This is a hugely compelling story of racial injustice, loyalty, motherhood, betrayal, friendship, police violence and forgiveness set in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Deeply intense and thought-provoking, We Are Not Like Them forces the reader to dwell on the way and why they might react in similar circumstances. A magnificently told tale, and very highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from HQ via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

We Are Not Like Them is an incisive and intensely compelling story of racial injustice, betrayal, loyalty, motherhood, lifelong friendship, police violence and the importance of forgiveness set against the backdrop of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Riley Wilson and Jenny Murphy have been the best of friends since they were knee-high to a grasshopper and have both managed to become successful in their respective fields. Riley, who is black, is a local television news reporter who is in line for promotion to lead anchor, and Jen, who is white, is wife to equally white police officer, Kevin, who became a cop employed by the Philadelphia Police Department after throwing in the towel at a sales job some time ago. Jenny eventually manages to get pregnant after a series of failed IVF treatments and a loan from Riley who paid for the last round of it meaning she helped her friend to conceive. She is now going through her third trimester when tragedy strikes. 14-year-old black teenager Justin Dwyer is brutally shot by Kevin and his partner in the line of duty. It is difficult to understand why when they had been chasing a suspect with a completely different physical description to Dwyer. This tests their relationship to its ultimate limit, and this is only compounded when Riley is assigned to cover the story as Jenny's due to date looms ever larger.

Each is swept up in the intensity and divisiveness of the incident and its obvious connection to race relations and racial discrimination. Riley cannot understand how Jenny is more concerned about Kevin’s future and career and that he could be indicted on charges of murder should the boy pass away than the fact that an innocent man is currently in a coma on life support; this causes friction between the two women of the type that they have never experienced before. This is a ripped from the headlines, deeply affecting tale that very much reflects the multiple tragedies we have seen play out in the media over the past few years, including George Floyd, where systemic racism pervading institutions such as the police force rise to the fore. It features important social commentary on both direct and indirect racism and everything from microaggressions to lynching and the (clandestine) use of racial profiling. The plot does fall a little too serendipitously into place, but writing team Pride and Piazza certainly understand how to engage you in the story, pen a thoroughly enthralling yarn and pack it full of sublimely creeping suspense as the tension is ratcheted up adeptly. It's a character-driven novel in which we eagerly eye the fate of a previously solid friendship that had crossed both racial and class divides. Highly recommended.

This book is a story of love, friendship and trust. All of these tested to the hilt over the course of the book. A very compelling read that finds its reader questioning how and why you would react in similar circumstances.
Highly recommended.

C Pride and J Piazza have written a book that is heart-breaking and heart-warming at the same time. It is the story of a friendship between a black and a white woman (Riley and Jenny) told by both authors (also black and white) in alternating chapters. I wish I could have been a fly on the wall when they discussed their own perspectives on the plot, and I am sure that the creative writing process itself would provide excellent material for another book.

We Are Not Like Them refers to race – prejudices, sensitivities, perceptions and public opinion. Riley’s experience clashes with Jenny’s perceptions which at best are naïve but more likely blatantly ignorant. Not helped by the fact that Riley does not talk to Jenny about the casual racism she experiences daily or indeed, the generational trauma she carries within her: ‘bone-deep, there’s a dark hum, pain like a shadow, the ancestral trauma that lives in me’. This situation becomes unsustainable when Jenny’s husband, who is a policeman, shoots a black teenager when on duty. Riley, working for a TV channel as a news presenter, covers the story.

This constellation brings to the fore social themes and moral dilemmas that threaten their friendship. On a few occasions, the reader can sense Pride and Piazza’s desire to cover as many of those difficult questions as possible, as if there was a check list that needed to be completed. Thankfully, this feeling is mediated by the strength of the plot and depth of character. To me the story felt very real and I share the nervousness of both characters when it comes to talking about race.

I found this book engaging, thought-provoking and a thoroughly good read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story of two best friends Riley and Jenny. Riley is Black, Jenny is white but race is something they’ve never really talked about it the past. However, when Jen’s husband a people officer is involved in the shooting of an unarmed Black teenager and Riley is assigned as the lead reporter on the case they suddenly find themselves pulled in

When Jen’s husband, a police officer, shoots an unarmed young black man and Riley is assigned as the lead news reporter on the case, they suddenly find themselves on opposite sides for the first time ever and race is what’s pulling them apart.

We Are Not Like Them documents the realities of police brutality, what that means for the families involved, the victim’s family, the police officer’s family and the wider community that is split apart when another innocent victim is killed. It seems to be written with an intended audience of a book club to get people to talk about these really important topics which many of us (like Jen) can ignore as they don’t impact us most of the time. The book is written by two authors, who narrate one of the two voices in the story, One of the challenges I faced in the book was that I just couldn’t warm to Jen as a character, she seemed completely self-absorbed, I felt she had never demonstrated allyship throughout their friend and was completely oblivious to why the death of an innocent Black teenager was so hard for her best friend. I imagine that this was deliberate from the author’s to help drive home some of the key messages they wanted to land

I would absolutely recommend this book for a bookclub where you want to discuss race and racial issues through the medium of a fictional book.

Many thanks to @netgalley and @harpercollinsuk for my ARC

A brilliant moving story.
Jen and Riley have been friends since childhood, Jen is married to a policeman and expecting their first child after numerous IVF treatments the last one paid by Riley who is a TV presenter.
Jen is white and Riley is black and colour has never been a problem to them until Riley is called to report on a unarmed 14yr old black schoolboy that was shot by Jen`s husband and another officer that took the first shot.

The story is told by both Jen and Riley and is brilliantly written, you can see the story from both of them.
It is very moving and so very realistic at this time and covers racism and friendship as its stretched to its limit.
A book that should definitely be read.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I’m struggling to put my thoughts into words about this novel. I enjoyed it. I enjoyed some of the characters and the depth of grief portrayed by Riley, her family and the Black community. I appreciated seeing ‘the other side’ and understanding how Riley’s best friend, her husband (a police officer who shoots an unarmed Black teenager) and his whole family felt. But I just feel there was something missing. Sometimes I wish the story went deeper. Deeper into the characters friendship, which despite spanning 30 years, Jen (Riley’s white friend) somehow hadn’t grasped the level of racism a Black woman might face in the world. Jen is supposed to have been surrounded by Riley’s whole family for much of her childhood and yet nothing of the reality of being Black in America seems to have rubbed off on her. I’m not buying that. Even if Riley didn’t actively help her understand, surely somehow she wouldn’t have been quite so blind. Not as a teenager and certainly not as an adult. I was expecting a deeper conversation between Jen and Riley, and maybe more significant acknowledgment that some of what was said or done was not okay. I guess it just feels like Jen got way too many passes when the whole point of the book feels like it should have addressed that. I found the writing style mostly okay, the alternating chapters worked well.

I was given an advanced copy of this book by NetGalley in return for an honest review.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

a young black kid is shot, murdered by the police

two youngs girls grow up like sisters one is black and one is white...but the lines are drawn that will bring their friendship close to the edge

here is a story that covers todays very topical theme...blm and how we are all racists...

whether you like this story or not it does make for an interesting read...i enjoyed reading about riley and jen and how their lives were entwinned together but how from their different backgrounds how life treated them differently

3.5 rounded up. We Are Not Like Them is co-authored by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza, who are friends in real life. Jo is white, Christine is Black, mirroring the 2 main characters of the novel. Riley is a Black woman, a successful reporter, and her best friend Jen is white, pregnant with her first child, and married to Kevin, a white man, a cop.

You can see where this is going, can't you?  (Yes - Kevin kills an innocent 14-year black boy on the job.) This is my main gripe: the book is predictable from start to finish.

Now, it IS an important read, and it did move me in parts. I did stay up until 1.30am last night to finish it, and several passages had me teary-eyed, especially when we learn more about Gigi the grandmother. I think it will help many people understand the myriad of issues in the US about police brutality, race relations, class, intergenerational trauma, social media "clicktivism", interracial friendships and relationships, as well as other contemporary themes such as motherhood, infertility, depression.

BUT. I had really high hopes for this book, and for me, it did not fully deliver, because of:

- Uneven chapters. Alternating points of views were a great idea, as we get to experience both Jen and Riley's lives. The execution, however, often relied on clichés, or "didactic" moments and clumsy dialogues, which felt more like newspaper clippings or extracts of speeches rather than what the characters would actually say or do in these circumstances.

- Unlikeable characters and their surface-level friendship. Unfortunately, I really struggled to empathise or relate to Jen even one bit. How can you be childhood friends with a Black woman and be so oblivious to the racism she has to face? How can you be so self-centered and put all the onus on Riley to tell you about nasty racist comments she got in school and on the job? We're supposed to believe that they were like sisters, yet Jen at some point says that she wasn't aware of the abusive comments Riley has to read online under her videos and news stories? And why does she keep calling a Black female politician stupid? I know that Jen had a tough upbringing, but this was absolutely not credible for me.

- Riley's choices. It took ages for us to figure out what happened to side characters such as Shaun and Corey, and when you do find out, it seems overly simple, and Riley is portrayed as passive or shutting down everyone around her. Her mental health struggles are briefly mentioned, but it wasn't enough to justify her actions.

- Changes in the writing style. This book tried to tick too many boxes: friendship, family drama, crime, pathos, historical fiction, politics, romance, motherhood, that it has an impact on how us readers feel about the 2 main characters and their friendship, which were supposed to take centre stage but are not sufficiently fleshed out.

- The ending. No spoilers, but bits of it rubbed me the wrong way and were not plausible.

In short, I am really conflicted about my rating here. If you've never read non-fiction, and want to understand why Black Lives Matter, then, by all means, this addictive novel is the right introduction for you. But don't expect a literary masterpiece.

For everyone else - I would instead recommend the plethora of Black authors out there who have written excellent fiction and non-fiction books.

We Are Not Like Them is out on the 5th of October. Thank you @NetGalley and @hqstories for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It took me a while to get into this book. The story is told alternatively by Riley, a black woman and her best friend , Jennifer, who is white. These women have known each other for most of their lives and talk about almost everything ... except race. As the book progressed , it became a very powerful book. Not always easy reading , it challenges racial stereotypes and the way different people (black/white ; police/ media) are perceived and treated by society as a whole and by individuals. The womens' friendship has ups and downs as Jennifer's husband shoots a black teenager . As the reader, you see both sides of this, but the relationship becomes strained.
This book gives lots of food for thought about the big issues of race, friend and family relationships , motherhood and work stereotypes. I liked the characters and hope things work out for them
Thank you to Net Galley the publisher and authors for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I was engrossed in this read from start to finish. It was really impressive. The two conflicting viewpoints of the main characters and the tension on their friendship was really well written.

It was touching and really thought provoking throughout. The pacing was spot on and it kept me wanting to read more. It was definitely an emotional read and I will definitely be recommending this to friends.

Jen and Riley have been best friends since they were children. Their lives have moved in different directions but the pair are still close and are out together when Jen gets a call from her policeman husband- something terrible has happened. As Jen rushes away, Riley receives word from her newsroom that she’s required for a breaking story. A white policeman has shot an unarmed black teenager. As the only POC reporter on staff, Riley is the obvious choice to cover the resulting furore. But what about her friendship with Jen? Can it recover?

This book looks closely at the impact of the shooting on the families involved on both sides, but I’m not completely convinced it addresses the friendship between Jen and Riley realistically. Riley’s unwillingness to speak her mind with Jen and Jen’s apparent refusal to discuss black issues just didn’t ring true about a friendship that had supposedly lasted decades.

That said, it’s a very moving book and definitely one that opens up discussion. I found the descriptions of grief very moving and felt the community reactions were realistically portrayed. I would recommend this book as a great book club choice. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my copy of this book.

This was a very interesting book with a premise I was immediately drawn to. It was well-written and it was fascinating to understand the story from both characters. A must-read for anyone living in today's world.

What an incredibly powerful, poignant and provocative book. This is a definite must read. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! I don’t have the words to describe how powerful, emotional and important this book is.

Read it, share it, talk about it.

Riley is a black woman, a TV reporter and best friends with Jen, a white woman married to a cop who just shot a 14 year old innocent black boy.

As you can imagine it tears their friendship apart. It makes them both face up to things they have not wanted to voice. Can they make it through this?

A powerful story of race, family, friendship, love, power and legacy.

If you do nothing else this year, read this book!

“Real change in this world is only going to happen if we keep talking to one another.”

Although I finished reading this novel over a week ago I’ve shied away from writing my review, reluctant to commit my thoughts to print for fear of being unable to convey how moved I was by this incredible piece of fiction. It is fiction which starkly mirrors reality co-written in a style that grabs you by the throat, shakes and rattles you until all that’s left of your emotions is a mangled mess. In my opinion this novel is pure dynamite opening with a tragic scene that catapults you into the world of Jen and Riley and their interracial friendship that is on the brink of facing its ultimate test.

Best friends since childhood this is a relationship that has so far survived differences in their personal and professional lives as well as the problems of physical distance. Riley is climbing the ladder of success as a television news journalist/broadcaster with her eye on the top job of anchor woman once her rival retires. Jen and husband Kevin, a cop, have finally achieved their goal of becoming pregnant after years of infertility, IVF and heartbreak. Both friends are living in Philadelphia. So, at opposite ends of the spectrum we have a white woman who’s a wife, homemaker and soon to be mother and at the other a black, single, ambitious successful career woman yet their bond is fiercely strong and nothing so far has torn them apart. When we first make the women’s acquaintance, Riley is rushing to meet Jen in a local bar, and despite the obvious love, affection and loyalty that exists between the two implicit from their conversation there are also subtle hints of underlying disharmony. However both are blissfully unaware this increasingly rare chance to catch up will be abruptly brought to a close when news of the shooting of a black teenager Justin Dwyer by a white cop reaches Jen’s ears via a text message from her husband Kevin. You instinctively guess that this piece of breaking news will drive a stake through the heart of Jen and Riley’s friendship as Riley seizes the opportunity to report on the incident whilst Jen retreats back into the safety of her marriage, Kevin’s family and the police closing ranks against the media and the fury unleashed within the community. I felt sick to the stomach, apprehensive for these two women whose friendship surely cannot survive such a devastating event, an incident in which everyone loses. It’s a scenario in which no one can escape with their lives untouched or unaltered. Alongside my commiseration for Jen and Riley’s presumably now dead and soon to be buried relationship sat the sorrow and anguish I felt towards the mother of the gunned down teenager. Stirring up emotions so quickly and effortlessly is a tremendous way to gain a captive reader; I couldn’t bring myself to stop reading. All I cared about was the outcome, however disastrous that may prove to be for all concerned.

Told via the alternating perspectives of Jen and Riley, there are so many themes running through the narrative from love and friendship, loyalty and betrayal, motherhood, prejudice, injustice, justice, forgiveness, acceptance and hope the authors take you on an emotional journey like no other. My thoughts and feelings were ricocheting from one extreme to the other as the authors offer up both sides of this harrowing story with writing that is raw, unbiased, balanced, authentic and engaging. Both characters backgrounds are equally fascinating simply for the fact they are so different. This only adds to the dilemma you’re presented with, smudging the boundaries between black and white (no pun intended!) proving there is no easy answer to the situation these individuals find themselves in. Race doesn’t seem to matter until suddenly it very much does. Jen has compelling reasons to seek love and comfort in the arms of Riley and that of the Wilson family from an early age which makes the potential loss of their friendship all the more heartbreaking. However once Riley’s grandmother, the wonderfully wise Gigi reveals dark secrets that have tainted their own family history it becomes virtually impossible to remain neutral. Just like the two friends, I felt stuck between a rock and a hard place, unwittingly caught in a maze of conflicting emotions, not knowing in which direction to turn. Suffice to say I think it’s inevitable to be drawn more towards Riley and her life experiences, feeling compassion for her and the Dwyer family than it is towards Jen who has one foot firmly entrenched in a family in which certain members wear their prejudice almost with pride.

It’s the absence of certain conversations, the things that are left unsaid that really strike a note when understanding Jen and Riley’s friendship. There’s already evidence of a divisive wedge between the pair that the shooting of Justin Dwyer brings to the fore and opens up further. Both are guilty of sweeping some of those awkward, difficult conversations under the carpet with Riley something of a closed book regarding her personal life, keeping secrets of her own. It takes the wise words of (if I remember correctly) Sandra, Riley’s mother to suggest that communication is the key in any relationship, especially if anything good can ever arise from this tragedy. “The longer you let something go the easier it is to stay silent and the silence is where the resentment starts to fester and rot” really resonate in a narrative that is at times painful and distressing to read, with a mother’s grief woven through every page.

Regardless of the important messages the authors effectively convey, in terms of actual storytelling it is addictive. All the ensuing drama and the myriad of potential endings that could result as a consequence of a split second wrong decision keep you riveted. Even though some of the best and worst aspects of humanity are on show every one of these characters manages to leave their mark on your conscience. You’ll want to vent your frustration and anger at the injustices of this world past and present and cry tears of sorrow for these grieving individuals, all the while clutching onto the shred of hope that glimmers through the darkness.

In no way have I managed to do this novel justice but I’ve tried! Powerful, hard hitting, well written, thought provoking and emotional We Are Not Like Them is one of the most engrossing books you’ll read this year. It is a brilliant conversation starter, opening up a wider discussion in terms of race in general, institutionalised racism and the devastating divisive impact tragedies like these have on immediate family members and the wider community. This is a book that should be on everyone’s reading list. Don’t skip a single word, including the foreword, as every single one matters. Impossible not to award 5 ⭐️

My thanks as always to the publisher HQ and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.

**Review** Special thanks to Netgalley/Publisher/Author for an advanced copy of this book!

Wow what an incredible read.. this book covers everything.. from love to racism, from murder to living life.. it was incredibly moving and such an important read.

It’s written by two incredible authors who aim to discuss and educate others about race and equality

It was a touching read but would highly recommend!

**Synopsis**

Jen and Riley are best friends, and have been for as long as they can remember. Nothing could stand to tear them apart, despite being from different backgrounds, and their lives taking different routes.

They continue to be incredibly close throughout their lives until one day the unthinkable happens..

Whilst coping with being 6 months pregnant, Jens husband, (a police officer) is involved in the shooting of an unarmed black teenager.

Their friendship is put to the test as the tragedy proves that despite growing up together, their lives are still very different and to some, not equal.

We Are Not Like Them is an intriguing and provocative read. It's interesting reading a book that is co-authored, and this feels seamless. The story is told from the perspectives of two different characters, each with a distinct voice and experience, but I couldn't tell how the authors worked together. I am quite interested to see if they are interviewed and read about their writing process.

It's a very timely story, a gripping story, and a thoughtful one. Highly recommended.

We Are Not Like Them will be a fabulous choice for book clubs, which is likely exactly what it was written for. In fact, it almost constantly throws up talking points as if the authors were working through a list of topics. I just wanted it to be more complex and interesting than it was.

The premise sounds great, but I don't think the book ever really lived up to it. The blurb posits that Jen and Riley, who are white and black respectively, are the bestest of friends, and have been for pretty much their whole lives. Like sisters, even. When Jen's husband, a police officer, is involved in the shooting of an unarmed black boy, politics and calls for social justice worm their way into the women's friendship.

I was curious about this. What happens when two people who are so close become divided by race? Except the authors never really take us there at all. From the very first time we meet Riley and Jen, we see the former inwardly cringing as Jen jokes about "CPT", biting her tongue as she recalls how Jen never gets her problem with strangers touching her hair. And Jen seems to use Riley to borrow money and get a free lunch. Is this the close friendship I came for? Seems one-sided at best.

This fact, I feel, weakens the impact of the rest of the book. Oh, suddenly Riley and Jen aren't talking? Well, not such a great loss after all. I found Jen incredibly selfish and I have to say, at the novel's close, I'm not sure what lessons she had really learned.

While it's nice that (view spoiler) It also felt like a bit of a cop-out (no pun intended) that Jen's husband was the less culpable shooter, paving the way for (view spoiler).

Two young girls form a great friendship, a bond that seemingly appears unbreakable as they grow up together in their home town. One becomes a Television news journalist (Riley), the other an office manager who marries and longs for children (Jen). Jen’s husband, Kevin, comes from a police family and against predictions joins the police force in Philadelphia. But things go terribly wrong when Kevin and his partner gun down a young black boy reaching for his mobile phone. Written in alternate chapters, Jen and Riley narrate the story of their friendship, the shooting of the young boy and the repercussions that arise from this act. Pride and Piazza skilfully tell the story of how the women must deal with the enormous strain placed on their friendship in a compelling and clearly told fashion. I feel this book is one of the must read books of 2021.