Desperation Reef

Twenty-five years ago, Jen Stonebreaker watched her husband, John, drown at a major surfing contest called Monsters of Mavericks. Today, Jen runs a bar in Laguna, CA, and has twin sons. Casey, the kinder, laidback son, has a beloved dog named Mae. Brock is the more violent son, who also happens to be a preacher of his own religion. When Casey films some people illegally cutting fins off of sharks in the ocean, these people threaten him, but Casey still shares the video online. Later, these same people offer to buy his mother’s bar because of its prime location in Laguna. Dognapping, arson, and violence follow the Stonebreaker family as they prepare for the next big surfing event. Parker (The Famous and the Dead) uses his personal knowledge of surf culture to build a fast-paced, if somewhat predictable story. The brothers’ differences are vast, but both are protective of their mother as she trains for her first surfing contest since her husband’s death.