Broiler
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
The troubles of two desperate families—one white, one Mexican American—converge in the ruthless underworld of an Arkansas chicken processing plant in this new thriller from the award-winning author of Don't Know Tough.
Gabriela Menchaca and Edwin Saucedo are hardworking, undocumented employees at the Detmer Foods chicken plant in Springdale, Arkansas, just a stone’s throw from the trailer park where they’ve lived together for seven years. While dealing with personal tragedies of their own, the young couple endures the brutal, dehumanizing conditions at the plant in exchange for barebones pay.
When the plant manager, Luke Jackson, fires Edwin to set an example for the rest of the workers—and to show the higherups that he’s ready for a major promotion—Edwin is determined to get revenge on Luke and his wife, Mimi, a new mother who stays at home with her six-month-old son. Edwin’s impulsive action sets in motion a devastating chain of events that illuminates the deeply entrenched power dynamics between those who revel at the top and those who toil at the bottom.
From the nationally bestselling and Edgar Award–winning author of Don’t Know Tough and Ozark Dogs comes another edge-of-your-seat noir thriller that exposes the dark, bloody heart of life on the margins in the American South and the bleak underside of a bygone American Dream.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The grim realities beneath the surface of an Arkansas poultry plant are exposed in this gut-punching Southern noir that will make you think twice about your next chicken dinner. When the ruthless plant manager’s quest for promotion collides with the desperate struggles of undocumented workers Gabriela and Edwin, Edwin is pushed past his breaking point. A shocking act of revenge soon ignites a powder keg of violence and moral compromise. Author Eli Cranor’s razor-sharp words cut deep, unflinchingly exposing the brutal realities of America’s food industry, while his nuanced characters confront impossible choices that challenge our notions of right and wrong. The expert pacing masterfully ratchets up the tension with each turn of events, while vivid sensory details immerse us in the sweltering, feather-filled world of industrial chicken processing. Blending heart-pounding thrills with sharp social insights, Broiler is a searing indictment of power imbalances and the true cost of cheap meat.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Edgar winner Cranor (Ozark Dogs) delivers another top-notch Southern noir, this time centered on two families who cross paths at an Arkansas chicken processing plant. Luke Jackson hopes his successful efforts to increase productivity at Demter Foods' largest poultry facility will land him a promotion. His ambition comes at the expense of his overworked employees, who aren't allowed overtime pay or bathroom breaks. After Gabriela Menchaca becomes so dehydrated it causes her to miscarry, her partner, Edwin Saucedo, organizes a strike and files complaints with the company against Luke. When Luke fires Edwin in retaliation, putting his and Gabriela's already fragile finances in further jeopardy, Edwin devises a desperate plan to win his job back and pay his rent. Before long, that scheme—which targets Luke's wife and young son—leads to devastating violence. Cranor depicts the inhumane conditions of America's industrial food system with a vividness worthy of Upton Sinclair, and he matches the novel's gritty realism with an anguishing and suspenseful revenge plot. Cranor continues to impress.
