A very easy read, mainly because the narrator's voice is so convincing. With the evidence stacked against him, a young man gives his own defence, having sacked his brief. He pulls you quickly and seamlessly into a complex story of gangs and violence and how those gangs recruit and control. His summary of events has pauses and jumps, jokes and apologies for his strong language - all of which give depth and colour to a great read. Highly recommended.

I love any crime, legal, or psychological novels. This book did not disappoint and was written from a fresh, new perspective. The testimony came across as authentic and credible and you felt a genuine empathy for the narrator, who was on trial. After finishing the novel, I could not get thoughts about the characters out of my head. I will be suggesting this as a title for book club, as I really want to have other people to discuss it with!

This book made me think about the perceptions I have and make of people based on what I think I know about them. It highlighted that nothing is what is seems and there is often a different explanation than what is seen to be the most obvious. It was told with one voice which I found compiling and made me what to continue to find out how it would turn out.

Told as the summing up speech in a murder trial this story drags you in.
The author has written a believable and likeable character. Circumstance has made him who he is and prevent him changing. The Author's notes at the end are really interesting at the end about his aims in writing this story.
Above all this story drew me in, not ashamed to say I cried!

I really enjoyed this. The story was well written and the way the events leading up to the court statement are described was handled excellently. Strongly recommended.

Monologue-style narrative: do you believe him?

My favourite film is Twelve Angry Men, a film set in a sweltering jury room with 12 jurors ascertaining the guilt (or otherwise) of a young defendant, overcoming prejudices along the way, sifting through one piece of evidence at a time.

I would guess that it is also one of Imran Mahmood's favourite films also, as lines and scenes seem to be taken and placed in this new context. I liked this, from a hot American prejudiced 1950s white jury room to a 21st-century multi-racial still-prejudiced courtroom.

The unnamed defendant uses the span of the novel for his closing speech, directed at the judge and jury. He declares he is innocent of the murder with which has has been accused, and goes through the prosecution evidence piece by piece.

He weaves a long story, involving friends, a girlfriend, family, gangs - it did feel as though we weren't coming closer to the scenes in which the 'murder' was going to take place, taking routes of context and convolution.

And of course, it's a monologue - apart from one short speech by the prosecutor near the end - which means we have a potentially unreliable narrator, always an interesting device. Do you believe him? Is he a Keyser Soze or a genuine innocent

I found the story itself quite entertaining to follow, though dark (involving prostitution, drugs, violence), and did want to know how the story panned out.

The conclusion is a slight disappointment as the author doesn't give us the closure I certainly wanted, but it's a nicely spun tale with a different spin on narration that I thought worked well, on the whole. The narrator talks to his 'listeners' and reminds us of where he is, he feels like a fully-formed character.

One for young adult readers or older, quite a quick read.

With thanks to Netgalley for the advance review copy.

A fresh approach to express the voice of inner city youth which helps us understand how the issues of race and class are significant but ignored when expressed through the language of the courtroom.

The narrator is very effective in talking you through his life and gaining our sympathies.

We all know that life is harder for some than others we just choose to ignore it. This novel makes you realise that ignorance is not a good thing for justice. It emphasises the lack of 'peers' in the jury through the need to keep explaining words and phrases as the defendant speaks. The marked difference in the style and language used by the QC is highlighted and referred to as a negative on several occasions.

The reader is left to decide guilt. I am not sure I'm able to as the defendant's life is so far away from my comfortable and safe one.

I read this in 3 days it's so effectively written that you want to know how it ends.

A unique way of understanding how justice is not real for all.

I received a free copy from net galley.com for my fair and honest review.

I struggled to engage as a reader with this one, it's a clever spin on narration style and holds a lot of promise, but it's opening pages were not enough to reel me in. DNF.

An unnamed defendant stands accused of murder. Just before the Closing Speeches, the young man sacks his lawyer, and decides to give his own defence speech. He tells us that his barrister told him to leave some things out. Sometimes, the truth can be too difficult to explain, or believe. But he thinks that if he's going to go down for life, he might as well go down telling the truth. There are eight pieces of evidence against him. As he talks us through them one by one, his life is in our hands. We, the reader - member of the jury - must keep an open mind till we hear the end of his story. His defence raises many questions... but at the end of the speeches, only one matters: Did he do it?
A very unique story. The author tells it extremely well. A very modern and up to date subjects covered in the book. I enjoyed the story once I got into it. Very cleverly written and thought provoking.

If I could give this book more than 5 stars then I would. The best story I have read for a very long time. It is a bold, fascinating tale which immediately pulls the reader in from the first few brilliant pages. The knowledge of the young man's background and language is impressive. Briefly, a young man on a murder charge sacks his lawyer just before the closing speech and decides to do the speech himself. He says he is using the speech to tell the jury exactly what happened without being hindered by what he had previously said in evidence and by what his lawyer said he should not mention. Is his version the truth? The jury has to decide.
My thanks to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy of this book.

An original concept for a book, and one that has many twists and turns. I really enjoyed this book and found it really quite addictive. I could actually see this being on the screen. I enjoyed the narrative, changing from street slang to more 'proper' English dependant on the character. Very well written.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this book ahead of publication. I have not been paid or offered any inducement for reviewing.
An potentially interesting story where a suspect chooses to dismiss his lawyer and defend himself in court. against a murder charge. I'm sure that there is a story in here but I have to admit it wasn't for me. Didn't care for the writing style nor the manner in which the story was related and have to admit to not finishing this book. However as thy say "one man's poison, is another man's pleasure" and sure that this book will prove extremely enjoyable to many others.

I really struggled with this novel despite wanting to like it! It was different to those I usually read and I am thankful for the chance to review it however.

I usually enjoy reading courtroom dramas, but this book is so much more. Written from a point of view of a young man on trial for murder that he claims he didn't commit, it raises so many more questions rather than just wether he is guilty or innocent. At the beginning, the characters come across as quite stereotypical but this changes as the story goes on. By the end, I felt as I knew them personally. Fascinating, original and thought-provoking - this is a book I am going to recommend to all my friends.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC.

As I started reading the street talk of the unnamed narrator, I thought, ''Oh no, this isn't going to be something I'll enjoy'. But then I read a little more, and a little more and it turns out I really didn't know the narrator at all. We know he;s on trial for murder. He's young, black, he talks like he's in a gang and the evidence he ldiscusses is overwhelming. He's clearly guily. But wait. Listen. As he runs through his story, explaing the evidence, describing how he loves his family, his girlfriend, as he described his life trying to avoid any dealings with gangs whilst living in a gang-filled area and getting sucked into situations he doesn't want to be in, we realise we don;t know him. This young man's life has a sad inevitability about it. The more he tries to live a peaceful life, looking after his mum and sister and his girlfriend and his mate since school, the more he gets sucked into dangerous and violent situations. The annoying cliche of the title couldn't be truer. We don't know him or his values or the reasons for the choices he;s made unless we really listen to him. So he sacks his lawyer and lays out his tale for us, laying bare all the material his lawyer has warned him not to talk about. Come the end, the reader has to make up their own mind, but we have so much more to go on than the stereotype we saw standing in the dock at the outset. Mahmood has delivered a stereotype-busting, genre defying book that pulls the reader up short and challenges them to think again about the stereotypes we hold but don't like to admit. This is a fantastic read that I can see being shortlisted for awards this year. I hope so, it really deserves it. And when you reach the end, keep reading. The author's notes are as fascinating as the narrator's tale.

A real page turner, love this type of cliff hanger novel. Will definitely look out for this author in nm future.

I really loved the originality of this book, After graduating with a degree in criminal justice I thought that this book would be perfect. I was slightly disappointed as I found it hard to stay interested as I felt like it was taking a long time to tell his story. I also found it very unbelievable that a defendant would be allowed 10 days to do his closing speech. Overall I believe that I enjoyed the idea of the book rather than the story.