This gripping narrative explores how a seemingly harmless act can escalate into devastating tragedy and heartbreak.

Salma, Bill, and Zain relocate to a new home, aiming for a fresh start despite the financial strain. Initially, things seem promising when they attend a neighborly barbecue. However, tensions rise when their neighbor, Tom, removes and dumps Zain's banner from their front yard. This sparks a series of escalating events, culminating in a horrific incident that leaves one character in a coma and another facing trial for attempted murder.

This intense and, unfortunately, plausible story highlights how misunderstandings, intolerance, and deceit can destroy lives. While the characters are not particularly likable, making it hard to care about their fates, the journey through the plot's twists and turns remains engaging.

Tania Rodrigues, the narrator, excels in bringing the story to life with her performance.

Those People Next Door Kia Abdullah

Is this a movie, if not then it should be!
Interesting, twisty and kept me entertained, I listened to half of it on a long drive, and this book kept me company.
The narrator made the book for me, so much so I have started another book with same narrator and author, winning combination.

Selma and Bilah have moved into their new home with their teenage son, Zane, they are looking forward to a new life, but their past of having to close down Bilah's restaurant and trying to sell the premises; while making a better life for Zane is soon tainted when they meet their neighbours, Tom, Willa and their Son Jamie.

Tensions become high, words are said, action is taken, and war will soon break out between the two.

This was a really heavy read and I had to stop reading several times as I was anxious about what would happen next, but this just portrays this author's great writing style and narrative.

I ended up disliking all the characters (maybe I liked the character of Jamie a little bit) but I believe this was done on purpose to give atmosphere and tension to the narrative which worked brilliantly. There was also a plot twist that I didn't see coming which shocked me even more. A fantastic read and one I would recommend.

A very thought provoking and enjoyable book! Blown away by the many complex issues addressed in this book by Kia Abdullah.

It is perhaps best thought of as a fictional examination of human frailties from a behavioural science perspective but with an emphasis on context!

I thought initially that this book would have “racism” as the main theme but it goes much much deeper than that.

Family relationships; two sided nasty neighbours; preconceived bias impacting on judgement; lack of empathy; friendships; dangers from social media; disabilities; peer group pressures; financial impact of the economy; justice; honesty; vindictiveness and revenge.

These all have a huge part at the various stages of the book as the plot evolves. The author has this ability to force you the think and rethink how you might have reacted in similar circumstances. Unfortunately I am not confident that I would have behaved any better! Perhaps now though!

The ending was outstanding - loved the final touch!

So hats off to the author for creating an enjoyable book that is also impressive in how subtilely many important issues are presented and discussed.

Kia Abdullah is at the top of her game. I frequently recommend her to thriller readers who are a little tired of the genre and are looking for something a bit different. She is the queen of the twist, and her foray into the more domestic side of crime (her other books are mostly legal thrillers) was no different. Abdullah takes a twist we’ve seen done before and still blindsides you with it. While this isn’t my favourite from this author, as it is probably her safest book, the most typical of the genre, it still has all the trademarks of her unique (and imo, brilliant) storytelling.

I love that Abdullah weaves social issues into her books. Her stories are never soft or comfortable to read, but she also never steers the reader in a particular direction, allowing them to take a side themselves. Her characters are complicated and sometimes unlikeable. They aren’t moral beacons. Here, as with her previous three books, Abdullah trusts her readers to understand the moral heart of the book without spoon feeding it to them 💖

Loved the audio! I always prefer to listen to a thriller or horror book because it’s like being told a campfire story. Tania Rodrigues did a cracking job and really captured the spirit of the main character, Salma. Rodrigues has a really captivating voice, I would seek out other stories they narrated.

Huge thank you to Harper Collins UK and Netgalley for a listening copy of one of my most anticipated books of 2023 in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book and the narrator was great! I felt for the family but I could see both sides to the story and was completely invested in it. I would definitely read/listen to more by this author. The story’s looks at some really interesting subjects with sensitivity I found this to be an emotional listen with a thriller edge

I watched a TV swri3s with a similar premise and very much enjoyed it, so I knew I'd like this from the off. Plot, characters and premis all great. Something I will reccomend to family who like this genre. Would definitely listen to more thriller type audios from this author.

Salma and her family move to Blenheim hoping for better times. A nicer neighbourhood and a chance for her son to leave his recent past behind. You could feel from the start that this was probably not going to be the case.

The neighbours aren’t who Salma had wished for and feels that the husband, Tom is a racist bigot, despite his denials. A feud is born between the neighbours, although the two sons get on and seem to ignore what else is going on.

I found the story a little weak and tiresome, possibly even lazy and gave in to stereotyping very easily. None of the characters are likeable or ones that you can empathise particularly with.

It could well be that the author is writing from some experience, but it didn’t really come across well to me. The first 60% of this book was slow and a bit repetitive, it did improve and a few well positioned twists did help the story.

Overall it just didn’t do it for me, I give it 3.5/5 rounded down to 3.

This was a great audiobook.
A family move to what they perceive to be a better area for their son to grow up in and are met with prejudice.
This was very thought provoking and how little actions in the beginning created life changing consequences.
Some unexpected admissions along the way
Thank you to Harper Collins UK Audio HQ, Kia Abdullah and Netgalley for a copy of this audiobook, in return for an honest review.

Another excellent book from Kia Abdullah. Never afraid to tackle contemporary issues around culture and race. Sales and BIl move into a new house and find themselves with the neighbours from hell whilst their sons become friends. Relations between the two families deteriorate as their lives fall apart. A terrible event part way through the story puts everything into perspective and leads us into courtroom drama. But the verdict is not the end of the matter… packed with suspense, dread and escalation there are many twists and turns. The end is truly shocking.

Those people next door - Kia Abdullah
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars.

You can choose your house. Not your neighbours.

Salma Khatun is extremely hopeful about Blenheim, the safe suburban development to which she, her husband and their son have just moved. 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.

I freaking loved this book, I was gripped from the very first page and this book took you through so many emotions and made you change your opinion on people so much that I honestly don’t even know how to feel about any of the characters after finishing this.

There were so many twists and turns that I just didn’t see coming and even when you think you know something it then all gets turned on its head again. I honestly just cannot recommend this book enough.

I now need to read Kia’s other work and I really hope that they are as good as this one.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book for review.

Gripping with a fantastic twist!

I listened to this as an audiobook and thoroughly enjoyed it! It takes a decent narrator and a gripping storyline to hold my attention as I can be very easily distracted and don’t get on with all audiobooks. This one had both and I found myself wanting to listen to it at any given opportunity!

Salma and her family have moved house, hoping to leave their troubles behind them and looking for a fresh start. The area seems nice and when they’re invited to a neighbourhood barbecue they feel certain they’ll be happy here.

Unfortunately, not all the neighbours are that welcoming and when Tom from next door starts to moan about where Salma has parked her car and pulls down her Black Lives Matter banner from her garden; she quickly realises this might not be the fresh start they were hoping for!

Things continue to go from bad to worse with the nightmare neighbours next door! Are they really responsible for everything that happens? What will Salma and her family do? Read or listen to this fab book to find out!

This story is extremely well written, with a fantastic, unexpected ending. I liked Salma and felt sorry for her having to deal with her nightmare neighbours, there were times when I felt she shouldn’t have reacted the way she did, but she was just trying to stand up for herself and her family. A book like this highlights how you can stop thinking rationally when you are feeling threatened.

Racism is a hard topic to cover in a book. The author has done a fantastic job of making this an incredibly thought-provoking story!

I love how this book is part suspenseful thriller and part courtroom drama, it really works. I found myself completely immersed in the story each time I listened, feeling like I was right there in the courtroom!

Thank you to Kia Abdullah, HQ publishing and NetGalley got my copy of this audiobook.

Narrated by Tania Rodrigues ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Story by Kia Abdullah ⭐⭐⭐

First time trying Kia Abdullah.
I didn't particularly enjoy the first part to this book because I found the escalation of things very frustrating but part 2 and 3 were fantastic!

Would definitely try this author again.

Kia Abdullah has become an auto-buy author for me. I've loved every single book by her, and Those People Next Door was no exception!

It follows a woman called Salma who moves into a new neighbourhood with her husband and teenage son. Within a few weeks, Salma begins to suspect their new next door neighbour is racist and posts about it on social media. Things start to escalate from there, and then tragedy strikes...

I'd describe this more as a domestic drama rather than a thriller, however there were some excellent moments of tension and suspense. The narration on the audiobook was also fantastic!

My only complaint was the pacing was a little inconsistent, but otherwise I would highly recommend it.

Thriller set off the A12 in East LONDON

Salma Khatun moves into a new house on the Blenheim Estate, together with her husband Bilal and son Zain. It is a short move from their original home on the other side of the A12 in East London. They hope that a new start will offer Zain a more positive environment after he got into trouble in the sixth form. They meet their neighbours at a barbecue and already a sense of unease percolates through Salma’s veins because of throwaway comments that seem singularly inappropriate.

It is their immediate neighbours, Tom and Willa Hutton with whom they find themselves straying into conflict. Zain has erected a BLM flag in the front garden and Tom is spotted lifting and tossing it. Micro-agressions ensue until it cannot be overlooked that Tom’s actions seem to be motivated by racism. Attempts to exonerate his behaviour are made, suggesting he “he didn’t mean what he said” but video evidence might just suggest otherwise. Keying of Selma’s car and a paint attack on the façade of their house are just some of the issues with which the Kahtuns have to deal. Despite the adults’ altercations, Zain and Jamie, the Huttons’ son, firm up a friendship based on software development and can pop between houses across the connecting balconies. Zain is very caring of Jamie’s loss of hearing.

Bilal was a restaurateur, pre-pandemic, and they are trying to sell the premises to raise capital, but it is a thankless task given the state of the restaurant industry. Suddenly there are squatters, who seem set on staying, yet another headache for the family. Finally their beloved dog goes missing.

The stress on the couple relationships in both families is pronounced and the author does a good job of highlighting the pressures. She looks at the part played by each spouse and how they support the other, at times perhaps colluding in behaviour which serves to underline the value of integrity. Social Media, inevitably, has its part to play in the whole sorry story.

A dreadful event takes place and Part 2 looks at the subsequent trial to establish the perpetrator and it evolves into a well constructed courtroom drama. Part 3 closes the storyline.

The story is clearly laid out as relations between the two families deteriorate, and once the court proceedings begin, there is a gripping change of gear. It moves along at a good pace that I found gripping and intelligent.

I found the ending of Those People Next Door to be a little far fetched and I really couldn’t visualise Selma doing what she did in the concluding paragraph – she, of all people, is familiar with the consequences of deliberate behaviour.

Overall, I felt enthusiastic about the story and how it unfolded.

Setting per se isn’t particularly strong but the feel of a fraught English community comes through, with a variety of characters (Linda is surely plucked from The Archers, the long running serial on the BBC R4?!)

Salma Khatun, her husband Bil and and their teenage son Zain just moved to what they expect is a better life in a nicer place. But soon after arriving to tidy Blenheim, hostility starts mounting with their neighbours, as what starts with a simple dispute scales to frightening levels.
This book is divided in two parts and, while the first is kind of slow for my taste, the second is a rollercoaster as each event triggers something even worse.
Kia Abdullah gives us an intelligent and easy to follow prose with which she describes this clash of different worlds, marked each by its own economic, social and politic undertones- all treated with the complexity they deserve. In addition to this, the narration by Tania Rodrigues is excellent- as a side note, ideal for people for whom English is a second language due to the clear enunciation & accent.

For me, this was a book of two halves. The first half was very much a domestic thriller. It chronicled a number of petty arguments with racial undertones that ultimately spiraled out of control.
I didn't enjoy this half of the book, I am not a fan of domestic thrillers and I'd chosen this book based on Kia Abdullah's reputation for writing edge of your seat legal thrillers - which this half wasn't, although it was building up a picture and setting the scene for the second half of the book which was based on the legal side.
Now, you hit the middle of the book and BAM, there's an event which changes everything and brings it to a head.
Here is where the legal side of thing gets started and I loved this half of the book. I loved the way you think things are going one way and then there's a curve ball thrown in.
And then we get to the end. TWIST. Not what I expected - at all.
I would have preferred it without the last couple of paragraphs but I can appreciate the full circle closure of including them

This is a tense story of how one seemingly innocuous action can spiral out of control resulting in tragedy and heartache.

Salma, Bill and Zain move into their new home in the hopes of making a fresh start. The move has stretched them financially but they are determined to make the best of things and when they are invited to a barbecue in order to get to know their neighbours, things appear to be going well. However, when Zain's banner is removed from their front garden and dumped on their lawn by their neighbour, Tom, things quickly start to escalate culminating in a horrendous incident which leaves on of the characters in a coma and another standing trial for attempted murder.

This a really tense and, sadly, believable story of how misunderstandings, intolerance and lies can ruin lives. The characters aren't particularly likeable and this did mean that I actually didn't care what the outcome was for any of them but I did enjoy getting there and the twists and turns along the way!

The narrator, Tania Rodrigues, was excellent and really brought the story to life.

I have never read or listened to anything by Kia Abdullah before but I will certainly be keeping my beady eyes and ears open in the future and I must thank HarperCollins UK Audio and NetGalley for enabling me to listen to and share my thoughts of Those People Next Door.

Toxic attitudes lead to toxic behaviours and makes for very toxic neighbours. When Salma, Bil and their son Zain move into a better neighbourhood, it is with high hopes of providing a positive future for their son, and detaching him from negative friendship groups. Soon after moving in, a banner displayed in their garden is destroyed. Their neighbour Tom the guilty party. Salma immediately feels it is racially motivated, based on previous experiences. When confronted, Tom becomes defensive. Instead of rational communication, the two become motivated by anger, and the ensuing result has catastrophic consequences for both families. Our sympathies constantly jump back and forth between the families, and none of the protagonists are particularly likeable. A powerful novel about racism told from multi perspectives and without preaching. #thosepeoplenextdoor #kiaabdullah #netgalley

Salma, Bill and son Zain move away from their current home and troubles to a safe neighbourhood, Blenheim. With the hopes a finding some new friends, they can’t wait to meet the new neighbours, Tom, Willa and Jamie. The initial meet at a BBQ goes well, then Salma sees Tom knock down a ‘black lives matter’ banner and when Salma moves the banner to the window, she finds her window painted over. A line of racist incidents occur and soon spirals out of control when a life altering incident and consequences alters these families lives forever.
A powerful storyline with a shocking tale of racism underlying the plot. Really thought provoking.