At the Mexican-American border, the two orphans Lalo and Rafa find themselves caught in a deadly war. The Rio Grande separates worlds. North of the river lies the Texan city of El Paso, while south of it is its Mexican sister city, Ciudad Juárez. On the American side of this border, Lalo and Rafa grow up in an orphanage. The two 15-year-old friends are searching for their path. While Lalo aspires to become a sicario, a killer for the drug cartel in Mexico, Rafa dreams of studying. As Lalo increasingly sells himself to the cartel, their friendship is put to a severe test. Werner J. Egli once again demonstrates that a young adult novel can tackle very tough themes with great benefit for its readers.