettable characters." -- Blair Underwood, award winning actor, and author of A Soldier's Wife
"With the intensity of a Dr. Dre beat, All the Smoke by Aaron Phillip Clark mastermixes hip-hop culture with gritty noir fiction as it chronicles the doomed lives of rap obsessed foster brothers Maz and Adonis. Clark's cinematic, fast-paced prose takes the reader on a rough ride through hood life and the music industry that they won't soon forget." -- Michael A. Gonzales, Pioneering hip-hop journalist, and CrimeReads contributor