What Happens In The Dark by Kia Abdullah

"If a woman like you can be silenced, who among us can’t?"

This Summer Kia Abdullah is back with yet another excellent thriller & courtroom drama: What Happens In The Dark.

Both hailing from working class backgrounds & fractured families, Safa & Lily used to be the best of friends, but life has a way of changing our outlook on what we want from life, as well as what we get from life, and noone knows this better than this duo. While Lily is the nations sweetheart,  Safa is struggling to catch her big break as a journalist. That is until her ex best friend winds up on a murder charge for AlLeGedLY unaliving her "abusive" husband.

Kia Abdullah takes us on a roller coaster ride of the impacts of silent victims, domestic abuse, flawed victims, the class system, SA, culture & toxic masculinity.

So what did I love about this book? Practically everything! I namely loved the exploration of a flawed character. Throughout the courtcase & Safa's flashbacks, we are presented with a view of Lily that is a far cry from the well poised Lily Astor that viewers of morning television see. We meet a Lily who was vile, vindictive & calculating. But even if someone is made up of these attributes, do they go hand in hand with murderous tendencies?

I also appreciated that Abdullah was able to concisely explore the catch 22s that victims of abuse generally find themselves in: 1: They speak to early it can signal distrust/lack of credibility of their experiences. 2: They speak to late & it questions the intent behind their allegations.

But what about those victims who are silenced by pride, by shame, by their culture? I appreciated Abdullahs need to give a voice to the voiceless in this story.

Overall, this was an EXCEPTIONAL read, which I hope that resonates with its readers. I'm looking forward to more from Kia in the near future.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫