3.5 of 5 - 4 for topics, 3 for domestic issues

Jessa has played by the book, put in the effort, and checked all the boxes. From an outward perspective she's a success. Raised by her grandmother, working for a prominent law firm, married to a successful financier, anyone would be happy right? Things aren't always as they seem. While she adores the relationship she has with her grandmother, she gets along fabulously with her in-laws, and her husband has historically been her best springboard, these days there are more and more holes. Last year they suffered a miscarriage. A mistake during an important case five years ago has left her floundering at a job she's loosing connection to with no prospects of advancement. Both struggles are stretching the interactions with her husband. Her inability to completely recover from loosing her parents at such a young age is taking the form of dissatisfaction and misdirection of motives in every area of her life.

As everything is falling apart, Jessa takes a pro-bono case as an attempt at shifting pace. Just maybe, finding a different way to uphold the principles her father and grandfather set for her. A standard immigration case turns out to be much more than she bargained for--and not simply because it's an area of law she's unfamiliar with. The detention system is nothing like she imagined. The treatment of its residents is far more malicious than what she imagined.

The follow journey for justice brings Jessa on a spiral. In it are dark truths about the law and the fears of the discarded. There are echoes that are the very horror of someone with a desperate desire to conceive. And most shockingly is a family revelation that turns her perception of her own history on its head. It is a truth that could very well shatter the rest of her marriage.

Mixed into this narrative is the personal account of the woman at the heart of a landmark supreme court case the bolstered the eugenics movement.

"Counting Backwards" was a very conflicting experience for me. On the one hand, the facts of the case at hand are a horrible circumstance that hasn't quite become history that desperately needs to be spoken more about. The entire historical account from Carrie's perspective was gut turning and immersive. From my own areas of interest I really appreciated the author's emphasis not only on legal processes, but noting how a practitioner of one area has to all but reeducate themselves in another to hop over as each division of law truly is its own world even if it can draw from others. Likewise the revelation of how cases are such a team effort let alone ones taking on such a large scope and powerful defendants.

However, the domestic side of the story was incredibly frustrating. I was in constant teeth-gritting to breathing about a course correction to a concern, to internally screaming again every few paragraphs when it came to what was going on with Jessa's life. There were many times where to be honest her husband wasn't being all that irrational. I was excited hoping I could praise this book for having a character come to terms with their own flaws. I wanted so badly for this to be a case of a relationship to really reckon with both parties needing to recognize and work on their flaws together.

Now there were times where Jessa did point out that she could be wrong, acted differently, but it was more often than not just pushed to the side for the same or another flaw afterwards. As for her husband, sadly, his interactions with his wife and way he approaches the relationship is rather standard for a spouse where domestic unrest is common. I will say that she does make one set of decisions that are NOT standard fare with her relationship when one door opens to her that I utterly appreciate.

Then there's her relationship with her grandmother. It is only the start of so many miscommunication issues. I understand why there is hesitance and gradual reveals. Both women have their ghosts. But if all characters all around had just put things on the table sooner, I can't help but think there would have been a very different result.

I give the story props for at least trying to approach the 'white savoir' problem that is inheritance involved with a white woman of means who is also trying to 'do good' in her life being the voice of women of color. Jessa is aware of the care and concerns that are afforded to her that are denied the other women. And, sadly, there are certain people still with more power than others. Hopefully their efforts will change that narrative one day. There is a final note to Jessa, though, that I think went a little too far in its gushing about its efforts to not put her on a bit of a high pedestal.

Those personal qualms aside, there was more to like than not in this book. Carrie's story is so frightening to show how close what we now see as an archaic opinion and ruling to be. The author's note gives a more solid timeline of just how persistent abuses based on the fallout have been allowed to continue for so very long. There is much work to go. There is a lot of heart and humanity in tying these together.

Over all, this book will at the very least give you a lot to consider beyond maybe some of the more known bullet points we hear about the immigration system in the U.S. It is also hard not to ignore the charm of Carrie. And it just must be the type of story that will touch you if you're struggling for a personal and professional change.

The theme of this book is extremely thought provoking and important but unfortunately, the pro's end there for me. The characters were either flat or downright awful. No in between. The writing had me struggling to finish the book. Jessa is naive and silly. Her leaving her marriage would have been more impactful had he not been the literal worst kind of person throughout the entire book. The only part of the book that didn't feel far-fetched and ridiculous was the actual historic-based medical abuse.

Counting Backwards by Jacqueline Friedland is a gripping, dual-timeline novel that seamlessly connects past and present injustices. Jessa, a lawyer uncovering forced sterilizations at an ICE detention center in 2022, finds herself linked to Carrie Buck, a woman fighting for autonomy in the 1920s eugenics era. This emotional, thought-provoking read exposes the horrifying reality of reproductive control and legal failures that persist today. With compelling characters and meticulous research, Friedland delivers a powerful story that lingers long after the final page. A must-read for historical fiction lovers and advocates for women's rights. Highly recommended!

This dual timeline story was way more than I expected. We follow Jessa through her fertility struggles and marriage issues while she is trying to help the women in the ICE facility. Her fertility struggles got more of the focus than the issues the women in the facility which showed her connection to wanting to help them when their ability to have children was taken away. We also follow Carrie Buck and get a first hand view at how the state failed her in so many ways. How their lives connected was crazy and part of the driving force for Jessa trying to help the women and try to make up for what her family had done years prior. The emotion in this story is remarkable and I cried for these women that this actually happened to. The past and present timeline was executed beautifully and will definitely stay with me for a while.
The narration was great and both of the narrators really brought the characters to life for me. 4.5/5

I picked up Counting Backwards by Jacqueline Friedland because I was extremely interested in the subject matter. I wrote several college research papers on American eugenicists and their impact on the Third Reich and have always found that aspect of history to be incredibly important and saddening.

I think this novelization of a real 1924 court case (as the author's note describes) was a great representation of not only how women were persecuted in the early 20th century but also how it continues into today's world with women who did nothing except try to immigrate to the US. The emotional beats were definitely spot-on.

The reason this didn't quite make it all the way to 5 stars for me is because the pacing seemed a bit weird. The last 20% - and the epilogue - were the most interesting parts of the story to me. The first three-quarters of the book or so, in Jessa's story, were very much focused on her fertility struggles and her relationship with her husband, which was definitely emotionally related to her work with the women in the ICE facility, but I think it could've been a slightly lesser point of the story. I would've preferred more focus on the victims and how Jessa and her team were helping them.

Despite this, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who was interested in this aspect of history that is often under the radar. I thought the audiobook narrators did a fantastic job, and enjoyed the alternating voices in the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Egh, this one wasn't really for me. I was really drawn in by the cover and the synopsis, but it really just was moving too slowly for me to keep up with caring.