Published by Avon Books UK
Publication Date: 2nd April 2020
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Book Description:
Ursula, Gareth and Alice have never met before.
Ursula thinks she's killed the love of her life. Gareth's been receiving strange postcards. And Alice is being stalked.
None of them are used to relying on others - but when the three strangers' lives unexpectedly collide, there's only one thing for it: they have to stick together. Otherwise, one of them will die.
Three strangers, two secrets, one terrifying evening.
My Thoughts:
Many of the books I'm reading at the moment have been sitting patiently on my bookshelf for some time while I have been distracted by other shiny new books. This is one of the ones in question which I picked up at my local library then got home and realised that I already had a copy sitting on my shelf.
I love people watching and this book gave me the feeling that I was sitting in a cafe in the Meads shopping centre, the three main characters having caught my attention for various reasons. Chapter one opens with Alice, Ursula and Gareth standing over a dead body wondering how on earth they are going to explain what happened. Who the victim is and why they came to be deceased is a mystery. The book then moves back to a week earlier to complete the story.
None of the three characters know each other however their lives have intersected in some way or another during the week's run up to the climax of the story. They just don't realise the importance of these interactions at the time. They are all very different people at face value: Ursula is a compulsive thief whose habit has lead her to rent a room in the home of a total stranger and her anxiety is peaking, causing a vicious circle of behaviour. Alice is a single mum venturing back into the world of dating after a long time on her own. A world which she's not sure she wants a part of after all. Then there's lonely security guard Gareth who is struggling to cope with his mum's progressively worse dementia whilst holding down a full time job.
The biggest part of the book is taken up with the seemingly unrelated lives of these three people and anyone who likes to read 'in your face action' thrillers I feel will struggle with the slower pace of a good three quarters of the book. Personally I enjoyed it as it fulfilled my people-watching hobby while I was unable to actually go out and do so in person (I'm not a stalker, honest!). These are every day characters going about their daily lives and dealing real situations that many people could relate to. Then the pieces start falling into place as to what - or who - they all have in common.
I don't feel like I'm selling this book too well for which I do apologise to the author as it is well worth the read as she's done a great job to get all the threads laid down in order for the action to kick in. And kick in it certainly does: by the end of the week we travel with the characters we will have one missing woman, three missing men, a possible serial killer on the loose, a stalker and the possibility that all these things could be linked. But in true CL Taylor style that would be too straightforward wouldn't it?
All the questions you will have collected along the way will be answered and the loose ends tied off tidily; some people get a happy ending, some less so. But you do need to keep that opening chapter in your mind as you read the remainder of the book. Much more than this I cannot say as this really is a book where you don't want too much information otherwise it's pointless reading it. Definitely a book to go into with an open mind as there's far more too this tale than initially meets the eye - and it's a difficult one to review without spilling the beans. You'll know what I mean once you've read it...
About the Author:
C.L. Taylor is an award winning Sunday Times bestselling author of eight gripping psychological thrillers including SLEEP, a Richard and Judy Book Club pick for autumn 2019. Her books are not a series and can be read in any order:
2014 - THE ACCIDENT / Before I Wake (U.S. title)
2015 - THE LIE
2016 - THE MISSING
2017 - THE ESCAPE
2018 - THE FEAR
2019 - SLEEP
2020 - STRANGERS
2021 - HER LAST HOLIDAY
She has also written standalone two Young Adult thrillers: THE TREATMENT and THE ISLAND.
C.L. Taylor's books have sold in excess of a million copies, been number one on Amazon Kindle, Audible, Kobo, iBooks and Google Play and have been translated into 25 languages and optioned for TV.
C.L. Taylor lives in Bristol in the UK with her partner and son.
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