Those People Next Door - Kia Abdullah

 

I think my neighbours may be a little bemused by the fact that I keep giving them enormous great smiles and enthusiastic waves.  I am always on good terms with them, always exchanged greetings and chats over the fences but after reading this book, I am so, so happy they are my neighbours!

The Khatuns move to a new neighbourhood for a variety of reasons but things start to go horribly wrong when their neighbour removes an anti-racist banner from their front garden. They place the banner inside their window, but the next morning the window is smeared with paint. What follows next in this engrossing novel appears to be an account of a domestic battle spiralling out of control, a war of action and words between two incompatible neighbours, but it develops into nailbiting legal thriller that has you on the edge of your seat. And the twist at the end is a master stroke. I certainly didn’t see it coming.

It’s a very powerful read as well as being a thriller it does raise some interesting issues regarding racism or perhaps prejudice to be more accurate. I’ve not read any of Kia Abdullah’s stories before but I was impressed by the way she dealt with these issues head-on in a way that seems very real. I think the story also highlights the fact that people are not always ready to look at the bigger picture, they’re not always ready to talk and discuss things calmly and appreciate that there can often be more than one point of view and that things are not always as they seem and can be misunderstood. The power and danger of social media as well doesn’t escape this novelist’s eagle eyed pen.

Also, I’m a sucker for a good courtroom exchange so I loved those particular sequences in the book. I think the book also has something to say about friendship and loyalty. I found the narrative well paced and the suspense was well balanced. I did find it hard to warm to many of the characters apart from perhaps Jamie, (and Molly the dog!) But I often think it’s important for a reader to remain impartial in a book like this. And it sure kept me guessing right to the end.

My thanks to Natasha Gill at HQ stories for my copy.