Trials on Death Row in Pakistan by Isabel Buchanan

Just because a book is worthy, it doesn’t necessarily make it worthwhile. There must be balance between weighty subjects and their treatment.

Debut author Isabel Buchanan strikes this perfectly in her impressive debut. In 2011 the 23-year-old Scottish lawyer joined a unique female led legal chambers in a male dominated culture, working to save lives due to end on the gallows. Buchanan takes on a subject both morally and technically complex; the plight of those accused of horrific crimes and a labyrinthine legal system, where religion flavours remnants of antiquated laws left behind by the British. One which believes in an eye for an eye.

In many cases however, it seems both a wrong and random eye they wish to pluck in return. The multiple murder cases the team face are almost everyday in comparison to the incendiary accusation of blasphemy. These illicit words endanger not only those accused, but any judge or legal representative voicing an opinion challenging the mob.

Buchanan modestly removes herself from much of the action, focussing instead on her brave Pakistani colleagues, endangered by their association with such cases, and the often tragic backstories of the accused. She guides us through these stories with poise and respect, avoiding melodrama in cases which frankly need none to shock to the core. Buchanan has made her mark here as a reporter of hidden stories which desperately need to be heard.