From award-winning author Todd Strasser comes a gripping new novel that explores the struggles of war, the price paid by those who fight in them, and what it really means to be a hero. Jake Liddell is a hero. At least, thats what everyone says he is. The military is even awarding him a Silver Star for his heroic achievementsa huge honor for the son of a military family. Now hes home, recovering from an injury, but it seems the war has followed him back. He needs pills to get any sleep, a young woman is trying to persuade him into speaking out against military recruitment tactics, and his grandfather is already urging him back onto the battlefield. He doesnt know what to do; nothing makes sense anymore. There is only one thing that Jake knows for certain: he is no hero.

Hailed as a hero, twenty-year-old Jake returns to his pro-military hometown and family injured physically and emotionally, unsure if he can return to active duty but uncomfortable with the alternative.