Good morning all!

I hope you’re all having a marvellous weekend and whether you’re staying indoors, cosy and comfortable or having a busy day out with loved ones; whatever you’re doing I hope you’re having a fabulous Sunday! Aside for going out for some lunch, I will be doing mostly NOTHING today and I’m very much looking forward to it. I wanted to start my day by writing my review for The Secret Barrister: Stories of the Law and How it’s Broken by The Secret Barrister.

The Secret Barrister has given us all an insiders look at life inside of Britain’s court rooms. Some of the stories are funny, some of them are heartbreaking and some of them are down right shocking. This book gives the reader an idea of what it is like to be a criminal, a lawyer, a witness and a victim inside court and reveals the very best and the very worst of what goes on in both magistrates and crown court. The Secret Barrister wants us all to know the failings of the British criminal justice system, how we have all ended up where we are and why it is so very important.

I picked this book up from Audible for listening to in the car and I was hooked immediately. I did a short stint at University studying criminology and criminal justice so this appealed to me big time. I learnt so much from this book and some of it quite genuinely frightened me. Our criminal justice system is supposed to be there to protect us but reading this highlighted so many fundamental failings of the system that didn’t make me feel in any protected. The most shocking parts for me were regarding innocent people that find themselves being accused of a crime that they did not commit. It opened my eyes to just how far the system can go to ruin the lives of those poor people.

Another thing I found particularly interesting were the comparisons between the British criminal justice system and those used by other countries around the world. For all of the laws in place in Britain that I just couldn’t comprehend or get my head around (for instance the appropriately named “Innocent Tax” related laws) there are some even more shocking laws and legislation in place in other countries.

I found this book to be eye-opening, jaw dropping and at times, quite frankly shocking. The lines between law and politics are so blurred which made me even more aware of how much our criminal justice system is impacted by what the government will/won’t fund. As mentioned many times in the book, the NHS is constantly under the spotlight and headlines often cause uproar amongst society. Our criminal justice system is just as important for our safety, yet doesn’t get nearly as much attention; which is why I think more people need to read this book, take more interest and speak out more!

This was a fantastic read that I have almost forced upon so many people that I know. This is a must read. We must think more, we must understand more and we must advocate for change.

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