The Rent Collectors
Exploitation, Murder, and Redemption in Immigrant LA
by Jesse Katz
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Pub Date Jul 16 2024 | Archive Date Jul 02 2024
Astra Publishing House | Astra House
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Description
Baby-faced teen Giovanni Macedo is desperate to find belonging in one of LA’s most predatory gangs, the Columbia Lil Cycos—so desperate that he agrees to kill an undocumented Mexican street vendor. The vendor, Francisco Clemente, had been refusing to give in to the gang’s shakedown demands. But Giovanni botches the hit, accidentally killing a newborn instead. The overlords who rule the Lil Cycos from a Supermax prison 1,000 miles away must be placated and Giovanni is lured across the border where, in turn, the gang botches his killing. And so, incredibly, Giovanni rises from the dead, determined to both seek redemption for his unforgivable crime and take down the gang who drove him to do it.
With The Rent Collectors, Jesse Katz has built a teeth clenching and breathless narrative that explicates the difficult and proud lives of undocumented black market workers who are being extorted by the gangs and fined by the city of LA—in other words, exploited by two sets of rent collectors.
Marketing Plan
MARKETING AND PUBLICITY PLANS • Cover reveal on Astra House social media • National media campaign including print, online, radio, TV, and podcasts • Pitch for feature stories and profiles • Select local author events including independent bookstores and festivals • Target outreach to publications and reviewers focused on true crime, social justice, economic issues, organized crime, Hispanic/Latino culture and issues • Op-eds by author around current events • ARC giveaways
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781662601736 |
| PRICE | $28.00 (USD) |
| PAGES | 320 |
Links
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Brendan D, Reviewer
This book is great for true crime nerds but the exact opposite for California tourism. The Rent Collectors by Jesse Katz follows the journey of Giovanni Macedo as a member of the Columbia Lil Cycos. It's not a spoil.er to mention some of the low-lights of Giovanni's gang career since they are in the summary. He botches a murder and ends up killing a newborn only to have his own murder at the hands of his fellow gang members get botched as well. It's enough to make you wonder why they are so bad at crime.
Katz does a great job explaining gang life while juggling an insane amount of characters. He mostly sticks to the facts of the story and criminal cases but will dip now and again into social justice commentary. The commentary sections are few and far between. They are so short that I am not even sure Katz was trying to change the reader's mind but merely just trying to plant a seed. In any case, if you are interested in true crime and specifically gang crime, then this is an excellent read.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Astra Publishing House.)
