A review by serendipitysbooks
Those People Next Door by Kia Abdullah

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


Kia Abdullah has done it again. Those People Next Door is another suspenseful drama (it’s marketed as a thriller and while it does have some thrillerish vibes in places I wouldn’t classify it as a thriller per se) infused with contemporary social issues, and one with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing, and questioning what you would do in comparable situations.

When Salma Khatun, her husband, and son move into a safe suburban development they are looking for a fresh start. But displaying a Black Lives Matter banner puts them offside with their neighbours and things soon go from bad to worse.

At the beginning of the story I felt pretty confident who was right and who was wrong. By the end I was no longer sure. In fact all the characters, with the exception of the neighbour’s son Jamie, behaved atrociously at times and I did tire of their seeming desire to destroy each other and to come out on top in their quest for revenge. Thankfully a twist came at just the right time and pulled me back into the story.

The exposé of casual racism and classism among those who would deny they were racist or classist was spot-on. And if you need reminding that revenge is never a great idea then this is your book. I enjoyed being prompted to think about various ways of dealing with perceived conflict. I loved the courtroom scenes, which I think Abdullah writes really well. I also loved the way she looked at the issues involved in this neighbourhood dispute from all sides and didn’t take the easy, straightforward, or expected options. It was deliberately, thoughtfully nuanced. I also think she got the balance with the twists just right - some I predicted and some took me by surprise, meaning they were neither wholly predictable nor totally outlandish.

This was one of my most anticipated new releases of 2023 and I’m glad it lived up to my expectations. 
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