Book Review: Those People Next Door by Kia Abdullah

“You can choose your house. Not your neighbours.”

Set to be published on 19th January, Those People Next Door by Kia Abdullah follows the new residents of Blenheim, Salma Khatun and her family, who are extremely hopeful about moving to a safe suburban development. Their family is in desperate need of a fresh start, and Blenheim feels like the place to make that happen.

Not long after they move in, Salma spots her neighbour, Tom Hutton, ripping out the anti-racist banner she put in her front garden. She chooses not to confront Tom because she wants to fit in. It’s a small thing, really. No need to make a fuss. So Salma takes the banner inside and puts it in her window instead.

But the next morning she wakes up to find her window smeared with paint. This time she does confront Tom, and the battle lines between the two families are drawn. As things begin to escalate and the stakes become higher and higher, it’s clear that a reckoning is coming… And someone is going to get hurt.

Book Review: Next Of Kin by Kia Abdullah

“On an ordinary day… Your worst nightmare… Is about to come true…”

Set to be published on 2nd September, Next Of Kin by Kia Abdullah follows sisters Leila and Yasmin who have always been close. So when Yasmin’s husband, Andrew, asks Leila to take her nephew, Max, to nursery, she’s more than willing to help out, despite her busy schedule. Hours later, Andrew goes to pick up Max from nursery. But he isn’t there. Leila was supposed to drop Max off that morning. But she forgot. Racing to the car park, she grasps the horror of what she has done. Max has been locked in her car for six hours on the hottest day of the year. She’s too late.

Book Review: Truth Be Told (Zara Kaleel #2) by Kia Abdullah

“What would happen if appeasement were offered earlier? If society treated men more gently, perhaps they would be gentler. Instead of placing them in the hard, small case of masculinity, could we allow them to feel more deeply?”

Set to be released on 4th March, Truth Be Told by Kia Abdullah follows Kamran Hadid, a wealthy, happy teenager who attends Hampton school, an elite all-boys boarding school in London. With a place at Oxford next year, he has the world at his feet. But when a night of revelry leads to a drunken encounter, his future plans are stopped in their tracks. With the help of assault counsellor, Zara Kaleel, Kamran reports the incident in the hopes that will be the end of it. But it’s only the beginning…