I never repeat the blurb. This was a book I read avidly from cover to cover, couldn't devour it quickly enough. Absolutely superbly written and providing great insight and compassion on all sides.

Take It Back is a brilliant courtroom thriller. For the first half of the book we meet Josie a 16 year old with a severe facial deformity. She approaches Zara previously a top barrister who now works in a centre helping and giving legal advice. Jodie claims to have been raped by four Muslim boys whom attend the same school.
Believing Jodie completely Zara is determined to fight for justice and works tirelessly to help build a case against these boys. Being Muslim herself Zara faces much opposition from her family and community for taking this case.
We then have the trial, which is so well written you feel you are in the courtroom watching the defence and prosecution barristers fight for justice. It’s very much a she said/they said, rising racial tensions leading to violence and aggression, this book has it all. And the ending wow,just wow. This book should hit the bestseller list running.
My thanks to net galley and publisher for the opportunity to review this book honestly.

The Victim: A sixteen-year-old girl with facial deformities, neglected by an alcoholic mother. Who accuses four boys of something unthinkable.

The Defendants: Four handsome teenage boys from hardworking immigrant families. All with corroborating stories.

Someone is lying.

An involving read that kept you guessing to the end. It was disappointing that Jodie’s intimate bruising seemed to be forgotten. The frequent use of non English, without translation, felt rather excluding.

I really enjoyed this book. The narrative zipped along. An underge girl with a large facial deformity visits our protagonist, an ex city lawyer, disowned by her family after agreeing to a short lived disastrous arranged marriage who now works at a legal advice and help centre and is secretly addicted to diazepam.. The girl says she has been raped in a deserted warehouse by four slightly older Asian classmates. She didn't come forward following the gang rape as she was worried that she would not be believed because so was so "ugly"..The youths all deny the accusations. Who is telling the truth?
We follow events through accusation to post trial and the effects it has on the individuals concerned and the wider community, as well as challenging the beliefs our lawyer holds,

Jodie, who is sixteen and has facial deformities has accused four boys of doing something unthinkable to her. All of these boys are from hardworking immigrant families. Someone is lying.
Zara Kaleemullah, a former barrister takes Jodie’s case, she believes her even if others don’t. They soon become centre of the most criminal trial of the year where divisions within British society are exposed. As everything around Zara begins to unravel she becomes even more determined to get Jodie justice. But at what price?

A good storyline, the characters were believable and I was rooting for Jodie in some parts and then changed my mind part way through. The story is written in such a way that you think you know what’s happening and where the story is going, but then something else happens and you change your mind completely. A very powerful story indeed.

Many thanks to Netgalley and HQ publishers for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I don’t feel like saying I ‘enjoyed’ this book, it was a good read that’s for sure, surprising ending which I didn’t see coming.

It was at times almost hard to read covering many issues, religion, racism, disabilities.

I look forward to reading more
Book by this author

A gripping story of four teenage Muslim boys accused of raping, Jodie Wolfe, a facially disfigured schoolgirl and the tragic consequences nobody would have foreseen. Searching for acceptance and love from the only boy in school who has shown her kindness, Jodie unwittingly compromises her credibility and integrity when her romantic intentions backfire in headlines of violence and cultural division..

A really interesting and thought provoking book. i warned immediately to Zara and Jodie and enjoyed reading their stories. I found the courtroom scenes very tense and the ending satisfactory. It won’t be everybody’s cup of tea due to the controversial issues explored but I thought it was well written and thoroughly enjoyed it.. Many thanks to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this highly recommended book..

I couldn't put this down. Thought provoking, legal and moral dilemmas and packed with drama and twists.

An upsetting, hard-hitting read on many levels and nothing is ever quite as it seems. "Take It Back" provides an interesting insight to the British justice system, Muslim culture, addiction, bullying and living with facial disfigurement. A reminder that there are two sides to every story and often the truth lies somewhere inbetween.

This book is not normally my cup of tea but the idea was so gripping that I had to read it.

In the book we meet Jodie,a teen aged white girl who reports that she was raped by four Muslim boys. It's her word against theirs and it is up to the reader to decide where they stand in the case. The story takes us step by step in the court room and out , until the conclusion. I can't provide any more details lest I spoil the entire plot!

The author paints a fantastic story with her writing. The characters are very real, everyone from Jodie to the boys and even the case workers have a very tangible character line and give the story the complexity real-life has. It is a heartbreaking tale that does have some major triggers in it. SO for those that are a bit more sensitive to the nature of this story should be warned now.

Kia Abdullah has created a fantastic book here and I would recommend it to those that love crime thrillers. It is a fantastic "who dun-nit" that will have you gripping the edge of your seat until the very end!

I found the premise of this book really intriguing - four Muslim teenagers accused of raping Jodie, a white, disabled teenage girl. Jodie is helped by Zara, a Muslim rape counsellor, ensuring that the crime is tried within a court room.

The most interesting part of this novel for me was the backlash within the public, with members of the Muslim community angry that a Muslim woman is working for a white girl (and against the Muslim teenagers accused of rape). Members of the white community start petitions and protests to 'get justice for Jodie', directing their own anger at the Muslim community. I also found the legal arguments about whether there was a reasonable chance of prosecution interesting - because of Jodie's disfigurement, would anyone have wanted to rape her, and could they convince a court of this? I did not see the final twists coming, and found the ending satisfying. Parts of this novel were very difficult to read; upsetting and graphic, but carefully written.

I enjoyed reading this novel and am sure it will be both popular and successful. Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read Take It Back in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book will stay with me for a long time. The story gripped me from the beginning. Not only is it compelling, but it touches on so many topical issues; sexual violence, racial tensions, poverty, and the way in which women are seen by society. This could have been a "preachy" and formulaic book, but instead it draws the reader in, challenging them, and confusing them, and leaving them breathless at the clever ending. I will be recommending this book to all my friends.

This was a difficult read. That's the first thought I had upon finishing this book. That's not to say it isn't a good book; it is a taut courtroom thriller with a very unexpected twist at the end and a 4- or 5-star read in that respect alone.
What I found uncomfortable, and perhaps this is my own ignorance here, was the repeated insinuation that a rape allegation is only believable if the victim is attractive. A lot of the narrative seemed to rely on the reader discrediting Jodie because of her deformities and absolutely nothing else.
A jarring commentary on religion, race, gender and class, this book is in itself a discussion that needs to be had. The rape counsellor, Zara, is a pariah in her community because she, a Muslim, dares to represent a white girl against four Muslim boys, amongst other acts forbidden or at least frowned upon by her faith. She is stalked, slandered, humiliated and attacked when all she wants is justice. What starts out as a rape trial becomes a race war; a damning reflection on the state of things, where blame no longer relies on evidence but prejudice.
It was a difficult read because it was so honest, so believable and ultimately so frightening. A brave and heartbreaking narrative that tells a story too many of us are afraid to tell.

Wow! Wow! Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin/Harper Collins for the opportunity to read and review “take it back” I almost gave up on this one but there’s a tipping point folks so stick with it! I can’t get it out of my head now. What a great storyline. This covers really important and disturbing social topics like rape and culture. Fantastic! Very well handled with great insight into our potentially flawed legal processes! This resonates with recent events in Northern Ireland as well as throughout our western world. Harrowing experiences and trial by media to cite just some of the issues raised. Highly recommend!

✨✨✨ REVIEW ✨✨✨

5🌟

"The Victim: A sixteen-year-old girl with facial deformities, neglected by an alcoholic mother. Who accuses the boys of something unthinkable.

The Defendants: Four handsome teenage boys from hardworking immigrant families. All with corroborating stories.

Whose side would you take?"

                        ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

This story is hard-hitting in its subject matter of rape, but the sensitive issue is handled well.

It also deals with issues of prejudice towards race, gender, religion and class status. There were some elements of this story telling I found hard to read. However, it was a good eye-opener to what is actually going on in the world around us. And sometimes it's not pretty 😯

"You want life in neat and predictable boxes when it’s actually a river of shit."

Zara, the rape counsellor in this story is a strong female character. She is also dealing with her own issues in life.

The same goes for Jodie. Her life hasn't been a bed of roses 🌹 a facial deformity, her father walking out on her, an alcoholic mother, poverty and now she has been allegedly raped.

"Women aren’t born warriors; we learn to fight because we have to."

As the reader we don't know the truth. It definitely is a tale of 'he says/she says' but who is telling the truth? I honestly changed my mind a few times during the course of the story 🤔

I would recommend this book to those who like a mystery to solve and are able to handle some controversial issues.

Prepare yourself for a journey of emotions though. It's a story that stays with you long after you've closed the book 😊

"You will always care what people think of you – that’s just the way of the world – but you can decide how you act in return. You can choose to be cruel like them to make yourself feel tall, or you can treat others with kindness to balance out the shortfall...There will be moments in your life when you must decide in an instant." @kiaabdullah

Thank you to @netgalley and @harpercollinsuk for my advanced reading copy in return for an honest review 😊

Publication date is August 8th (make a note in your calendars to get this book 👍🏻)


#takeitback #kiaabdullah #bookreview #honestmamreaderreview #bookstagram #ilovebooks #reading📖 #reviewbook

Thank you to netgally for sending me this arc in exchange for my honest review.
Not usually my genre but thought it sounded interesting, it was a hard but thought provoking read with a very unexpected ending 3.5 stars

My thanks to NetGalley and publisher, HQ, for the ARC.
Not my usual genre of reading, but I was intrigued by the description, and just so glad that I was, because this is a well-written tense drama which some may find disturbing and uncomfortable reading.

Zara Kaled is a modern British Muslim of Asian heritage who became an exceptional and successful barrister. She 'had it all', but became disillusioned and gave it all up to work as a nominally-paid counsellor at a rape crisis centre.
Jodie Wolfe is 16yrs-old and would be a typical white teenager had she not been afflicted by facial and bodily disfigurement since birth. Along with battling years of teasing and bullying because of her appearance, Jodie had become almost a carer to her alcoholic mother at home in their run-down flat. However, like any typical teenager she has harboured a crush on one particular good-looking Asian boy.

Zara and Jodie meet at the crisis centre where her story begins. She's accusing 4 Asian boys - all classmates of hers - of the most brutal assault. Zara believes her and will fight for her.
As the investigation ensues and the boys are arrested, Zara's family desperately try to warn her off supporting Jodie as if she's betraying her family's honour and heritage, as well as the community.

As the case gets to court the media involvement stirs-up the simmering societal intolerances and divisions; the prejudice and racism - on both 'sides'.

Jodie is scared - all she wants to do is 'Take It Back'.

I was totally immersed in this story; Zara has both strengths and weaknesses, and her relationship with her family is extremely difficult to absorb in the 21st century; she's pilloried as a traitor to her heritage and religion; how dare she represent an accusation against sons of hard-working immigrant families?
Jodie is ashamed that she could ever have thought someone would be interested in her and has to modify her story to cover her embarrassment. Still, Zara believes her and supports her, running the gauntlet of angry mobs each day she attends the Court.

This is thought-provoking and could be oh so real. A really good read.

I read a little of the author, and was intrigued by the description of the book. I could relate in as much as my heritage is Indian (3 generations away), but that's where it ended. I grew up up in a leafy affluent London suburb and had a privileged, race-free upbringing, but was not unaware of the Asian culture and tradition, and the more extreme version of this in the Muslim community from the Sub-Continent.

Ms Abdullah takes 21st century Asian Britain by the scruff of the neck, and lays bare the prejudices, and racism, the religious intolerance, the misogyny and patriarchy for all to see with painful accuracy. And having read up on the author some more as soon as I finished the novel, her drawing on her own experiences validated every word she wrote.

This novel is insightful, harrowing, uncomfortable, accurate, tense, compelling and an emotional rollercoaster. Ms Abdullah is very talented, and honest, and frankly brave for putting out there the reality of growing up and living as a British Asian with a desire to 'honour' your heritage and assimilate into the society you live in. She also explores the flip side of the equation as well, the life of fundamentally a Caucasian with disabilities who is considered trailer trash.

The novel is quite brilliant. The sentiment is accurately portrayed. The result...you decide. I was surprised, shocked, comforted, horrified but also unsurprised and saddened at elements.I also thought Zara was quite brilliant, with balls of steel.

I'd highly recommend reading this if you have any interest in expanding your horizons, being entertained, and coming away satisfied that you've not wasted hours reading a mediocre novel.

I will caveat my review; if you have any tendency toward virtue-signalling, and/or are a left-wing 'liberal' snowflake, don't read this. I've seen the reviews from some who have, and I've rarely seen so much rubbish written of excellence.