The Other People: C.J. Tudor
Reviewed By Janine Pipe
The Other People is the third instalment from the oh-so-talented C J Tudor.
I pre-ordered a signed copy from Waterstones well before Christmas, so there had been a long wait for me after devouring her previous work, The Chalk Man and The Taking of Annie Thorne.
This review will not contain spoilers and remember, everything I write is all just my own opinion.
So?
I bloody loved it. I envy people who are able to just sit and read a book cover-to-cover in one sitting. It must be simply marvellous. For those of us with a job, family, house to run etc. it isn’t always that easy. Despite reading as much as time allowed, it still took me 5 days to finish. This was partly choice too. I wanted to read it all at once but also to savour it since Book 4 will not be out until 2021 *sob*.
Anyway, back to Book 3.
The Other People is written in a slightly different style from her previous work, which both relied heavily on switching back and forth between past and present timelines. There is some of this but there is not such a heavy focus.
Again, the lead character is a slightly unlikeable male, with a past (and the odd skeleton in his closet), and children play an integral part.
This book fits neatly into the dark fiction genre, but in two differing ways. It is both a thriller, a murder mystery and crime story, but also (and why I personally love her work so much) has an unexplained supernatural undercurrent.
This is very clever, as it will both appeal to folk who like police procedural dramas, AND horror buffs.
There is a reason why Stephen King (AKA God) is such a fan of Caz.
The Other People is a perfect length, running at 388 pages. The chapters are mainly short, sharp and succinct, many with a little cliff hanger right at the end, the tell of an amazing author and a dream come true for an avid reader. It MAKES you read on to the next chapter as if your life depends on it. I blame Caz personally for the bags under my eyes as each night I HAD to read just one more page (and then one more, and one more …).
Another thing I really liked about The Other People came from being a mum myself. I felt the raw emotions of the story. My heart was tugged at, my breath was caught.
One of the characters really pissed me off, not only because they were an ass-hat, but also because of my own previous profession and that it was my husband’s name. And HE is super nice! That, however, is not a criticism, I don’t think he was created to receive any sort of sympathy.
All said, I loved every single part. There were even a few Disney references, another thing Caz and I have in common.
It is no secret that she is one of my all-time favourite authors (alongside Stephen King and Dennis Lehane), and most definitely my favourite NEW writer.
If for some unknown reason, you’ve been living under a rock and you haven’t read any of her work, do yourself a massive favour and go and buy them now. Off you go. Oh and, you’re welcome.
The Other People
She sleeps, a pale girl in a white room…
Driving home one night, stuck behind a rusty old car, Gabe sees a little girl’s face appear in the rear window.
She mouths one word: ‘Daddy.’
It’s his five-year-old daughter, Izzy.
He never sees her again.
Three years later, Gabe spends his days and nights travelling up and down the motorway, searching for the car that took his daughter, refusing to give up hope, even though most people believe that Izzy is dead.
Fran and her daughter, Alice, also put in a lot of miles on the motorway. Not searching. But running. Trying to keep one step ahead of the people who want to hurt them.
Because Fran knows the truth. She knows what really happened to Gabe’s daughter. She knows who is responsible. And she knows what they will do if they ever catch up with her and Alice…
You can buy The Other People from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Janine Pipe
Janine has loved to write spooky stories and tales with a twist since she was at school. She is a huge fan of Stephen KING, first devouring Salem’s Lot at the tender age of just 9. Her work is heavily influenced by this. She also loves C J TUDOR and credits fellow Swindon horror writer Graeme REYNOLDS as an unofficial mentor. You can find her stories on Ghost Stories the Podcast, Graveyard Tales and Tales to Terrify. She shares some of her original shorts and flash fiction on her blog, Janine’s Ghost Stories, where she also reviews and interviews authors of horror.
She loves to chat about all things horror and Disney related over at @Disneynine on Twitter.
You can find out more about Janine by visiting her blog www.janinesghoststories.wordpress.com
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