Conspiracy theories and government distrust is at the heart of this book. Beau Borken is a young, confused man who watches his father fall apart after losing his farm to the bank. Borken was troubled before this time, but when his father loses his farm and kills himself, Borken decides the government is to blame. Borken gathers together all of his trusted friends and runs away from California in order to regroup and find a way to get back at the government that ruined his family. At the same time, Borken has become a member of a network of groups who believe that the American government is trampling on its citizen's rights and using their authority to undermine innocent people.