I honestly wasn't expecting to love this book as much as I did, I found myself utterly engrossed and entwined in the stories contained - just fabulous!

Iona catches the train daily, and has made up names for everyone she sees, but never talking to anyone. However when something happens that means they have to start talking, Iona discovers that all of the people she has named have their own stories, and that the truth is often not what it seems.

A truly enthralling story, which makes you think - and reiterates that you should never judge a book its cover, and that experience counts for a lot!

Loved this book! Our main characters have all been catching the same train, and sitting near each other on it, for ages, but haven’t spoken to each other until things happen which prompt a reaction. Brilliant writing and more importantly, riveting reading.

I really enjoyed The Authenticity Project and The People on Platform 5 didn't disappoint! I loved every story and found myself totally invested in all of the characters, they all had their unique voice from people who develop unusual friendships throughout their daily commute. First impressions can be deceiving and we never know what happens in someone else's life. Such a feel-good read!!

Auto buy author for me now. I have read both The Authenticity Project and The People on Platform 5 and loved them.

Be more Iona! Loved this story, the characters the setting. Everything.

Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is just as joyful as The Authenticity Pornect. Clare Pooley has such a way with writing that it really draws you in and you become absolutely invested in each characters lives. I didn’t dislike one character and could carry on reading each individual story.

I absolutely loved Clare's previous book the authenticity project and if you haven't read that then I highly recommend that you read it. This book is just as great, fabulous characters and a great storyline I read it in one sitting. I loved it.

A lovely tale reminding us of how valuable a life well lived is to younger people. Wisdom comes with age and that wisdom, sought and received with enthusiasm, is so valuable to both the giver and receiver.

I really enjoyed the author’s debut novel “The Authenticity Project” so was excited to find this one on #NetGalley.

Nobody ever talks to strangers on the train. It’s a rule. But what would happen if they did?
Every day Iona travels the ten stops from Hampton Court to Waterloo Station by train, accompanied by her dog, Lulu.
Every day she sees the same people, whom she knows only by nickname: Impossibly-Pretty-Constant-Reader and Terribly-Lonely-Teenager. Of course, they never speak. Seasoned commuters never do.
Then one morning, the man she calls Smart-But-Sexist-Manspreader chokes on a grape right in front of her. He'd have died were it not for the timely intervention of Sanjay, a nurse, who gives him the Heimlich manoeuvre.
This single event starts a chain reaction, and an eclectic group of people with almost nothing in common except their commute discover that a chance encounter can blossom into much more. It turns out that talking to strangers can teach you about the world around you--and even more about yourself.

Anyone else picking up on the running theme of Pooley’s plots? Multiple character short stories woven together into a bigger story arc. Love it! Little character studies, unexpected friendships and the joy of connecting. 😊
I don’t want to give too much away about the plot, but this isn’t high drama with lots of plot twists, this is a real feel good hug of a book with a great cast of characters that you end up really rooting for.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for the ARC.

Saving someone’s life is an act of kindness of major proportions, especially when the unspoken rule of commuting in London is that you don’t even speak to your fellow commuters. Interactions are seriously frowned upon, until Iona Iverson get her fabulous clutches into the hearts & minds of the dwellers of her carriage. Their lives will never be the same again!

An uplifting read of unusual friendships that need the anchor of such an epic main character of Iona to bind them all together. Her bold personality is very addictive and just like the people of the train, you feel drawn to her indomitable spirit.

Pick up a soothing warm drink, wrap yourself in a cosy blanket and get lost in The People on Platform 5, you won’t regret it.

THE PEOPLE ON PLATFORM 5
BY CLARE POOLEY.

What a fantastic book from beginning to end reminded so much of my days of using the tube in London, the characters the setting was just perfect. Everyone looking out the side of there eyes at each other, the small sly smiles gave this book a very atmospheric feel, sometimes people are afraid of rejection so say nothing, amazing hiw one incident changes there lives Clare Pooley is one amazing author keep them coming.

Firstly, thank you NetGalley for letting me read this book. Secondly, thank you Clare Pooley for writing another smash hit. I absolutely loved the eclectic mix of commuters who travelled from Platform 5.
At first, not talking to each other on a daily basis and then a hiccup and someone has to begin a conversation, which leads to other conversations.
Each person different, yet they all become intwined with each other and start to see life differently and find that communicating with others is a blessing not to be shied away from. Iona is a force to be reckoned with, but even she needs people and once you get to know her...she's a little bit fabulous. I loved the humanity in this and I think community, whatever type it is, is essential to our human need for contact.
I couldn't put this book down, much like The Authenticity Project and was sorry when I had finished it.
Clare please be writing another fabulous book.

I loved, loved, loved, this book, and pretty much devoured it in one sitting. This is a story about an eclectic group of people, how first impressions can be deceiving, and what can happen when you reach out to someone even just a little. Our main characters have all been catching the same train, and sitting near each other on it, for ages, but haven’t spoken to each other until things happen which prompt a reaction. I really enjoyed being able to read from each characters viewpoint, without reading the same scenes multiple times from different angles. This is a lovely story, which will leave you picking it up at every available opportunity, and racing to the finish with it, then leaving you with a warm fuzzy feeling once you’ve finished it. I would definitely recommend, and will be looking out for further books by this author

What would happen if you got to know the people in your train carriage? A brilliant, wonderful read with characters I didn't want to leave.

Having read the author's first novel, The Authenticity Project, and loved it, I had high expectations of this book. And it far exceeded them. Just loved it!

But then whenever I take a train I am fascinated by the other passengers and wonder what lives they're leading. So I thought this book was just perfect.

"Every day at 8:05, Iona Iverson boards the train to go to work. Every day, she sees the same people and makes assumptions about them, even giving them nicknames. But they never speak. Obviously. Then, one morning, Smart-but-Sexist-Surbiton chokes on a grape right in front of Iona. Probably-a-Psychopath-New-Malden steps up to help and saves his life, and this one event sparks a chain reaction."

This is a warm, funny and touching tale of the community that springs up in a train carriage as the different passengers get to know each other.

No one would be aware of the difficulties they're each facing in their lives, but as they begin to talk, they get to know each other, and they start to trust and rely on each other. Ultimately they find that they have much to learn from each other, and much to give. It's lovely! Such an enjoyable read

The people on platform 5 By Clare Pooley


The main character is Iona and she treats life head on and all the passengers on platform 5 have different vibrant names for her as she makes their morning commute to Waterloo more interesting. She is all about putting things right for the underdog and meets the world head on in a very vibrant as she commutes will Lulu her treasured pooch. First to join the group is Piers who nearly chokes to death. Then Sanjay who saves him and Emmie who tried to help and eventually Martha who throws up on Piers laptop and he takes her to task whilst Iona tells him off and finally David joins the group.

A fantastic well written book full of fabulous characters and very believable storylines.

There are happy moments,sad moments and a wonderful story about real life but also shows not everything is not what it seems. No problem insurmountable and many difficult subjects dealt with beautifully.

I would recommend you to Join in and find out the trials ,tribulations and outcomes. A must for anyone who has ever been a commuter- it is so true to life.

Very well done another not to be missed read by Clare Pooley

What a lovely, feel good book. I really enjoyed the characters, the premise, and who doesn’t love anything to do with trains! Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the ARC, it was a thoroughly enjoyable read

Thanks NetGalley for a copy of this great book. What a lovely feel good read. As a Londoner it hit a cord as yes you do see the same faces day in day out and in true British tradition you don’t talk to these familiar faces. You may not then avert your eyes. But what if you did take the plunge and talk. Where would it lead. Well this is exactly what this book is about. Highly recommend it this easy read book

I really enjoyed this book. I had no idea that other people on trains might have nicknames for each other (I thought it was just me!) - so this appealed straight away when I read the synopsis.
I've always got on well with books which dedicate a chapter to each character, where the story is told from the characters perspective and how they interact with the other characters. They all seem lost until they find each other, though they don't actually realise how much they all need each other.
With it being set in London and on the train line from Hampton Court to Waterloo I could visualise a lot of the places mentioned in the story as well.
Although some parts of the story were predictable (to me), it didn't take away from the enjoyment - for every time that happened, there are also a lot of unpredictable parts to the story.
I enjoyed it so much I read it across three nights! Definitely one to read - we all need an Iona in our lives!

Brilliant contemporary story, full of food for thought. Clare Pooley is amazing.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

What a lovely cuddle of a book. Iona is the linchpin of the story as she attracts people to her like a colourful butterfly sitting in her seat in carriage 3 and we get involved with all their lives. Every character was nice and you were cheering in their corners from the beginning as their stories unfolded and they all came together. The book flowed beautifully between them all and I couldn't wait to find out how it all ended. Wanted quickly to finish it, but also wanted to read slowly to enjoy the story and the fun they were having. I look forward to Clare Pooley's next book. Will a train journey ever be the same as we wonder about our fellow travelers!

Thanks to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers, Bantam Press and Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Having really enjoyed The Authenticity Project I was excited to begin this book and it didn't disappoint. This is the story of commuters on the train. All of these characters have their own stories and their own hopes, dreams and disasters.

Loved it!