Ed has lived in the same town all his life. As a youngster he had a "gang" of friends which included Fat Gav, Hoppo, Metal Micky & Nicky. Things happened in their teenage years which now return to haunt them as adults.
This is actually quite a complicated book and you do need to keep your wits about you. With hindsight I wonder if a cast list might have been useful to refer to. The book has different chapters in different time periods in the past & present. They are clearly labelled which I did appreciate as the cast in the past & present are mostly the same.
Ed is that lad who never really moved on from his childhood. He has become a teacher but teaches in his old school and lives in the house he grew up in. He sees reminders of his past every day. Hoppo and Fat Gav don't seem to have been able to pull themselves away either. I did feel for Ed. He is a strange lad and an even stranger adult. He isn't able to move on so his life just stagnates. I am sure many people know an Ed and he was very believable. The supporting cast are also well written - it is interesting that no one has actually managed to move on from their childhood no matter what it seems on the surface.
This is a thriller though it is certainly not fast paced. I think Ed breaks into a run at one point near the end but that is it. The whole story is a slow amble which won't suit some people.
The characters are complex and three dimensional. When we look back at the past we see things from a child's perspective, Ed, but as an adult reader you have the advantage over him. When Ed revisits these things in his mind as an adult you can see him looking at things differently.
I enjoyed this book. It is a slow stroll and quite complex but I was happy with that. I loved the complexity of the characters. It was tough for everyone involved in so many different ways. However, I felt that it did reflect life quite well. I was quite pleased with the ending and felt that it did fit the book.
So sit back and enjoy this book. Don't rush it but absorb it.
I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley.

Loved this book, so many twists and turns and an intricate plot, would definitely read this authors books in the future.

The Chalk Man is a very rare thing. A "thriller" that didn't make me anxious!

In this age of psychological suspence and unreliable female narrators I have to confess I was expecting similar. But it is nothing like anything I've read in years. It reminded me of very good early Stephen King (particularly IT), and like King, while keeping you on your toes, the brilliant character arcs and beautifully told story shone through and, for me, this made the book.

I'm not sure this even is a thriller, I'm not sure what it is other than sheer brilliance. I was late for work and didn't sleep enough because I couldn't put it down.

I remember the first time I read IT in 1987. It's been a long time since I sat staring into space after finishing a book like I did after that one, but The Chalk Man came close. That ending.....my God.

A wonderful original storyline that will keep you guessing until the very end. Utterly twisted and unsettling but very compelling. This is going to be THE debut of the year. I can feel it in me bones!

Many thanks to Netgalley who provided me with this ARC. I chose to read it and give a voluntary and unbiased review.

I loved the retro snippets in this book, a great story of friendship, murder and loss. What an ending, fantastic.

Slightly reminiscent of Stand By Me (one of my favourite films, and short stories), I really enjoyed this book. I found the way it jumped from 1986 to present exciting and although I worked out the ending quite early on (the first page, combined with the constant mention of Alzheimer's gave it away early) it was still worth the wild ride. I'm not sure that I liked the many of the characters but for some reason that made me enjoy the book more. I think it says something great about the author when the reader can become invested in the lives of characters they hate.

I think this book covered a lot of basis; the purity of childhood, along with the complexities of friendship, loss and misplaced trust. This isn't an author I've read before but would certainly read more of their writing.

I enjoyed this story and remained enthralled right up to the end.

Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone



I know it's unusual to start a review by talking about the end of a book, but oh boy what an excellent ending that was!

12 year old Eddie Adams and his friends are like any other group of twelve year olds, carefree summer days messing about as kids do, until the day the fair visits the village of Anderbury. A Waltzer carriage breaks away at great speed and careens into the crowd, causing life changing injuries to one teenage girl in particular. That was bad enough, but it was also the day that Eddie met 'The Chalk Man'

Eddie and his mates devise a secret code made up of chalk messages in different colours - each colour being assigned to one of the gang, so they know exactly which one of them wrote each message. They leave messages at each other's homes, and it provides weeks of fun until the day they discover chalk figures leading them to a dead body, but none of the gang had left these messages!

The storyline flits between 1986 and 2016, but how the events of 30 years earlier affect these friends in the present I'm not telling! But rest assured it's a completely riveting journey. There was a great mystery at the heart of it, with some chilling, heart stopping moments, and many twists and turns. The characters were perfect and the whole thing kept me on tenterhooks right the way through. C.J.Tudor has a talent for sure, and it's hard to believe this is her debut novel. Spooky, gripping, compelling!

If a movie director doesn't pick up on this one I'll be very surprised!

*Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin UK, Michael Joseph for my ARC in exchange for an honest review*

I loved The Chalk Man. I started it and finished it within 24 hours as I just could not put it down. It was so different and fresh in comparison to a lot of the books that are out there now and this really made a difference. Taking the genre and upending it just a touch made The Chalk Man a great book. The dual timelines complemented each other perfectly, and the characters were really well developed. More than once I thought I knew where the book was going, and then I'd read a bit more, and see just how wrong I was. The author has done a fantastic job creating a creepy, twisty and totally gripping novel. Highly recommended!

The Chalk Man. What a book. Had me gripped from the first page, to the last. With twists throughout.

We follow Eddie, and his friends, through two different timelines 1986 & 2016. All of the characters are likeable and interesting and you will want to keep reading to find out what happens to them.

Eddie and his friends invent the Chalk Men as a way to tell each other where to meet up by drawing the figures outside each others houses, soon these Chalk Men appear in much more sinister situations.

This book kept me awake at night wanting to read more, and kept me awake after too because of that shocking ending!!

Couldn't recommend this book highly enough. Excellent, one of the best I've ever read. Will be buying myself a hard copy when it's released in January.

This book was very different and also difficult to say what genre it would fall into, having said that it was a great read. Alternating between 1986 and 2016 it follows a group of friends over one summer in 1986 and then the same group in 2016 when they are adults. The characters were well drawn and I found it easy to read.

A great read from the first page to the last. Set over two time periods (1986 and 2016) and hops between the two so that you can really see the long-term effect the story had on the main narrator. In some books this technique can be confusing (The Time-traveller's Wife springs to mind) but here it adds cleverly to the tension. Part of the story is therefore seen through the naive eyes of teenagers just at the cusp of adulthood whilst the remainder shows the more jaded care-worn effect of passing time.

There is a wonderfully dark start to this book with a body in the woods. Then we go back to Eddie as a 12 year old which was "when it all started" at the fair in 1986. Eddie has four friends (of sorts) in a gang. He also meets "the chalk man". Almost immediately I found myself fully engaged with the young Eddie and his gang or rather Fat Gav's gang. Thirty years on and Ed finds that earlier events may have some links and echoes in 2016.

The story is seen through Eddie or Ed's eyes with time shifts between 1986 and 2016. Using the 2016 perspective means that intervening events can also be viewed. The gang starts to fragment for various reasons though Ed does stay in touch with a couple of them. Where are the other two and what have they been doing in the years in between.

I really did find all the characters rich. Even some of the minor ones were quite clear in my mind. The two voices of the main character as Eddie and Ed both seemed convincing and appropriate to me. There is a gradual reveal of small foibles and large crimes. These little crumbs of clues dropped along the way are obviously "dropped". However far from making things simpler they simply ratchet up the tension and make you stop and think… "I wonder if that means…". As Ed says this is a story about "unforeseen consequences" in many ways.

I really enjoyed this as a read. I settled into the story and the characters very quickly and it did feel as though they were people I knew or like people I've known. That is very good writing. All in all a great read and I'd love to read another book by this author.

I LOVED this! I don't know why but it reminds me of Stand By Me I suppose only in the way they are friends. Not giving anything away but you should definitely read this book! Full of twists and really well written, it has twists right up to the end. I'll be looking out for more from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Somewhere between a thriller, gothic horror, and a coming of age story, this book is well paced and a very enjoyable read. The author weaves the elements from all the genres together fantastically with a wonderfully unreliable narrator. Every plot point is covered off and all loose ends deftly tied up, which is very satisfying as a reader! Distinctive but familiar characters and a great juxtaposition between the secret world of kids and the main character's life after his strange childhood.

Well beyond expectations, a great read.

Holy chalk babies!! What an amazing book!! Safe to say I was hooked from page 1.
The story is basically about a group of friends and the main characters relationship with 'the chalk man' and the groups connections to different murders that have occurred. The characters were so relatable and acted exactly how you would expect little boys too. I felt everything was spot on, from their nicknames to the things they said.
I'm finding it hard to write more about the story without revealing spoilers since there are just so many twists and turns in this book.. you won't see them coming.
Every time I thought I had something figured out, I would find out a chapter later how wrong I was!
I could not put this book down it was like I was addicted to figuring out the mystery!
And holy hell.. the last page or so.. OH MY GOD. WHAAAAAAT. I was left speechless. It was one hell of a way to end the book!!!
Amazing 👏🏼👏🏼

Oh my word this book is excellent! I wanted to read it again as soon as I'd finished it I enjoyed it so much. There is so much in this book, and it's so well written. I can see this being a TV series or film. I'm going back to read it again now!

This read more like a YA novel to me despite the description of what it was. Granted it was the most gory, unsettling and chilling YA novel that would need an 18 rating. It read awkwardly and jumped around from one slang, familiar conversation amongst kids to another. I found it very hard to get into this and the premise of the book but I can see how many are going to love this. It's very Stig of the Dump and reminiscent of a Stephen King novel so there's a lot for fans of this genre to love. It just wasn't for me I'm afraid and I struggled to finish it. I did smile at the Woolies comments and memories of the Walter came flooding back but I felt it was trying too hard overall.

The Chalk Man is a terrific read. It's got all the components of a bestseller: a gripping mystery, sprinkled with spooky chalk drawings and a bunch of funny kids. The Chalk Man must surely be one of the books for 2018. I predict a best-seller!

The past section of the book was set in 1986 and the cultural references are so refreshing: penny sweets, Woolworths and watching Peter Davison as Dr Who. So to the characters: Fat Gav, Metal Mickey, Hoppo, Nicky and of course Eddie, who incidentally is 42 in the present day version of the book, but I'll start with this interesting group of twelve year olds. We follow their journey as they meet their gang and explore the world, trying to make sense of an adult orientated world. Eddie is the main protagonist. When twelve year old Eddie witnesses a nasty accident at the fair it leaves a lasting impression on him and sees him develop a massive crush on the girl who was badly injured. Things soon begin to get sinister and the gang's world colours a shade darker. When they fool around with chalk on pavements, leaving cryptic messages for each other, weird things start to happen. It's as if the chalky messages have caused bad karma: someone is murdered. Someone is left for dead. As Eddie grows from a twelve year old into a scruffy English teacher who smokes, drinks and eats far too much for his own good, the story really gets going. I'd describe the present day Eddie (2016) as a likeable nerd, who has a penchant for hoarding things. Aged 42, he lives in the same house he grew up in and has the same group of friends as he did when he was a kid. However, Eddies boring life is not to be for much longer. Definitely not actually, when he receives a mysterious letter, with a drawing of a chalk man. Soon the ghosts of the past return to haunt him. I refuse to tell you anymore as it will spoil the book and it's so good, I don't want to risk it!
There is so much to adore about the Chalk Man. I was in love with the powerful writing, the nostalgic references of the 80's. This book is best described as a murder mystery, with a bunch of quirky kids in southern England and a blast of really well crafted humour. There is a dark lens to the story, that resonates and stays with you long after the last page. This book is like a tube of Pringles. It's addictive; once you start turning the pages you can't stop. The writer deals well with the theme of murder and how it touches the lives of this community and changes things. Other themes include bullying, rape and abortion which are handled beautifully and really well written and with care. The dialogue is great, the storyline is genius and the narrative style refreshing and humorous..
The Chalk Man is out in early 2018. It is an exceptional debut. Be prepared to be in awe. I only hope you fall in love with it as much as I did. It's a poignant story with a warning, that's neatly wrapped up in a gripping mystery/suspense! You won’t forget the chalk man, scrawled on pavements. Cross your fingers they don't come back to haunt you, like they did to Eddie!
Buy this book as soon as its out. In fact, pre-order it now — I insist!