Great Black Hope

The precision and ecstasy of Rob Franklin's prose had me entranced. Great Black Hope marks the arrival of a breathtakingly talented writer. — Megha Majumdar, New York Times bestselling author of A Burning

An arrest for cocaine possession in the Hamptons on the last day of a sweltering summer leaves Smith, a young Black Queer graduate, in a state of turmoil. He finds himself in an absurd but dangerous situation: his class protects him but his race does not. Just weeks before, his beloved roommate Elle died and he is still reeling. How well did he know his closest friend and what really happened to her the night she disappeared? Will his search for the truth cost him his freedom and his future?

Fleeing to his hometown of Atlanta and the generations of his family who are doctors, college presidents, and lawyers, Smith is haunted by the weight of expectation. When Carolyn, the closest friend he has left, goes off the rails, he must return to New York only to lose himself in his old life, drawn back into the city's underworld.

Great Black Hope is a propulsive, glittering story about what it means to exist between worlds, to be upwardly mobile yet spiralling downward, and, ultimately, how to find a way back to hope.

Great Black Hope is at once a novel of crime — with a gripping pace, propelled by a question that needs answering — and a timeless coming-of-age story. — RUMAAN ALAM, bestselling author of LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND

Rob Franklin’s prose is rich, mesmerising, and utterly gorgeous. — LEILA MOTTLEY, author of NIGHTCRAWLING