On the border between the necropolis of Colma, home to over two million dead souls and 1,794 somewhat live ones, and the Silicon Valley bedroom community of South City… Allen, a workaholic Silicon Valley techie, seeks relief from domestic conflict by slipping away to sample the sweet brews at McCoy’s, a mysterious pub and Hell’s Angels hangout… while up the street, young adults Rad and Tawny drift between the worlds of skateboarding and community activism, free love and commitment. Sampling Buddhism and squabbling with the relatives, they avoid thinking about the 15-foot Burmese python in their garage. The drama in the two households unfolds separately until the end of the novel when both meet up in a whirlwind of family dysfunction and evil.