Garbage Town

2026 IPPY Awards Silver Medalist in Suspense/Thriller Fiction

2026 National Indie Excellence Award Double Winner: Action/Adventure and Teen Fiction

2025 Silver Winner for Mystery - Foreward INDIES

Winner of the Next Generation Indie Book Award (Action/Adventure)

Shortlisted for the Eric Hoffer Award 2026

2026 Gotham Book Prize Finalist

Amazon Bestseller

"Original, compelling, emotionally engaging, skillfully crafted, and a thoroughly entertaining read from cover to cover.” - Midwest Book Review

“Gupta evokes the time and place with sharp details and plenty of wit. . . An immersive teen adventure as big and eclectic as a Staten Island landfill.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Garbage Town abounds with sharp dialogue, strong pacing, and heaps of heart . . . Period references will ping millennial nostalgia radars, but they never feel belabored. This work pulses with charm, suspense, and strong local color.” — Publishers Weekly BookLife Review (EDITOR’S PICK)

"Garbage Town is a coming-of-age tale flavored with mystery, adventure, and thrills. This is a story about growing up, friendships, and the hardships that many teenagers have to overcome when unwittingly thrust into the world of crime, childhood abuse, and violence. If you love coming-of-age stories, this one's a must-read!" —Readers’ Favorite (FIVE STARS)

A group of 90s teens unearth buried truths and embark on a fight for their lives

Raj Patel grew up in the shadows of Fresh Kills, the largest landfill the world has ever seen. At sixteen, he's watched the Staten Island crime family extend its tentacles to all aspects of his town’s lucrative trash business, but he's always kept his distance from their dirty trade.

That is until Raj and his friends unearth a dark secret at Fresh Kills. Now they must choose between self-preservation and the pull of justice. With the burden of caring for his family and the determination to protect those around him, Raj plunges headfirst into the dark secrets that lie just beneath the surface of the dump. The more Raj and his friends dig, the more they risk. Soon, they’re in way too deep, and the line between hero and fool starts to blur.

In Garbage Town, Ravi Gupta spins a tale that blends the heart-pounding adventures of a mystery novel with the intimacy of a coming-of-age story. Follow Raj and his friends as they decide who to trust and whether to risk everything.