Broiler

Edgar winner Cranor (Ozark Dogs; Don’t Know Tough) returns with a timely thriller that shines a light on the hidden and often-demonized underclass of immigrant meat-packing workers who keep the United States fed. Gabriela and her boyfriend Edwin have worked as undocumented laborers at Luke Jackson’s chicken plant in northwest Arkansas for seven years, processing thousands of broilers a day for little pay and no bathroom breaks. While Gabby plans for a future far beyond Detmer Foods, Luke strives for a coveted promotion, and his wife Mimi tends to their infant son and her growing postpartum depression. These two couples, who might as well occupy different universes for how rarely they interact, are brought into sudden and violent conflict when Luke fires Edwin to impress his higher-ups, leading Edwin to hatch a desperate scheme that will allow him and Gabby to truly begin their lives together. Edwin’s act of revenge is unforgivable, but Cranor’s ability to find the humanity in all his characters will keep readers from losing sympathy, and his unshakable depiction of the brutal conditions in the chicken plant would make Upton Sinclair proud.