From the author of 36 Streets, the thrilling, Aurealis and Ditmar Award–winning story of escape as a small-time crook goes on the run across Australia with a stolen secret that will change the world. Perfect for fans of William Gibson's All Tomorrow's Parties, Richard Morgan, and Ghost in the Shell.

Jackson Nguyen is a petty crook living slim on the mean streets of Melbourne. When he crosses paths with a desperate but wealthy Chinese dissident begging for his help, Jack responds in the only natural way: he steals her shoes.

And yet, despite every effort to mind his own damn business, a wild spiral into the worst kind of trouble begins—murder, mayhem, fast cars, bent cops, and long straight highways into the terrible beauty of the vast Australian Outback.

In Jack's world, taking a stand against the ruling class is the shortest path to a shallow grave. But when an earth-shattering technology falls into his hands, he must do everything he can to stop the wrong people taking it. In a world of pervasive government surveillance and oppressive corporate control, it's up to a small-time criminal to keep the spark of human rebellion alive.