Readers have been begging for years for the big return of dystopian novels and there’s a brand new wave of them coming to our shelves right now thanks to inspired readers now becoming writers and telling their own stories. This includes Brooke Fast, whose incredible debut novel brings us into a dangerous new world that not only has everyone wondering just how far one can go to protect their family against a dark and evil system that will totally surprise you.
Cosmopolitan has an exclusive first look at Brooke Fast’s To Cage a Wild Bird, which is set to be released on March 3, 2026. Bounty hunter Raven Thorne knows about the dangers of ending up in the Deadlock prison. But when her brother get sentenced there, she must find her way in and out before she loses him to the wealthy buyers who paid money to hunt them down. But will her unexpected mission lead her to something bigger? Here’s some more info from our friends at Avon:
Get in. Get out. Don't Fall in Love.
Order now to receive the stunning DELUXE LIMITED EDITION featuring an exclusive bonus chapter from Vale's perspective, gorgeous stenciled edges, and illustrated endpapers—only available on the first printing while supplies last!
Enter the brutal world of Endlock, a prison where the wealthy hunt the inmates for sport.
In the city of Dividium, the law is simple: commit a crime, and your punishment is a life sentence in Endlock.
Raven Thorne is Dividium’s most notorious bounty hunter, living on the edge of society. But when her younger brother, Jed, is sentenced to Endlock, Raven will do anything to save him—even if it means getting herself arrested.
Now trapped in a prison where danger lurks around every corner, Raven must use all her cunning and strength to protect Jed—and herself if she is to complete her perilous mission. But there’s one obstacle she never expected: the prison guard who stirs something deep inside her. The man she should hate. The man whose true motives seem impossible to pin down.
In a world where trust is a weapon and love is a liability, Raven must decide if she will risk everything to tear down a vicious system.
To Cage a Wild Bird is a dystopian romance perfect for readers of Divergent, Prison Break, forced proximity, and a fast-paced plot that will keep you turning the pages.
While the countdown until the book’s big release is almost over, you don’t have to wait longer to meet Raven. Check out an exclusive excerpt below! Just make sure to pre-order To Cage a Wild Bird so you can read on as soon as its released!
An Excerpt From To Cage a Wild Bird
By Brooke Fast
Endlock didn’t have a separate entrance for prisoners.
As soon as we stepped into the front lobby, I understood why.
A group of hunters stood next to a check-in counter, crowded around a life-size cardboard cutout of Pharil Coates, the CEO of Endlock Enterprises.
Coates was a celebrity in Dividium. He was wealthy and powerful from the success of Endlock and had a mansion in the Upper Sector that was larger than any home owned by the Council. He was handsome enough that he couldn’t go anywhere without a group of fans following him and proclaiming their love. There’d even been a famous reporter a few months back, Blythe Levine, who had been arrested and sent to Endlock for stalking Coates.
When the hunters saw us, they stopped what they were doing, pointing at us and whispering excitedly as Warden Larch motioned for us to stand against a wall painted with a mural of trees.
“Warden, sir!” A woman in a pink skirt suit and a gold-plated name tag that read Rina stepped out from behind the check-in desk and walked toward us, heels clacking against the white marble-tiled floor as she spoke to the group of hunters. “You bunch are in luck. Not everyone gets to meet Warden Larch.”
Larch stepped up as if playing a rehearsed part. “Welcome to Endlock,” he said to the guests, his smile threatening to split his cheeks. “As you can see, this new transport of prisoners has just arrived. They haven’t been processed yet, so you can’t officially select them as targets, but . . .” Here, he paused for effect.
Officially? My mouth went dry. Was there something worse than being selected as a target? Some sort of off-the-books execution package the hunters could purchase?
The other sounds faded away as I scanned the lobby for a weapon. There was a paperweight on Rina’s desk, but the nearest guard would shoot me down or knock me unconscious with the wooden baton hanging from their belt before I could make it that far. But . . . I looked down at the shackles binding my wrists together, and the corners of my lips twitched.
The guards had unwittingly armed me with everything I needed to strangle them, or the hunters, should I need to defend myself. Of course, I wouldn’t be able to take them all down, but I wouldn’t die without taking a few of them with me. Not if they weren’t going to give me the chance to see Jed again.
I widened my wrists, the chain between them going taut, readying for an attack.
The hunters leaned closer, hanging on to Larch’s every word as he continued. “If you’ve purchased the photo package, you can step right up for a photo opportunity with these prisoners.”
The photo package?
My brow furrowed. Surely, we weren’t exciting enough for the hunters to be willing to spend their credits on—
The hunters rushed us, jostling into me hard enough that I stumbled into the prisoner standing next to me. He glared as I righted myself.
A photographer came forward, directing the hunters. “One group at a time, now. Quickly, quickly. Don’t worry—they’re restrained. They can’t hurt you.”
I fought the urge to bare my teeth.
Keep your head down. Get to Jed without getting yourself killed.
“Photography and cameras of any kind are prohibited during hunts and on the hunting grounds, so this is one of the only opportunities to have your picture taken with inmates,” Larch announced. “If you want to add on the photo package so you don’t miss out, Rina can help you out at her desk.”
I rolled my eyes as a gaggle of hunters rushed to Rina’s desk, waving their wristbands in her face.
“Warden, sir.” A middle-aged woman in a T-shirt with the slogan Endlock: The Thrill of a Lifetime sidled up next to Larch, resting a hand on his bicep and batting her lashes. “I was wondering if I could get a photo. Just the two of us.”
Larch gave her a smarmy smile, smoothing back the few strands of hair on his head before posing with her, his hand resting dangerously low on her back.
When the photo op was over, the guards walked us down a long hallway past a gift shop flaunting Endlock-branded apparel and trinkets, intricately drawn maps of Endlock and the hunting grounds, and countless other souvenirs. After the gift shop, we passed by a set of locker rooms that I guessed were meant for the hunters.
We stopped at the next door and were thrust into a dark room and forced to stand as each prisoner was led, one by one, behind a black door.
Inmates stepped behind the door, and none reemerged.
I gripped the fabric of my cargo pants tightly between my fingers to hide the shaking in my hands.
“Landis Caraga,” a guard called out.
The man from the transport, the one who’d tripped me, took an unsteady step forward but stopped short when a distant, muffled scream came from behind the door.
“No,” Landis whispered, shaking his head. “Fuck this. I’m not going back there.” And he made a break for the exit.
Four steps.
That’s how far he made it before a guard lifted her gun and buried a bullet in the back of his head.
Excerpted from the book TO CAGE A WILD BIRD by Brooke Fast. Copyright © 2025 by Brooke Fast. From Avon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Reprinted by permission.
To Cage a Wild Bird, by Brooke Fast will be released on March 3, 2026 from Avon. To preorder the book, click on the retailer of your choice:
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