This book rocketed its way to the top of my all-time favorite books list. It is absolutely brilliant. It’s not a new premise – death row inmates are offered a path to freedom by fighting other inmates to the death in a gladiator style arena – but Adjei-Brenyah has taken these games to new heights with his tortured characters, his footnotes that tether his not-so-unbelievable plot to real world issues in our mass incarceration system, and the shifting perspectives that provide a glimpse into the conflicted morality of the spectators. This is a redemption story like no other. It is a stunning, epic, and important book. I want this one to be on all the award lists this year.
–Becky, Secret Garden Books, Seattle, WA
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