Zaid Karim Private Investigator

by Wael Abdelgawad

Zaid Karim can't catch a break. His one-man private investigations business has been going downhill, his wife has kicked him out of the house and won't let him see his daughter, and all his bills are overdue. When he finally catches a case to find a missing child, he soon discovers that the client has lied about key facts. Slandered on all sides, accused of negligence and theft, and wounded in a knife attack, Zaid vows to do one thing right in his sorry life - to find this child. His vow will take him into mortal danger, facing the threat of torture and death - and there will be no backing out. * * * READER COMMENTS "Takes Muslim fiction to a new level. So many books in this genre are poorly written romances, cliched Aladdin-type adventures or thinly disguised criticisms of Islam. This novel, featuring an Arab-American private detective who is down on his luck, yet still in love with the wife who has kicked him out, is refreshing in its emotional honesty. At the same time it barrels along with constant action and weirdly original characters. Loved it." - Yahya Simonian "(Abdelgawad´s) stories made me wake up every day and live till the next day…. gives some much needed meaning to this struggling life." - Akhil Jamal "Amazing Muslim novel. So much fun, with a brilliant twist ending that I should have seen coming, but didn't. I love that Zaid is serious about his Islamic faith but still struggling with his daily practice. Sometimes he is nearly paralyzed with depression, and other times utterly determined to overcome every obstacle in his path. I can relate." - Ammar B. "Brilliant. Masha Allah tabarak Allah.... a new genre of writing." - Abu Hirsi "I had a different take. Love story between Zaid and his wife is cool. Action is exciting. But my favorite was the friendship / working relationship between Zaid and Niko. I felt like that was the heart. I will miss Niko most of all." - Yasmin Alkurdi "Amazing!! Love it... not taking my eyes off my laptop till I’m done!" - Maryam Moeen "Tears in my eyes…. Amazing alhamdulillah!" - Umm Ismael

428 pages, Paperback

Published March 27, 2020

About the author

Whipping down a San Francisco hill on a bicycle as a courier, cruising around town as a taxi driver, at night working the door at a busy club, all interspersed with even stranger adventures - such as driving deep into southern Mexico to find a kidnapped child, and ending up broke on the streets of Mexico City, only to be found by a kind publisher and feted by Mexico City elites - Wael Abdelgawad knew that one day he must put pen to paper.

Now he has.

Having lived in Los Angeles, Tripoli (Libya), Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Arizona, Texas, San Francisco, Oakland, and Panama, Wael has come to rest in Fresno, California. He is a lifelong martial artist with multiple black belts, a webmaster and popular blogger, an associate writer with MuslimMatters.org, and the founder of several popular Islamic websites. He is also the proud father of a daughter who - following in her father's footsteps - loves to write.

Reviews

[hyacinth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved how real and (at times) relatable Zaid is.

the struggle in faith, failing to reign in your own soul at times and the realisation that you will always be a work in progress - chef's kiss

+point - peppered with absurdly laugh out loud moments

[Maya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book has a good plot with some very interesting twists. I don't think any reader would be bored.

Some things I did not like:
- An "intellectual" reading The Fall of Communism and Capitalism and then saying 'yeah homey' then of course, 'homie' - yes there are different spellings on different pages, and then also 'true dat' - apparently to play a part, even though he's so "intellectual".
- Metaphors and similes that jar you out of the flow of the story and make it difficult to suspend disbelief - e.g. As for the smell, he might have gone on a world tour to find the dirtiest public toilet, minituarized it and stashed it in his pocket.
Some of his metaphors were gold though, like: You had to cling on to your integrity as if it were your only garment in a snowstorm.

I'm not sure what to make of the description - 'moderately religious', since those who are orthodox are not extreme. For the religious folks, you might want to know this book contains:
Women directors on masjid board - I mean, that's fine, but the way it was mentioned it was like a criticism of segregation
Lesbian gangsters
Description of women's breasts/shape - also a naked lady at one point

I mean, this was never marketed as 'Islamic' fiction but this is here for those who may be looking for such.

[Book.Wormette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wael Abdelgawad has done it again. I love getting know the characters, their strong faith and commitment. Zaid is no different. A devoted Muslim, father, and husband done on his luck but not beaten. He takes on a case and follows it to the end through very troubling experiences and a surprise ending. If you enjoy characters that persevere against all odds and multiple settings thrown in with interesting facts about the locale, then I think you'll enjoy reading this novel. Due for publication in ebook and paperback soon.

[Malak · Rating 5 out of 5]

9/10 — THIS BOOK IS AMAZING

[Shifaya Nasrine · Rating 5 out of 5]

as usual wonderful read with islamic lessons.

[Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book certainly blew me away in its uniquely authentic Islamic worldview reflected in the eyes of the protagonist Zaid Karim, an American Palestinian Muslim who's a Private Investigator (PI) constantly facing challenges in his life when out of nowhere arrives a particularly important case.

I love the initial start of the book where we see Zaid barely surviving in his everyday push in the challenges of his livelihood, his surroundings, his family and his community. At least one of these aspects can be highly relatable to the average person. And their seeing their corresponding successes, inspiring too. During the second half of the book, I found myself quite engrossed and in suspense of the plot as it quickly accelerates into action. I finished it in less than a week.

As a Muslim man specifically, one additional aspect I deeply appreciated was the protagonist being a Muslim man. Zaid showcases strength and perseverance in the face of bleak odds under a strong foundation of Taqwa (or 'God consciousness') and Tawwakul (or 'reliance upon God'). And while this is equally applicable for both genders, his own struggles are manifested uniquely in the male experience. As a husband, father and son he loves and struggles with: his wife, his daughter, and his family respectively. Further, he struggles with his career, he deliberately tries to fight his own anger (and despair) and practises martial arts with lifelong discipline. Hence, I think for Muslim men in particular, this could be a quite beneficial read.

A few negatives would be that I felt it sometimes was done a bit over the top, at times the dialogue was a bit laboured and there were often too many themes at one point, resulting in a diluted read.

But the messaging still sticks with you. And in that I believe there's quite a bit of value in conceiving of the memories of Zaid's graphic trials whilst having the Quranic (or Islamic, in general) reflections interspersed. I often don't get to see Muslims in media but this book proves one can have an Islamically positive yet entertaining messaging. I may return back and re-read this book, which I rarely do for fiction.

All in all, I hope I get to read more similar kinds of works (hopefully also available on Kindle Unlimited, ha). And I will be checking the author's other works, Inshallah.

[Sarah Muzaffar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved almost all parts of the book. The story has a good plot, with as many good twists, keeps you hinged till you are done. I liked how the author has woven the touch of faith in this narrative. The only reason I took away one star is my personal dislike of long descriptive action scenes unfolding in the story. A good book overall!