Published: 2024
Genre: Realistic, Mystery/Suspense
Trigger Warnings: racism; language
Audience: Young Adult
Reviewer: Stephanie Kenific
Summary: Six Muslim teens are falsely accused of a deadly attack in this timely and harrowing examination of America’s justice system, perfect for fans of Angie Thomas and Samira Ahmed. As fireworks pop off at a rowdy Fourth of July bonfire party, an explosion off the California coast levels an oil rig—resulting in chaos and worse, murder. At the center are six Muslim teens – six patriots, six strangers, and six suspects.
An old soul caught in the wrong place. An aspiring doctor. An influencer with a reputation to protect. A perfect daughter with secrets to hide. A soccer star headed for Stanford. An immigrant in love. Each with something to hide and everything to lose. Faced with accusations of terrorism, The Six are caught in a political game that will pit them against each other in exchange for exoneration. They must frame each other to guarantee their own independence or expose their secrets to earn back freedom for them all.
Review: The setup to this book was excellent, and it’s a very relevant and timely addition to my library collection. The idea of six Muslim students who have absolutely no connection to the explosion of an oil rig being suspected of conducting a terrorist attack with no evidence is chilling but unfortunately not far off from reality. The author also includes diverse portrayals of Muslim young people and their families, shattering stereotypes about Muslim women, the hijab, and gender relations. There is an interesting subplot about one of the teens catfishing another of the group, but it isn’t fully explored as far as the motivations Nasreen had in pursuing the online relationship.
The second half of the book kind of goes off the rails and misses some important opportunities for meaningful characterization. I think there are just too many characters–6 teens who narrates the story as well as the crooked prosecutor. To do all of the characters justice, the book would have needed to be a lot longer. I’m not sure that I would recommend this book to others, because I found myself feeling pretty disappointed with how the book wrapped itself up.
