The Payback is a delight that inspires hope that it’ll motivate someone to take on the monumental task of erasing everyone’s debt.
The Payback, a novel by Kashana Cauley, has genuine similarities to our current world. It’s our world, with a possible worsening, and stellar wish fulfillment. The initial pacing feels slow, but it soon speeds up as readers connect to the trio of Black women plotting a heist to erase their debt. Full of wit that shines, frustration that leaves you seething, and hope, the book is an outstanding must-read. The Payback is a delight that inspires hope that it’ll motivate someone to take on the monumental task of erasing everyone’s debt.
Readers experience the world via Jada Williams, a Black woman stuck in retail hell at the beginning due to her unfair ousting from the movie industry. Working at a clothing store, she makes the acquaintance of two coworkers, punk-rocker Lanae and tech-savvy Audrey. While they are not great friends at first, they find common ground as the turquoise-clothed Debt Police pursue them. What follows in Kashan Cauley’s book is a spectacular plot to end everyone’s debt. None of what transpires feels fantastical. That’s why the story is so engrossing.
The Payback Makes You Connect With Each Sister
Often in a story, it’s easy to connect with one character overall. But with Kashana Cauley’s story, there’s a resonance that reels readers in to each distinct character. Parts of them feel familiar either from us or someone we know. Jada’s love of 70s style, combined with Lanae’s punk rock music, and Audrey’s fitness kick, is my personal makeup. The characters do not feel like one person split into three. Each woman has particular traits and tastes that separate them, creating a memorable character.
Yet, the humor and witty repartee present only come from the Black experience. There is comedy that only we can fully understand and appreciate. So, the jokes between them hit differently depending on the experiences of the reader. It’s a wonderful experience when a story feels made for you. The Payback delivers that with a wicked delight.
All Too Real and Possible
Debt Police beating up people who owe money is not impossible. Debtors’ prisons were once a commonplace and acceptable form of punishment for people—often the most disenfranchised—who could not afford to pay back what they owed. Plus, a little digging shows there are people who still wind up jailed for owing money. Police brutality is common—the book even references the questionable death of Sarah Bland (RIP).
So, the Debt Police feels terrifyingly possible. As such, parts of The Payback are difficult to get through. It’s possible. It happens. People watch police brutality unfold and often do nothing, save for filming if that. Plus, struggling to pay debt is viewed as an individual failure. People look down on them. Thus, it ignores that many people are one missed paycheck away from the same.
It’s not only that which makes the story realistic, but also hearing certain verbatim phrases. From the debt police saying the fix to paying your debt is forgoing avocado toast to the school scam that taking out loans that you’ll wind up paying off for decades is you “investing in yourself,” the novel immerses readers in a familiar world. While removing student loan debt seems unlikely in this way, it’s possible as well. There are plenty of skilled hackers in the world.
A Dynamite Addition to Any Collection
The Payback is special, reminding me of The Blackening and Sinners, where it has a universal appeal, but still with a focus on our community. Black women having to save themselves, yet the rest of society benefiting from their efforts is an added touch of recognition. The initial drag disappears as quickly as it arises, and what you’re left with is an addictive page-turner. Kashana Cauley’s The Payback is a realistic piece of fiction that shows the positive outcome is possible and helps readers escape into a world where immense debt no longer hangs like the proverbial albatross around our necks. An insightful, fun, and inspiring read.
