Good Morning All,

It’s Friday and it’s the weekend of my big house move. I’m moving from Shropshire in England to South Wales so I have a distance to go meaning I won’t get much reading time in this weekend. Which was why I was adamant on getting this book finished last night so I could get my review written up today.

Book 📖

The Other People by C.J. Tudor

My twitter feed blew up about this book both before and after it’s publication a short while ago. I have other C.J. Tudor books on my TBR list but I just haven’t got around to them. When I saw the attention her new book was drawing I knew I had to get stuck in with this one first.

Description 🔖

When Gabe was driving home down the M1 three years ago, he saw his young daughter in the back of another car, looking at him in desperation. Nobody else thinks that he did though, everyone else believes that both his wife and daughter were murdered in their home that same day. Three years on, Gabe lives his life along, in a camper van, up and down the motorways searching for the car that he saw and his daughter.

Fran and her daughter Alice also spend their days on the British motorways, but they’re running from the bad people. Fran will do anything to keep her daughter safe and knows that if they are to be found, the ending will not be pleasant. Fran holds the secret to what happened to Gabe’s wife and daughter but if she reveals all of the secrets she’s been holding for years, Fran and Alice will no longer live.

General Thoughts 🤔

Wow. What an absolute rollercoaster this book is. As per my photo above, this book was so entertaining it required popcorn. I’m still a little bit dazed by it to be honest. This plot in this book is so complex, I think I’d struggle to really explain the whole thing to anyone else. And I love that. There are stories within stories and threads that intertwine, then unravel, then intertwine again.

I spent pretty much the whole of this book questioning everything. I didn’t get it but I was ok with it. I knew it would all piece together somehow. Then just when I thought I got it, everything blew up in my smug little face. Amazing.

Characters 👫👭👬

My heart ached for Gabe. I can’t imagine what it must feel like to be the only person that believes your daughter is still alive whilst everyone else moves on believing that she is dead. The fact that he kept on and on in his search is so admirable.

I have very mixed feelings about Fran. She’s reckless but I feel like her heart is somehow in the right place. It’s scary to think that you can make one decision at a vulnerable time in your life can then be the catalyst for events that are so much worse. Although I didn’t entirely warm to Fran, I can understand the decisions that she made.

Writing Style ✍🏽

I mean. Wowza. I need to get inside the head of this author and understand how it works. I am in absolute awe. I can’t imagine how tiresome and difficult it must be to come up with a plot line with this level of complexity and make sure that everything fits and is in line.

I don’t feel like the book had a neat and tidy ending. I’ve certainly come away with questions and I like that. I love when an author has the ability to make a book stay with you. When you put it down and can’t stop thinking about it and continue to question.

Conclusion & Scoring 🎖

This book was everything. It certainly lived up to all of the hype as far as I am concerned. I am already looking forward to reading C.J. Tudor’s previous books as I’m sure they will be just as fabulous. Can’t wait for more from this author in 2021.

😍😍😍😍😍