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Chain-Gang All-Stars

'America's new Hunger Games' SUNDAY TIMES

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Chain-Gang All-Stars

By: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Narrated by: Shayna Small, Michael Crouch, Lee Osorio, Aaron Goodson
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About this listen

Welcome to Chain-Gang All-Stars - the popular and highly controversial programme inside America's prison system. In packed arenas, watched by millions of live-stream viewers, prisoners compete as gladiators for the ultimate prize: their freedom.

Fan favourites Loretta Thurwar and Hamara 'Hurricane Staxxx' Stacker are teammates and lovers. Thurwar is nearing the end of her time on the circuit, free in just a few matches, a fact she carries as heavily as her lethal hammer. As she prepares for her final encounters, as protestors gather at the gates, and as the programme's corporate owners stack the odds against her - will the price be simply too high?

 Dystopian Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Political Satire Science Fiction Scary Thought-Provoking

Critic reviews

Criminally entertaining.
Adjei-Brenyah's acerbic vision lands like a lightning bolt of truth.
Grimly funny, epically violent and - at times - surprisingly tender. Quite the ride.
Magnificent. A radical interrogation of incarceration, racism, entertainment, the whole fabric of American injustice, as well as a pure fire page turner. (Max Porter, author of SHY)
A sort of The Hunger Games meets Gladiator meets WWE meets the modern private prison system.
Like Orwell's 1984 and Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Adjei-Brenyah's book presents a dystopian vision so upsetting and illuminating that it should permanently shift our understanding of who we are and what we're capable of doing... Shockingly intimate and moving.
Compelling... The range of different narrators provides a smart 360-degree perspective of the too-familiar society that demands murder for entertainment.
A brutal, heart-wrenching story that feels so close to reality.
A hugely imaginative read - the world-building is masterful... Unmissable.
One of the most exciting young writers in America. (George Saunders, author of LINCOLN IN THE BARDO)
All stars
Most relevant
Absolutely LOVED this dark, gritty, gripping action thriller. The narrators were beyond excellent- storyline unpredictable and I simply didn’t want it to end when it ended. Expecting a sequel!

Gripping ‘page turner’

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This book is special and the narrators do an amazing job! Social commentary at its best.

This book is special

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What initially may feel like a very on the nose take on ultraviolence and the justice system finds nuance along the way. With a number of compelling characters and themes well narrated, it made a compelling listen.

Don't dismiss it as heavy handed

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A truly gripping listen that kept me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions! It was read really well, and I really enjoyed the different narrators. They were needed to help break up the jumps to different characters in the book.

Really strong start, the middle was slow and at times I did find it disjointed, the way it jumped to different characters. But the end was powerful and tragic and I’m so glad I stuck with it.

Bloody and brilliant

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Truly an excellent book. Grabs you in chapter one and never let's go. Even when you've finished it. This is a book with something to say and it isn't going to blink, hesitate or apologise for saying it. In fact it'll give you footnotes in case you try to blink. Cannot decide if I'd like to see a sequel. But I will read more by the author.

Oh. Wow

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