oysterkatcher 's review for:

The Payback by Kashana Cauley

3.75

adventurous dark funny medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: N/A

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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Kashana Cauley rips into capitalism in this sarcastic, funny novel about a trio of friends so degraded by their shitty retail jobs and the ever-looming threat of the Debt Police that they come up with the ultimate solution: a heist to erase their student debt. Think Welcome to Night Vale vibes, without the magical realism/surrealist horror perspective. I really enjoyed it! I wish we got a bit more involved with the three characters, we really only get Jada's perspective, and

the heist itself doesn't really come into planning/fruition until the end of the novel, which feels like a missed opportunity

. I absolutely recommend for the scathing commentary!

Massive thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an Advanced Reader's Copy of this novel! The Payback is set to release on July 15th, please check it out!