Synopsis:

Perhaps one reason not enough people kill billionaires is it’s actually quite tricky…

An electrifying, ultra-contemporary heist, a wild and hilarious story that is also dangerously prescient.

When her home is destroyed in wildfires, fourteen-year-old Australian outback genius Kayla Connolly decides to hunt down the culprits of climate change: billionaires.

She teams up with Mr P, a giant ex-soldier from Tuvalu whose home is being flooded by rising sea levels. Together, they find ingenious ways to kill a property developer building on protected wetlands and a mining company CEO poisoning the earth with toxic chemicals. They also find an unexpected ally in Nancy, a wealthy elderly woman with a shocking past.

The trio’s mission soon develops a life of its own, taking them first to California to crack billionaire tech bros and then to London for superrich oil executives, spawning a global movement along the way. In pursuit are the FBI and Detective Sergeant Kate Anderson of Scotland Yard, but Kate is having doubts about whether Kayla is even in the wrong. Will Kayla be able to stay ahead of the game and pull off one final, remarkable hit?

Review:

How far would you go to secure a future where climate change might be rectified? Kayla is only 14, yet she is willing to go to the greatest length – murder. Her home is gone, destroyed by a catastrophic wildfire made worse by climate change. The targets? Billionaires with no regard for the damage they are wreaking on the world.

As soon as I saw the title for this book, I knew I wanted to read it. As you know by now, climate fiction is something I like to read, and this one promised to be quite different to the rest. It did not disappoint!

Dripping with irreverent humour, it’s an almost satirical take on a climate revenge novel. You don’t need to look too deeply, however, to see the real and very serious message. Climate change is destroying the planet, and it is fuelled by the richest of us. It is very much set in the present world, and it was quite easy to imagine the events actually happening today.

Kayla was an interesting character to follow, witty and very intelligent. She seemed wise beyond her years at times, but there was always a reminder that she was just a child filled with anger. There are a couple of other POVs (though Kayla’s dominates), and I especially liked reading the contrasting view of Nancy, who grew up among the billionaires.

This book is absolutely not subtle about what it’s trying to say, and I commend the author for writing it! Sometimes you need a book that is blunt, and willing to provoke. I’m very curious to see what more people think about it. I found it both cathartic, bleak and humorous all at the same time.

Thank you to @vintagebooks for sending me a copy!