Member Reviews
I have never read this popular author because it is not really my favoured genre, but the premise sounded interesting. I quite liked the way it started and the character of Gabe came to life immediately. As the plot became more and more complicated I started to lose the thread and it became less believable to me, especially the supernatural element.
Thanks to NetGalley for my e - Arc of this dark new thriller, The Other People by C.J.Tudor
Even though I own copies of a couple of C.J.Tudor books, this is my first read by the author and gladly and as expected I was not disappointed.
Gabe, is a lost soul, three years after his 5-year-old daughters disappearance, an event in which Gabe saw his daughter being driven away from him, he is traipsing up and down the country, in service stations and on motorways, looking, with forlorn hope of finding his little girl.
Then there are Fran and her daughter Alice, seemingly on the run, hiding out, but why and from who?
And finally, single mum and waitress, Kate, who finds herself inexplicably wrapped up in Gabe’s life and story.
The Other People is an engaging, dark, and compelling thriller with a supernatural twist. Very different from many books I’ve read recently, it’s a spooky and suspenseful page turner that keeps you reading and with very much interest.
As I’ve said there is a bit of a supernatural element to this story but in no way does it take over the story which itself is a very well plotted and cleverly crafted read.
Told from the 3 viewpoints, of Gabe, Fran and Kate, this book deals with the darker side of the internet that is the dark web, and the dark side of people when there are out for revenge. How far will you go to get someone back?
Twisty, Tense and darkly atmospheric, this is a cracker chiller thriller with an excellent finale.
A great introduction to C.J.Tudor for me, I will be swiftly on to the other books.
Highly Recommended
4 🔥🔥🔥🔥
** spoiler alert ** I read this in one sitting.
It's fast paced,and you know fairly soon in,that almost certainly something is going to happen on the next page.
It's a tangled web of people doing bad deeds.
Frankly I don't know what's more creepy,the supernatural connection (which slightly reminded me of Charlie Parkers daughters on the beach) or actually The Other People...as that could do daily be true.
It all tied so nicely together at the end,answering any questions I had,and those I didn't know I should be asking.
All round,I think this is going to be another Tudor book that flies off the shelves.
A very twisted,complicated story. Good characters who are linked more than they know. A dark story with lots of surprises.
As soon as I read the synopsis on this one I knew I had to read it, it sounded right up my street but unfortunately it didn't quite hit the mark of what I wanted from this book.
It's really slow going which always straight away makes me back off a little, I'm a reader that needs that instant grasp of action or intensity and sadly this didnt provide it.
I struggled to find any connection to any of the characters and it just never seemed to flow for me. It takes an awful long time for things to start making any sense which meant I very often zoned out.
On a plus note, it is a really intriguing read that once comes together is worth finishing but thats only if you can dig deep to get that far!
1.5*
Thanks to netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.
I thought that parts of this story were not believable. The concept of the other people is not new. The way the story came together was good but there were too many coincidences.
Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.
Driving home on the motorway, Gabe sees his daughter looking at him through the back window of a beat up old car. Giving chase proves impossible. He pulls off the motorway and calls home....The police tell him that his house is a murder scene...His father-in-law identifies the bodies of Gabe's wife and daughter. Gabe refuses to believe his daughter is dead and gives up everything to search for her. Who are "The Other People"!
The story has multiple threads that steadily come together. The story is told from the perspectives of Gabe, Katie a waitress, Fran a young woman on the run, and a comatose girl on life support.
A twisty thriller, a tale of love and loss, and of justice and revenge. I found the first half of the book a bit of a struggle, rather slow going, but the pace picked up and ultimately I came to enjoy it.
Another fantastic book by this author. I have read all her novels so far and they are all cracking. This one was very creepy and very dark which I come to exect from her books. I read it in two sittings and loved it from start to finish. Would definitely recommend.
The entire concept of ‘The Other People’ emits a shining brilliance of pure gold.
Not only does it capture the cruel ebb and flow of hope and despair, it also invokes a wicked spectrum of fear, and all the while the pieces of a fragile puzzle writhe and fidget before silently settling into their rightful, dark places.
It’s both creepily and stunningly addictive. All 100% of it, 360 degrees, and beyond. Yep. Those nuances of apprehension are befittingly effective. Damn that clickety-clicking…
Highly recommended. No hesitation. Loved it.
Rating: 5/5
(My thanks to the publisher for providing a digital copy via Netgalley, with my thanks, which it was my absolute pleasure to read and review.)
After enjoying CJ Tudor’s first two books, I was thrilled to receive an ARC copy of The Other People and pushed my TBR pile aside so I could get stuck in.
As with all Tudor’s books, there’s an element of mystery and the supernatural and with multiple characters, there’s plenty to get your teeth into.
The storyline and characters felt fresh and unique and there was enough momentum to keep me turning the pages. In addition, there are some wonderfully profound lines scattered throughout the book which I didn’t expect.
Another enjoyable CJ Tudor book.
Found this to be a creepy tale! But I was totally absorbed in this tale of twists and turns! Very hard to put down!
I loved C. J. Tudor's books 'The Chalk Man' and 'The Taking of Annie Thorn' so I was super excited to receive an early copy of her new book.
The premise is really interesting - Gabe's wife and child were found murdered however he is convinced he saw his daughter being taken away in the back of the van after this supposedly happened. His father-in-law identified his daughter's body though, so how can this be? Gabe now dedicates his life to finding out the truth.
I admit I nearly gave up on the book about a quarter of the way through. I found it to be a really slow burner and struggled to keep up with how the different characters were linked. I persevered though and ended up flying through most of the rest of the book.
Unfortunately throughout and especially at the end the story introduces some supernatural elements which I really didn't enjoy. It added another strand to a storyline that was already fit to burst. It didn't add anything to the story at all and made me roll my eyes slightly. I found the book exhausting which is a shame as it had so much potential.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for an advance copy of The Other People, a stand alone thriller set mostly in the Midlands.
Three years ago Gable was travelling home from work when he sees his daughter Izzy in a strange car but how can this be true when Izzy and her mother Jenny were murdered in a home invasion? Now Gabe spends his life travelling the motorways in a camper van looking for Izzy.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Other People which I found both mesmerising and hypnotic in the tale it tells. Technically it is full of things I really don’t like and yet I couldn’t put it down. This I think is due to Ms Tudor’s strong writing and ability to craft a novel full of suspense and a genuinely curiosity inducing plot.
The novel is told from various points of view, Gabe and his stubborn search, Fran, who, along with her daughter Alice, is fleeing some unnamed threat and Katie, the service station waitress, who knows more than she’s letting on and then there is the girl in a coma. Normally I don’t like the continual change of perspective and the uncertainty of motive and action but I’ll make an exception in this case as all three characters have strong plot lines and are equally interesting. I was desperate to find out what was driving them and how they are linked so it kept me turning the pages. As I said before there is something hypnotic about it all. I found the reason behind it fresh and unusual and I really enjoyed the way it all came together gradually over the course of the novel. I also liked all the twists, notably the last two which were especially unexpected, although there are plenty throughout the novel - they keep the reader interested and engaged.
There is an overt supernatural theme in this novel that cannot be explained logically. It’s not my bag so I mostly ignored it but I’m not sure it added anything to the novel outside a touch of confusion, like why, when the novel is so strong without it, the author felt the need to include it? I’m probably not the person to answer that if I’m questioning its inclusion.
Supernatural issues aside The Other People is a great read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
A labyrinthine plot which was satisfying to follow, but Izzy's bag of pebbles and an unnecessary swerve towards the supernatural rather than a completely rational outcome have sadly reduced my star rating.
Thank you to netgalley and Penguin books for an advance copy of this book.
I really liked the premise of this book and enjoyed the uncovering of a secret online society of justice dispensers!
However, there was a supernatural element to the story that absolutely was not needed in my opinion. I thought that the storyline was strong enough without the mirrors/pebbles/storms etc. Thinking back through it, that whole narrative could be taken out without affecting the storyline and would be less distracting.
Still, that aside it was suitably gripping and with a strong idea behind it I did enjoy it. And I will certainly be looking for other books by this author.
It's a three stars and would have been a four without the supernatural subplot.
A thriller with a supernatural element is definitely my kind of book. Gabe's wife and daughter are found murdered but at the time of the killing Gabe is sure that he saw his daughter in the back of a beat-up car which was being driven erratically down the motorway. He tries to follow the car but thinks that the best thing to do would be to pull into the motorway services and ring home. The phone rings and rings before it is answered by a police officer who tells him something that will change his life forever. This is an absolutely brilliant read for old and new fans of C.J. Tudor
The Other People
Author: C J Tudor
Publisher: Penguin U.K. - Michael Joseph
Publication Date: 23/1/20
4.5 stars
Complex twisty thriller with a supernatural element. I found the main story about a man searching for his missing daughter gripping and well paced. The themes of loss and the need for revenge were interesting and well researched. The ending was satisfying but there were a couple of elements I didn't understand which might be just me as my logical brain doesn't cope well with supernatural and unexplained forces. I was intrigued by the book and couldn't put it down though.
I'd like to thank the author, publisher and netgalley for this advance digital copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
This was very different from the last two books by Tudor but it was still absolutely brilliant. The idea was so intriguing and i think it was executed brilliantly, i don't think i've read a story which handled that particular subject before. The characters were so well written and i felt for Gabe terribly as he tried to unravel the mystery of his missing daughter. There were several very interesting characters who were all well developed and i loved how they came together and their stories inter-weaved as the book reached it's excellent climax. I absolutely adored this story, C.J Tudor is an amazing writer!
This is a difficult one to review. It was a good book. But complicated and left me with a lot to figure out. The plot was good but could have been written better. I felt like I’d read this before so it was similar to something else out there but I can’t remember what
My thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review. I gave this 4 stars or 8/10.
How would you cope if you watched your daughter disappear, but then everyone else presumed that both her and your wife were dead?
Gabe is a man adrift, he sees his daughter taken and follows her in the back of a car. People don't believe him and believe that he has actually killed her and his wife. Is he a victim suffering the loss of his daughter or is he more involved. Only he knows the answer.
As Gabe becomes embroiled in things. He is keen to prove that he is innocent and that he is right about his daughter. As the strands of the story are revealed slowly, we are introduced to other characters who have secrets of their own and how are they linked to Gabe and his situation?
It's not long before we find out they all have a common link 'The Other People'.
Who are The Other People and what is their significance to the lives of the characters and their families? How are they contacted and what are the implications of getting involved with them?
To answer these questions you'll have to grab a copy of the book for yourself. C.J. Tudor has a way of drawing the reader into the worlds that she weaves around her characters. Her stories are always well written and keep the reader engrossed wanting to read just one more chapter, the stories are so addictive and this is no different than the others in that way. I read the majority of the story in one day, due to the addictiveness of it.