minimicropup's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Visceral, contemplative, powerful.
We follow our MC (a former barrister turned sexual assault centre legal advisor) as they navigate their career change and personal life. We get added perspectives from a teen with neurofibromatosis who reveals they were gang raped at a party, and from the four teens accused of the gang rape.
🇬🇧 Set in London, UK
🐺🐕 Growls, Howls, and Tail Wags:
👍 Cinematic writing style with great dialogue. I could effortlessly imagine the different voices and tones and see the changes in body language and reactions.
👌 All of these characters are morally grey and imperfect. They each have their own traumas and prejudice to navigate, and don't alway make wise decisions. It made this story feel all the more real.
👌 All of these characters are morally grey and imperfect. They each have their own traumas and prejudice to navigate, and don't alway make wise decisions. It made this story feel all the more real.
👌 The suspense is driven by actions and observations, which worked really well for such a heavy topic. Since we aren't deep in anyones mind other than Zara's, there is mystery surrounding the stated intentions and behaviours of others. We are figuring it all out alongside Zara with a bit more knowledge than she has given the fly-on-the-wall perspectives we gain.
👌 Very show, not tell, so be in the mental space to digest it and check those content warnings. We are shown a believable account of how and why one may inaccurately report a sexual crime, and also how one could place themselves in a situation with high likelihood of a sexual crime occurring, without victim blaming or shaming. The same goes for how we are presented with the experience of prejudice both within and outside of Muslim communities and it hits hard, because it's shown to us as a human experience, not just a Muslim or female one.
😢 A unique exploration of theme and commentary. Particularly around a terrible sort of ableism - the ability to be a target of sexual crimes. The commentary isn't misandrous or misogynist exclusively, and we get both female and male perspectives. As the reader I felt like a jury member going back and forth about who to believe and why (with the guilt and anxiety about the consequences of believing incorrectly!).
👍 I struggle with legal thrillers that have a lot of behind-the-scenes courtroom elements, but this story managed to show the intricacies of the process without being boring or drawn out. We focus mostly on the witness and expert testimonies and spend time outside the court proceedings to see the effects of the case on the characters.
🤯 That double twist 😮
👍 I struggle with legal thrillers that have a lot of behind-the-scenes courtroom elements, but this story managed to show the intricacies of the process without being boring or drawn out. We focus mostly on the witness and expert testimonies and spend time outside the court proceedings to see the effects of the case on the characters.
🤯 That double twist 😮
Mood Reading Match Up:
- Gritty legal thriller from the point of view of the accused, accuser, and advocate
- Social commentary about judgement, prejudice, law, religion, sexual violence, bias, and classism/poverty
- Who-is-telling-the-truth dark mystery involving rape accusation
- Realistic contemporary fiction around the Muslim experience in the UK, toxic family, and all the complexities of prosecuting and proving sexual crimes
Content Heads-Up: Possible false accusation. Sexual assault, rape (graphic; described, recalled). Misogyny. Body shaming. Racism. Islamophobia. Religious abuse. Mob mentality and murder. Verbal/mental abuse (family). Toxic masculinity.
Format: Paperback
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Rape, Religious bigotry, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexual content
Minor: Ableism
megelizabeth's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
This book is pretty much pure pain. It's not one to go into lightly, and it has a lot of content warnings, which I would recommend checking even more so than usual. It's definitely one that's going to stay on my mind.
It's also extremely well-written and tightly-plotted, with a jaw-dropping ending that will continue to haunt me. There's lots of great commentary on many issues, with it never feeling like there are too many topics raised and not enough attention given to each. It took me a while to warm to our protagonist, Zara, but I did come to appreciate her growth, and I absolutely adored her friendship with Safran and, for me, this friendship also plays a really important role thematically in the story.
The main thing I didn't love about this book is more of a me problem than a book problem, as I think it's fairly typical of legal/courtroom thrillers and is one of the reasons I don't read too many of them; it's that there's a big break in time between the beginning of the book and the court scenes, and it felt, to me, as if there was undoubtedly lots we were missing out on. That was probably entirely intentional, and as I've already said, typical of the genre, but it's just something that doesn't tend to work too well for me personally. The only other thing I didn't like and which threw me out of the story a bit was that there's a really odd conversation justifying physical abuse of children, which was so out-of-keeping with the book as a whole which had some really great conversations around abuse, trauma, and difficult familial relationships; it just didn't make sense to me at all why this throwaway conversation should be included.
It's also extremely well-written and tightly-plotted, with a jaw-dropping ending that will continue to haunt me. There's lots of great commentary on many issues, with it never feeling like there are too many topics raised and not enough attention given to each. It took me a while to warm to our protagonist, Zara, but I did come to appreciate her growth, and I absolutely adored her friendship with Safran and, for me, this friendship also plays a really important role thematically in the story.
The main thing I didn't love about this book is more of a me problem than a book problem, as I think it's fairly typical of legal/courtroom thrillers and is one of the reasons I don't read too many of them; it's that there's a big break in time between the beginning of the book and the court scenes, and it felt, to me, as if there was undoubtedly lots we were missing out on. That was probably entirely intentional, and as I've already said, typical of the genre, but it's just something that doesn't tend to work too well for me personally. The only other thing I didn't like and which threw me out of the story a bit was that there's a really odd conversation justifying physical abuse of children, which was so out-of-keeping with the book as a whole which had some really great conversations around abuse, trauma, and difficult familial relationships; it just didn't make sense to me at all why this throwaway conversation should be included.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Child death, Drug abuse, Racism, Ableism, Violence, Bullying, Rape, Child abuse, Racial slurs, and Death
Moderate: Classism, Animal death, Alcoholism, and Death of parent
clairebonney's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Murder, Addiction, Body shaming, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Hate crime, and Racial slurs
Animal cruelty/animal death relates to a swan in chapter 3. The dog in the novel remains unharmed.arijones91's review
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Racial slurs
whitneyonline's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It was alllmost a 5 star favorite, but then the twist at the end happened and the more I think about it, the more I don't like it (the twist). But overall I enjoyed the book. I liked how Zara is a flawed person with vices of her own. She is frustrated and angry at her culture for what it expects of women, and thus she has a strained relationship with her family. I really like how this book addressed so many relevant, terse issues regarding rape, race, and culture.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, and Sexual assault
taracunneen's review
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Racial slurs, and Racism
katrinarose's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This was really well written and explored very complex themes and characters with nuance which I appreciated. However, I my ratings are based heavily on enjoyment and I really didn’t enjoy this book, I felt sick to my stomach reading it. Each twist made me feel even more sick. I don’t want to discredit the author’s skill, though, which is why I settled on 3.5 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Rape, Racism, Racial slurs, Murder, Misogyny, Islamophobia, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Death, and Ableism
Moderate: Homophobia
mikki_9's review
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Drug abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, and Emotional abuse
yunsq's review against another edition
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Rape, Addiction, Ableism, Bullying, Sexism, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
More...