Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book took me time to pick up due to the nature of what it entails. Trigger warnings for rape. This is a multi-layered story and at times heartbreaking. Jodie is a 16 year old girl with facial deformities who has accused four young men of immigrant families with rape. No one believes her aside from Zara a non practicing lawyer.

This book handles so many social issues; race, religion, misogyny, bullying, rape, abuse and substance abuse. It is a gripping book and one that leaves you pondering.

This is an immensely powerful, emotional and thought provoking read, - and extremely disturbing at times. It’s a case of who’s telling the truth, who’s lying, who did what, and who didn’t! Ultimately though, it’s one of the best ‘whodunnit’s that I’ve read ! Highly recommended.

I enjoyed this book and look forward to more from this author. This title was a modern day crime novel set in Britain surrounding a disfigured girl who accuses 4 Muslim classmates of rape. The story had a lot of layers and was very well told.

This was definitely an interesting read. I swapped between reading it and audio constantly and had a hard time following along with the whole storyline. I'm sure I would love to try and give it another go in the near future though.

Halfway through reading Kia Abdullah's Take It Back, I was already hoping that this series ends up with quite a few more books in it. This legal thriller took me on such an intense emotional ride and I can't wait to do it again with Zara Kaleel, series' main protagonist. More than just a page-turner, this book was full of complex social themes that were handled with such finesse.

Instead of pursuing a promising legal career her family was hoping for, Zara Kaleel uses her legal expertise to support those accessing the services at a sexual assault center. She takes on a case of not so popular teenage Jodie Wolfe, who is accusing 4 of her popular classmates from "nice" families of sexual assault. Jodie's accusation is met by disbelief and lack of support in part because of a facial deformity. The accused all come from Muslim families, which puts Zara at odds with her family and her community because she is working against "her own".

I could not put this book down. The layers of the story were intriguing and kept me hooked the entire time. This is the kind of story that would make an addictive TV show. It definitely turned me into a fan of Zara Kaleel series and I can't wait to read the next Zara Kaleel book.

Thankful to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I have to say my literary tastes seem to align closely with St. Martin's Press publications.

Jodie Wolfe is a white 16 year old girl with horrific facial deformities. Jodie had a really difficult life, the constant taunting and bullying about her looks, not to mention an alcoholic mother who’s always agreeing with other people. who think Jodie, is basically ugly, and she’s happy to voice that opinion to Jodie on a daily basis. However when Jodie accuses four teenage boys from hard working immigrant families of rape, her life will take yet another turn for the worse.

Former barrister turned rape counsellor Zara Kaleel, is enlisted to help Jodie through the trauma she has suffered, and also to prepare her for the upcoming court proceedings. Zara is a Muslim, (as are the accused boys), and as the case proceeds it will lead to her being called a traitor, (and much worse) in her own community, resulting in some very ugly and violent scenes. Because of her accusations, Jodie also becomes a target for social media bullying.

This is an immensely powerful, emotional and thought provoking read, - and extremely disturbing at times. It’s a case of who’s telling the truth, who’s lying, who did what, and who didn’t!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

New to me author but definitely won't be last. Thoroughly enjoyed this story. Thanks Netgalley and to the publisher for letting me read this advance copy.

Take it Back by Kia Abdullah is a breathtaking read, one that examines difficult issues. This was hard to put, and difficult to read in parts, but definitely worthwhile. Recommend.

This was a pleasant surprise. The story really gripped me, and I enjoyed the legal set up of the book. I would read more by this auhor.

This was some tough subject matter on multiple levels, which seemed to have been inspired by the Central Park Five. Was an interesting read with some surprises at the end.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Was a good read. Definitely need to be in the right mindset to read a story like this but it was good!

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. I’m afraid it will stay with me for a long time. (Trigger warning: somewhat graphic gang rape). Jodie, a white “disabled” girl, accuses four Muslim boys of raping her. Well, really, she accuses three while she claims one watched and did nothing to help. Each time one of the characters speaks, you feel certain that this one is telling the truth. Then, you find out it was a lie and wonder if anyone is telling the truth. The returning sentiment over and over again is a desire to “take it back.” Jodie wishes she could take back the accusation and the boys wish they could take back what happened that night. But does she wish to recant because she lied or because the trial is too painful? Do they wish to take back what happened that night because they did something unspeakable or because they are innocent and handled things poorly? Did things just get overblown?

The entire community becomes involved and the racist vitriol and misogyny are on full display. The Muslim community accuses Zara, Jodie’s legal representative, of betraying her Muslim brethren and call her a whore, amongst other things. Meanwhile, the white community spews racist epithets against the Muslims, and Zara is included in their rancor. It seems everyone is against her, and even her family begs her to withdraw from the case. But she feels honor-bound to continue to fight for Jodie, despite her misgivings about whether Jodie may be lying.

“Zara, the brave” is just a regular person trying to navigate life and do what’s right. She has her foibles and she makes mistakes, but ultimately, she allows her conscience to determine her actions. She’s not the only one. In the end, the truth is revealed and it’s horrifying.

This story is compelling and shrouded in mystery. It’s really hard to make any kind of judgment about who is telling the truth and who is lying. Because there are always three sides to every story (side one, side two, and the truth), there’s a sense that all may be telling some version of their truth. In fact, only one character comes across as a sociopathic liar (Hassan), but since his friends share his story, it’s hard to assume he’s lying. If he’s lying, that means they all are and they are far more sympathetic characters.

It’s a terribly sad story of five young people whose lives are irrevocably damaged by the thoughtless actions of one night. It’s also the story of Zara, who is actually the heroine of this story, a Muslim woman fighting against the misogyny obvious in her community but also prevalent in society as a whole. It highlights the assumptions we make about the “other” and how tribalism influences our beliefs and actions. Sadly, it also serves as a reminder of why so many women choose not to report rapes. I’m not sure how I hoped this book would end, but it wasn’t like this. I'm reminded of these words from the book: "Zara listened as the words from Jodie's mouth fell like black spiders, crawling over her skin and making her recoil."
To be honest, when I initially read these words, I thought it was a great image, but it wasn’t until later in the book that I actually felt them. Now, I wonder if I can wash the stench off of my skin because, honestly, it made me sick.

Take It Back, by Kia Abdullah had me running through every emotion. It was a very powerful and emotionally charged story, that has a very unique premise. It combines a courthouse drama with a psychologically twisted story. Abdullah''s beautiful writing style and descriptive characterization pull the reader right into this story, complete with many unreliable witnesses.

I would definitely recommend that this book be added to everyone's reading list. You are doing yourself an injustice if you miss it.

Quick read…this was a dark read that kept my attention. The ending was unexpected but not a bad ending. Definitely worth the read.

Sometimes these types of thrillers are not well written but this one was good. Definitely would recommend to anyone who enjoys crime or courtroom thrillers.

Well written book and intriguing story. Keeps one guessing till the end. This is the first book I’ve read by Kia Abdallah and I can’t wait to read more books published by this author! Good solid writing with great character development. I loved the main character Zara.

This appealed to me enough to request it, but despite multiple looks at the synopsis when selecting my next read, this one hasn't stood out or inspired me to pick it up.

I was originally giving this 3 stars but when I went to write this review, I knew I needed to bring it up one more. This was definitely a powerful read that I won’t be forgetting any time soon. It is definitely unlike any crime thriller that I’ve read before, and I am glad that as a reader, I’m left in the dark about the truth until the last few pages. I didn’t know what to believe and was pretty shocked with the end. I’m glad I finally got this one read and will be recommending it.

I loved and hated this book at the same time. Abdullah is an amazing story teller that gives just enough pieces to make you wonder who's telling the truth. This book does deal with sensitive topics that may trigger some. I felt it was so emotional and thought-provoking and a bit of a wake-up call to society today.

Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a timely and sometimes difficult-to-read story. The author does a great job of making the characters realistic without them becoming stereotypes - and that's very important for the story. This was especially evident as two of the characters (no spoilers) kept changing their stories, which obviously made their reliability questionable. That fed into the courtroom drama aspect nicely. I thought that Zara was a particularly interesting character, as the author wisely had her straddling two worlds. I think that is a problem that many people face today and it made Zara more relatable. As to the plot itself, the author pulls no punches and some of the descriptions and events are brutal. The courtroom drama is fraught with tension, making it quite the page-turner. And be sure that you read all the way to the end. Life gets messy. Sometimes, even what we "know" to be right, might be more complicated...making us ultimately wrong. Great read.