A review by bites_of_books
Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Speculative fiction has always been a favorite genre of mine. Here we see what could happen when the private carceral system meets with sports entertainment. The US carceral system is incredibly unjust in reality, and those injustices are magnified in this novel. We follow multiple characters, from the famous Loretta Thurwar and Hamara "Hurricane Staxxx" Stacker, who fight to the death as part of the Criminal Action Penal Entertainment program, to those who are rabid fans of this new sport, and also to groups of protestors who are trying to remind everyone that they are cheering for humans to kill each other for sport. 

There are so many levels at which this novel works so well for me. The writing was really well balanced, both describing the horrors that the prisoners have to go through as well as diving into the psyche of each character. I'll be thinking about Simon J Craft for a long time. 

This novel also gives the reader snippets of the reality that people in the carceral system have to go through. From the abuse of guards and torture by isolation to signing documents that seal their fate without having proper defense. Adjei-Brenyah is one author that I'll be following closely and I definitely want to read his short story collection as well. 
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