A Black Cop Confronts the American Dream in T. Geronimo Johnson’s “The Occidental Book of the Dead” — See the Cover! (Exclusive)

T. Geronimo Johnson is back with another probing novel.

The bestselling author of Welcome to Braggsville will publish his new book, The Occidental Book of the Dead, this fall through William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at the cover.

The Occidental Book of the Dead follows George Washington Jonson, who leaves the Atlanta housing projects in which he grew up to pursue the life he’s always wanted. After serving in the U.S. Army, Jonson returns home and joins the police force, patrolling his former neighborhood with his partner. Now the 1990s, Jonson has created the fresh start he always craved, living with his White wife and stepson in one of the city’s rich suburbs.

But when an evening patrol leads to a violent confrontation with a White teenager, Jonson’s life begins to crumble. As the incident sets off a series of lies, Johnson must confront the experiences that have shaped him, as well as the broken system he exists within.

“A Black cop’s pursuit of the American Dream becomes a nightmare when he’s ensnared by colleagues — both Black and White — who use moral arguments to justify immoral actions in their quest for justice,” Johnson says of the novel in a quote shared with PEOPLE. “As innocent lives are destroyed, the quest for ‘justice’ is revealed to be nothing more than a vindictive power grab.”

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The acclaimed writer also explains that the book encapsulates many themes that will feel timely today.

“The story is also about parenting, friendship, marriage, love, public schools and credit card debt, but the sharpest edges for many readers might be the uncanny ways in which it reflects current headlines as well as the enormity of the illusions the main character must overcome before he can truly work for the common good,” Johnson says.

“It’s always exciting to see your book enter the world, but I’m less excited than I’d like to be because, although the story is set during the Clinton and Bush presidencies, the novel is painfully relevant (almost unbearably so) to our present moment.”

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Johnson’s 2015 novel Welcome to Braggsville was longlisted for the National Book Award, along with the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. He is also the author of 2012’s Hold It ‘til It Hurts, a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award.

The Occidental Book of the Dead will be published on Sept. 15 and is now available for preorder, wherever books are sold.