Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Chain-Gang All-Stars follows Loretta Thurwar and Hamara “Hurricane Staxxx” Stacker, two imprisoned women competing as stars of the Chain-Gang All-Stars, the most popular attraction in CAPE—Criminal Action Penal Entertainment. In this brutal, gladiator-style system, prisoners fight in deadly arena matches for the chance to win the ultimate prize: their freedom. Thurwar and Staxxx, lovers as well as teammates, are the program’s fan favorites, but the cost of survival is steep.

With only a few matches left until she earns release, Thurwar begins to reckon with what freedom really means—and how she can honor the humanity of the Links she’ll leave behind. But CAPE’s corporate leaders will do anything to protect their profits, creating dangerous obstacles with devastating consequences.

Told from multiple perspectives, the novel exposes the deep ties between mass incarceration, systemic racism, and unchecked capitalism. Fierce, inventive, and unflinching, Chain-Gang All-Stars is a powerful examination of justice, humanity, and the meaning of freedom in modern America.