No Neutral Ground (Paperback)

Allen C. Ward

ISBN 13: 9798295612640

Published by Nlc, 2026

About this Item

Paperback. No Neutral Ground is a short literary novel about the quiet moments where loyalty, ambition, and identity collide-and the cost of choosing to stand still.Jamal is moving forward.At work, he's earning responsibility. In love, he's learning how presence matters more than promises. But where he comes from still calls him-through old friendships, familiar streets, and obligations that never asked permission to linger.As Jamal tries to balance his future with the gravity of his past, he's forced to confront an uncomfortable truth: some relationships don't end with conflict-they end when one person stops carrying what was never theirs to begin with.Set between unnamed neighborhoods known only as the Heights and the Hills, No Neutral Ground resists easy geography in favor of emotional terrain. The novel explores masculinity without bravado, community without nostalgia, and growth without triumph. There are no villains here-only people making choices under pressure, and the silence that follows those choices.Written in spare, restrained prose, No Neutral Ground examines what it means to show up, to step back, and to accept that not every door closes loudly. Some simply stop opening.This is a story for readers drawn to interior tension, moral ambiguity, and the spaces between words-where staying can be just as dangerous as leaving No Neutral Ground is a quiet, intimate novel about loyalty, restraint, and the moment choosing yourself becomes unavoidable. This item is printed on demand. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9798295612640

Bibliographic Details

• Title: No Neutral Ground (Paperback)
• Publisher: Nlc
• Publication Date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 13: 9798295612640
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

There are moments when staying feels like loyalty.

And moments when it becomes a risk.

No Neutral Ground is a short literary novel about the spaces we outgrow—and the people who don’t come with us.

Jamal has built a careful life: long hours in a professional kitchen, nights at an open mic, a relationship that asks him to be present in ways he’s never practiced. But the neighborhood that raised him still pulls at his ankle, and a childhood bond refuses to loosen its grip.

As pressure mounts, Jamal is forced to confront a quiet truth: you don’t always leave places behind. Sometimes they stop holding the door open.

Written with restraint and emotional precision, No Neutral Ground explores loyalty, ambition, masculinity, and the cost of choosing yourself when there’s no clean way out.