A New York Times The Best Crime Novels of the Year A New York Times Notable Book of the Year “As everything goes up in flames, Mayfield leans all the way into the discomfort zone" - Sarah Weinman, The New York Times "A fresh and fierce new voice to crime fiction. .. a stunning book that takes the reader on an intense and harrowing journey that is truly unforgettable. Consider me a big fan." — Don Winslow , New York Times bestselling author of The Cartel, The Force and City on Fire "Jahmal Mayfield roars to the top of the writer-to-watch list with this sizzling debut. Smoke Kings is straight fire. Every page simmers with an undercurrent of rage, each line a hard dose of smoldering truth. I can't wait to see what Mayfield does next." - Eli Cranor, Edgar Award Winning Novelist of Don't Know Tough In the vein of Get Out and Razorblade Tears , a feast of noir fiction and probing social commentary that asks us to consider what would happen if reparations were finally charged and exacted. Nate Evers, a young black political activist, struggles with rage as his people are still being killed in the streets 62 years after Emmett Till. When his little cousin is murdered, Nate shuns the graffiti murals, candlelight vigils, and Twitter hashtags that are commonplace after these senseless deaths. Instead, he leads 3 grief-stricken friends on a mission of retribution, kidnapping the descendants of long-ago perpetrators of hate crimes, confronting the targets with their racist lineages, and forcing them to pay reparations to a community fund. For 3 of the group members, the results mean justice; for Nate – pure revenge. Not all targets go quietly into the night, though, and Nate and his friends' world spirals out of control when they confront the wrong man. Now the leader of a white supremacist group is hot on their tail as is a jaded lawman with some disturbingly racist views of his own. As the 4 vigilantes fight to thwart their ruthless pursuers, they’re forced to accept an age-old truth: "Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves." Smoke Kings is a powerful and propulsive novel with a diverse and unforgettable cast of characters. Like Steph Cha’s Your House Will Pay it explores decades of racial tensions through a fictional landscape where the line between justice and revenge is blurred. A New York Times The Best Crime Novels of the Year (So Far) A New York Times Book Reivew 9 Books We Recommend This Week ELLE Magazine's The Best Mystery and Thriller Books of 2024 A T he Times Best Thrillers for February 2024 A Mystery Tribune 32 Best Crime, Mystery and Thriller Books: February 2024 An Apple Debut Pick February An Amazon Editors Best of Month in Mystery, Thriller & Suspense A CrimeReads Most Anticipated Crime Fiction of 2024 A Kirkus Most Anticipated Books of 2024 "Can there ever be restitution for the harm done to generations of Black people in America? Jahmal Mayfield, in his debut novel, takes this question to a provocative extreme." - The New York Times "Fearless writers like Mayfield are a good sign that the truth will remain… A THRILLING LOOK AT VIGILANTE JUSTICE” — The Washington Post “Provocative… Mayfield examines the issue of prejudice and justice from all sides… (a) chilling debut thriller.” — LA Times "At once a blistering thriller and a probing look at pervasive societal fractures in the U.S., Smoke Kings announces itself as one of the most electrifying novels of this year." - Toronto Star "A debut novel boiling over with intensity and ingenuity...This sharp book balances nuance with exhilaration, and doubt with anger, warding off platitudes in its search for a deeper, knottier truth." - ELLE Magazine "Jahmal Mayfield delivers a bold, provocative and at times uncomfortable debut that sharply looks at race, loyalty and the consequences of revenge in the action-packed Smoke Kings ." - South Florida SunSentinel " A fresh take on current events and history, mixed with social commentary. It’s a fast-paced story of twisted altruism that is not only entertaining but also thought-provoking." - The Christian Science Monitor "Smoke Kings holds its nerve to the very bitter end, proving that race has some way to run as a theme in contemporary thrillers." - The Times "In Mayfield’s self-assured & righteously furious debut...tough, muscular prose infuses the novel with a beautiful darkness as the characters struggle in ways that will hopefully have the reader thinking too." — CrimeReads "[A] powerful debut... This is an excoriating account of open wounds in US race relations." - Monocle "[A] powerful debut...propulsive narrative, lucid prose, breakneck pacing, and confident handling of controversial subject matter make him a writer to watch." — Publishers Weekly, STARRED Review "A bravura debut ... A provocative, page-turning treatment of racism in America ... rarely captured as powerfully or af