The People on Platforn 5
Clare Pooley

A nice, easy to read story and friendship & community. A good one to take on holiday.

Thanks to NetGalley & to the publisher for the arc.

I was so excited to read this book, I absolutely loved The Authenticity Project so I had high expectations!

I was not disappointed! This was just gorgeous, I loved all the different characters. The eccentricity of Iona was very reminiscent of the fabulous Julian from The Authenticity Project. She was fabulous, witty, interesting and just a little out of touch which was endearing.

I love a book that can make me have strong feelings about characters and then make me change my opinions about them!

The group of friends on the train had a great amount of emotion, troubles to work through and entertaining conversations. Their relationships grew and changed throughout the course of the book and I was there for all of it.

This will give you all the feels so I highly recommend you read it!

Excuse me?! This book is so wholesome! I just love the ambiance and atmosphere between the characters so much. Most of the passenger was strangers at first but due to that incident, they were casually friendly to each other.

The plot moves forward perfectly. I sometimes feel like this book would be the perfect read for buddy reading. You will feel the enjoyment, and fun stuff together. Reminds me of a slice-of-life genre.

This book has so many life lessons. I love a book that has a hidden message that we practically encrypt slowly throughout the reading. Some heavy topics were brought up in this book that show how healthy the conversation is.

If I could, I wish to experience this vibe on a train. Recommended!

I just finished reading "The People on Platform 5" by Clare Pooley and I can confidently say that it is the perfect feel-good and heart-warming read for this summer.

The synopsis accurately captures the essence of this book - a group of seemingly different people brought together by a chance event on their daily commute. What follows is a heartwarming story of friendship, love, and the power of human connection. The characters are so well-written and diverse that readers will find it easy to relate to them and cheer them on. The writing is witty, engaging, and full of heart. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a feel-good story that will leave you with a smile on your face.

I particularly enjoyed how the author portrayed the characters in a realistic and relatable way, making the story more engaging and enjoyable. Each character has their unique personality, struggles, and challenges, but they come together to form a tight-knit group that supports each other through thick and thin.

The book is not only heartwarming, but it also delivers some important messages about the power of kindness, empathy, and understanding. It emphasizes the importance of breaking down stereotypes, prejudices, and assumptions to see the true essence of people.

Overall, "The People on Platform 5" is a beautifully written, uplifting, and heartwarming story that will leave you feeling inspired and hopeful. It's a must-read for anyone looking for a feel-good book that will brighten their day and remind them of the power of human connection. I highly recommend it!

I absolutely loved The Authenticity Project, so I was over the moon when I got approved to read this.
I was hooked from page one. I loved all the characters, how detailed they were and how connected you got with them all.
Iona Iverson’s Rules For Commuting were just a wonderful added extra that I really hope Pooley writes and releases as a short novella or world book day book.
The perfect book that relates to everyday people, showing that not everyone is perfect. Everyone has flaws and sometimes people have hidden secrets.
Iona, Sanjay, Emmie, Martha, Piers, Jake and David…they are all showing the different people we are surrounded by. You’ll love them, get annoyed with them and want to chat with them all. Such a special group of people that will have you laughing, crying and yelling at. I’ve noticed a lot of people have spoken about Iona but not about many of the others…Martha I felt so sorry for a young girl who’s being bullied at school and a photograph of her is circulating the school which is ruining her reputation and school life. I just wanted to give her a hug and tell her everything will be okay and get better. Emmie as well someone who’s (without giving too much away) is so naive and doesn’t see what’s going on in front of her and doesn’t see what the people close to her are really like. Pier’s who you think is snobby and uptight but underneath is struggling and just wants to become a teacher and do something with his life but his wife is snobby, snooty and rude. She just wants the money and lifestyle and doesn’t care about what her husband wants and doesn’t want him to be happy. 3 characters I feel are so week written that you just want to squeeze them, care for them and tell them to stuff everyone around them, they are they better person.

I always find Pooley’s books to be light-hearted and easy read. She’s definitely a comfort read that I’d 100% recommend to everyone. She’s definitely an instant buy for me.

The Authenticity Project is one of my favourite books so I was delighted to get an advanced copy of The People on Platform 5.
I enjoyed this book, I found it easy to read and the characters really drew me. What appealed to me most about The People on Platform 5 was the storyline, a group of strangers on their commute coming together and that sense of community. A very uplifting and feel good read.
The let down for me was that I just didn’t get that wow feeling that I did with The Authenticity Project. There was just something missing, I’m not too sure what exactly but Clare Pooley will still be an auto buy author for me and I can’t wait to see what’s next from her.

Wow, once again, this is another delightful and original novel that’s blown me away! Ms. Pooley has truly mastered the art of feel-good fiction, and her latest novel, The People on Platform 5 is no exception. Like her previous work, The Authenticity Project, this book is centred around the theme of friendship and will leave you feeling joyful and uplifted.

I found myself completely engrossed in the story of Iona and the group of strangers she meets on her daily train commute. The author does an excellent job of weaving together their individual storylines and creating a heart-warming group of friends that you can't help but root for. While all of the characters are memorable, Iona truly shines as the star of the show. She is lovable, relatable, and someone you wish you could call your own best friend.

As I read, I found myself laughing out loud and occasionally shedding a tear. Again, the author has an incredible talent for making you feel a wide range of emotions. After I finished this book I already know it will be one of my all-time favourites.

If you're looking for a book that will make you smile, feel good, and believe in the power of friendship, this is it. It's a solid 5/5 stars from me. Trust me, you won't regret picking this one up.

***arc generously received courtesy of the publisher Random House via NetGalley***

I’ve read quite a few of these found-family, heart-warming stories now, and have to say that this one thoroughly exceeded my expectations and easily surpassed my high bar for the genre.

The whole story is absolutely lovely – touching, funny and utterly gripping, as each commuter’s secrets are gradually revealed. I quite literally could not stop reading and walloped the whole book down in just a couple of hours. It has everything that you would expect or could want from this type of story: a set of very different stereotypes (posh yuppy, eccentric older lady, kind nurse, shy teen and so on) that all prove to have hidden depths; each character has their own struggles and they learn to trust and support each other; assumptions are made and first impressions are found to be erroneous; gradual bonding, leading eventually to a close-knit and quirky found family.

My only complaint was that I didn’t want to leave them all when the story ended!

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

I would like to thank Netgalley, the publisher and the author for giving me this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I absolutely loved this book at the beginning. I loved the characters and all of their own foibles. However, it got really ridiculous in the multiple, and personal, stories. I am so disappointed as it promised so much but did not deliver.

Starz 💫💫

Content warnings: anxiety, panic attacks, dementia, death, bullying.

What an adorable story that focuses solely on kindness and friendship. It completely and utterly rugged on my heartstrings in so many places!

Honestly, a truly heartwarming and at times, funny story focused on such a diverse group of wonderful characters who just simply need a friend. All of the characters were so relatable in so many different ways. They each came with individual and unique flaws and problems that just made you relate to them ever more. I'm trying to pinpoint who my favourite character was but I genuinely felt so connected to each of them for different reasons. However, maybe Martha and Piers were the two who stood out to me the most? Actually, yeah. Definitely Piers (lol, pardon me whilst I just type my internal monologue x). Piers' story and how he managed to find his true calling/identity was so heartwarming to read.

The writing was simple, to the point, and engaging. The added few bits of humour every now and again were spot on and really helped to balance out the seriousness of the topics that were discussed. What a broad range of emotions this book allows you to experience.

Basically, I wanna start getting the train on platform 5 and sit in carriage 3 with these truly amazing people. And of course, I just wanna be more Iona.

Absolutely loved authenticity project and this did disappoint, I loved the characters and have already bought this book as a gift.

Thanks for the advanced copy I can’t wait Gp for her next book.

I was fortunate to receive a copy of the ARC for this book and also read it along with Pigeonhole.
As someone for who Brief Encounter is one of my favourite films, I love train journeys and imagining the lives of my fellow passengers! We all know that particularly in south east England you're not meant to talk 😂 but I used to enjoy travelling from London to Newcastle for university by train. This was a really enjoyable read, although I didn't enjoy it as much as the Authenticity Project.

This is the first novel I’ve read by Clare Pooley and I really enjoyed it. It's an uplifting read.
Thanks to NetGalley and to Random House Uk, Transworld Publishers for the opportunity to read this advanced copy

This is the first novel I’ve read by the author and it was an enjoyable and uplifting read.
It’s fairly formulaic - a disparate group of commuters meet on the train and they come together in a life changing way.
The characters may not all start out as likeable - especially Piers- but as we learn more about their lives we have empathy and understanding for them.
Recommended if you’re looking for an uplifting and easy read.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.

I read this during nightfeeds with my son, and it made me look forward to a disturbed night! I loved the characters and their growing relationships with each other. I wished I could talk to Iona and talk through my issues. She had an answer for everything! I was sad to reach the end of the book, always a good sign in my eyes. I'll recommend this to friends.

I absolutely loved this book from start to finish. Learning about each of the train passengers, their quirky ways - highs and lows and just wanting to know what happens to each of them.
Claire Pooley has done it again, a fantastic read, that I could not put down.

After a choking crisis with a grape, a group of commuters strike up an unlikely friendship. All lead very different lives, but gradually the group come together to help sort each other's lives out.

I really enjoyed The People on Platform 5 - having commuted for many years (mostly observing the "no talking" rule), I could easily picture Iona and friends on their journey. All the characters were well fleshed out, and nobody seemed out of place.

Very good read, especially for any commuters!

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for granting me an ARC fo this book and my sincerest apologies for the delay in my review.

Firstly I just wanted to say I preferred the title and cover when it was People on Platform 5 as the new title doesn't fit right for me personally.

When I finished reading this book, I was going to give it 4 stars. After reading the author's note and how she weaved elements of herself and people she loved into the story, I immediately felt a deeper connection to every aspect of the book and bumped it up to a 5 star.

This is the second book I have read of Pooley's and she is fast becoming an auto-buy author for me. The way she weaves multiple perspectives and stories together is something short of magical. Not once does she lose the voice of the characters and I never felt the storylines became too convoluted to properly follow. This story follows a group of commuters who find themselves entwined together in various ways following an incident where one of them almost chokes to death on a grape. We follow stories of feeling ousted, grief, love, and hope, with Iona as the central character weaving her way through with us.

I liked Iona. She reminded me of Charlie from Pooley's book The Authenticity Project, but I felt I related more to her and she was a lot more personable to me than Charlie. I guessed a few things about her quite early on, and found she was predictable in her actions and yet I still loved her and her development.

My favourite storyline in this was Emmie and Sanjay. I saw a lot of myself in both characters, as a previous care worker on a palliative unit, and as someone who often fails to see the flaws and signs of a toxic relationship. As soon as we started seeing more of Emmie, my heart was in my mouth as I recognised all the things I had once failed to see. I also, as a high school teacher and the awkward kid who did what she could to fit in, adored Martha and her journey.

All in all this was a stunning book that was easy to read and left me feeling warm inside. I do feel some aspects could have been expanded further and I really didn't like how Iona was only 57 yet read like she was 87 half the time (I genuinely kept forgetting she was younger than my own parents) but I also understood how even at that age, working in a job such as journalism or media would make you feel insignificant compared to the 'youngsters'.

I loved this book, and it was clear how much the author loves to write relationships as two books in a row now have captivated me and shown me that in this world of selfishness and isolation, there are still so many possibilities for a group of strangers to become a family.

I wasn’t a massive fan of The Authenticity Project by the same author but despite that, I was still willing to give this one a go because I liked the premise. While the storyline is pretty much the same thing - strangers meet, one of them turns out to need their help, the rest of the group band together to help them, happy ending - I felt like this one was executed much better. I preferred the characters and really enjoyed getting to know them as the story went on. It is still a three star read for me but in my eyes that is still pretty okay and I’ll be recommending it.

Another new author for me and a great story, I've always been a fan of books and films that are centred on a group of strangers whose lives become entwined through an event. Having said that it did take me a couple of chapters to get into this book, so stick with it.

The normal boring commute suddenly takes a turn out of the usual comfort zone when one of the male passengers begins choking. As Iona the main character in this story tries to find someone to help the man. The usual routine of everyone minding their own business and ignoring their fellow passengers changes as connections and friendships begin to form. One event is the catalyst for a group of strangers becoming a group of friends.

How the author cleverly writes the individual stories of the characters into the plot is brilliant. The story is told in chapters, each told from one of the passenger’s points of view. Throw in romance, misunderstandings and great comedy, It's a real page turner that you will want to put do