Carlton Palmer has come of age in uncertain times. His future is entangled with his burning ambition to get on in life, his love for two precious women and his survival instincts when faced with danger. The prospect of long-term unemployment in 1990s Birmingham looms as his best friend, Clifford, introduces him to a world of street hustling as a means to survival. The backstreets of England’s second city offer Carl a possible way out, though he soon discovers that he’s in way too deep.

Meanwhile, his love life takes him off into new territory, far outside his comfort zone, when he comes across a beautiful shop owner who has more faith in him than he would ever have imagined. Things get frosty between him and his childhood sweetheart as he turns his attention to this fascinating woman, who eventually persuades him to go into business with her.

Before long though, Carl finds himself staring down the barrel of a gun as he’s drawn deeper into a terrifying world of violence and deceit presided over by a man known as Judas. His Jamaican followers know no bounds when it comes to settling old scores…