Excerpt & Preview: THE OTHER PEOPLE by C.J. Tudor
Available January 28, 2020
Every reader has that select list of authors whose new books they simply must read, no matter what. C.J. Tudor is on my version of that list. Beginning with her stunning debut THE CHALK MAN, Tudor’s fierce originality and utterly original voice has captivated me. And if I thought I loved THE CHALK MAN, I was doubly obsessed with her sophomore novel, THE HIDING PLACE. Tudor’s work is a blend of fresh psychological scares and throwback horror nostalgia; in short, it’s a must if you’re someone who wants to be thoroughly entertained and really, really creeped out. Tudor is a brilliant new voice in suspense fiction, and one of the rare authors whose work really does seem to just get better and better with everything she writes. I’m absolutely thrilled, then, to share with CBTB readers an early glimpse into C.J. Tudor’s newest novel: THE OTHER PEOPLE, coming to a bookstore near you on January 28, 2020!
In THE OTHER PEOPLE, a man finds himself on an endless quest for his missing daughter - a young girl whom no one else believes is still alive. True to form for C.J. Tudor, THE OTHER PEOPLE looks wildly addictive and utterly creepy, and I cannot wait to dig in. Thanks to the author’s US publisher, CBTB readers can dip into an exclusive excerpt from the book right here! In this blog post, you’ll find more information on THE OTHER PEOPLE, including a sampling of the exceptional early praise the book is receiving, and, of course, an excerpt from the book. Happy reading!
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THE OTHER PEOPLE by C.J. Tudor
About the Book:
Q: Why are you called the Other People?
A: We are people just like you. People to whom terrible things have happened. We’ve found solace not in forgiveness or forgetting. But in helping each other find justice.
Driving home one night, Gabe is stuck behind a rusty old car. He sees a little girl’s face appear in its 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 traveling up and down the highway, searching for the car that took his daughter, refusing to give up hope, even though most people believe she’s dead.
When the car that he saw escape with his little girl is found abandoned with a body inside, Gabe must confront not just the day Izzy disappeared but the painful events from his past now dredged to the surface.
Q: What sort of justice?
A: That depends on the individual. But our ethos is a punishment that fits the crime.
Fran and her daughter, Alice, also put in a lot of miles on the road. Not searching. 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 to her and Alice.
Q: Can I request to have someone killed?
A: If your Request is acceptable, and unless there are exceptional circumstances, we fulfill all Requests.
“I read The Other People at Halloween, on a flight from New York. It was hugely enjoyable and deliciously creepy. I was hooked from its gripping opening, all the way through its many twist and turns, until I arrived in London completely unsettled and on edge. Ostensibly about a man searching for his missing daughter, it’s a tale about loss, where nothing is quite as it seems; and, although you may think you’ve got it worked out, C. J. Tudor is always several steps ahead. A brilliant storyteller.”—Alex Michaelides, New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient
“The Other People is a creepy, intense novel that drew me right in and never let go. C. J. Tudor’s books keep getting better and better, and this one won’t let you stop reading until the very last page!”—Samantha Downing, internationally bestselling author of My Lovely Wife
“C. J. Tudor has done it again. A mesmerizingly chilling and atmospheric page-turner.”—JP Delaney, New York Times bestselling author of The Girl Before
“The Other People is tight as a straitjacket, diabolically clever, and propulsive as a roller coaster. If you like twisty thrillers that leave you guessing till the very last page, this is a must-read.”—Alma Katsu, author of The Hunger and The Deep
“Tudor’s narrative is saturated in menace, and the action, once it starts, barely lets up. . . . Tudor skillfully weaves in poignant observations on the nature of justice and the power of grief. . . .Dean Koontz fans, in particular, will find much to enjoy in this sinister, unsettling treat. Tudor just keeps getting better and better.”—Kirkus Reviews
Exclusive Excerpt: THE OTHER PEOPLE
By C.J. Tudor
‘You wanted to talk about the Other People.’
So it was straight down to business. Sometimes, Gabe wondered if his perception of their friendship was more one-sided than he cared to admit.
‘You’ve heard the name?’
‘How did you hear it?’
Gabe fumbled in his bag and took out the notebook. He showed the Samaritan the page with the traced words.
‘I found it written here. I wasn’t sure if it meant anything, but . . .’
‘Burn it.’
‘What?’
‘Take the notebook, burn it and forget you ever saw those words.’
Gabe stared at the Samaritan. It was the first time he had ever seen him anything less than composed. He was almost – and the idea seemed scarcely believable – rattled. The thought disturbed him.
‘Why would I do that?’
‘Because you do not want to go anywhere near that shit, trust me.’
‘I do if it will help me find Izzy.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘I’m sure.’
‘You were sure you wanted to jump, too.’
‘This is different.’
‘It really ain’t.’
‘I told you, I always thought Harry must have been mistaken about the identification. Now I’m sure he deliberately lied. He’s still lying. He may even know who took Izzy. But I don’t have any proof. If this is somehow connected, if it can help me make sense of anything, I need to know.’
Another long pause. The Samaritan picked up his coffee and took a sip. He sighed.
‘You heard of the Dark Web?’
Gabe felt his skin bristle. Of course he had. Every parent or relative who has lost someone would, at some point, hear about the Dark Web. The vast sub-surface of the internet, encompassing everything that’s not crawled by conventional search engines. The hidden place beneath the sheen of the official Web.
It was often used by people who simply didn’t trust the normal Web. But it was also used by those who wished to operate outside of the law. Like any deep, dark place, it was where the filth and sediment settled. Child porn. Paedophilia websites. Even snuff movies.
It was the place that every parent who has lost a child feared they might end up. Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t that difficult to access. You just needed something called a Tor bundle (a way of hiding your ISP). But once in, you needed to know what you were looking for. Specific links that might just be a cluster of random letters and numbers. It was a bit like searching for a house without a number, street name or key in a neighbourhood full of dead-end streets and locked, steel-reinforced doors behind which who knew what horrors lurked.
‘Yes,’ he said eventually. ‘I’ve heard of it.’
‘It’s where you’ll find the Other People.’
‘It’s a website?’
‘More a community where you can connect with like-minded people.’
‘What sort of like-minded people?’
‘People who have lost loved ones.’
Gabe frowned. That wasn’t what he had expected.
‘So why is it on the Dark Web?’
‘Imagine the police found the person who killed your wife, kidnapped your daughter. Imagine that he gets off, on a technicality. He’s walking around out there, guilty as hell. What are you going to do?’
‘I’d probably want to kill him.’
The Samaritan nodded. ‘But you wouldn’t. Because you’re not a killer. So, you feel angry, powerless, helpless. Lots of people feel like that. Maybe a guy raped your daughter but the police say it was consensual. Maybe a driver mowed down your mum but all that happens is he loses his licence. Maybe a doctor is negligent and your child dies but he just gets a slap on the wrist. Life ain’t fair. Ordinary people don’t always get justice.
‘Now imagine someone offers you a chance to put that right. A way to make those people pay, make them hurt like you do. You never get your hands dirty. You’ll never be connected.’
Gabe’s throat felt dry. He took a sip of coffee. ‘So it’s a place where you can hire vigilantes, hitmen?’
‘In a way. Some of the people involved are professionals. But money rarely changes hands. It’s more like payment in kind. Quid pro quo. You ask for a favour, you owe a favour in return.’
Gabe thought about this, let the concept settle.
‘Like Strangers on a Train?’
‘What?’
‘It’s a film where two strangers meet by chance and agree to commit a murder for each other. They’ll both have an alibi. No one will connect a random stranger to the crime.’
‘Kind of the deal. Except we’re talking about hundreds of random strangers. Everyone has a use, and everyone has a price. That’s how the Other People work. You ask for their help, you’ll be asked to do something in return. It might be something small. They might not even call in the favour right away. But they will. They always do. And you’d better be damn sure you’re up to returning it.’
Gabe thought about the underlined Bible passages again:
‘You shall appoint as a penalty life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’
‘What happens if you don’t?’
The Samaritan’s gaze punctured him like a bullet. ‘You run. As far and as fast as you can.’
Excerpt from THE OTHER PEOPLE by C.J. Tudor, copyright © 2020 by C.J. Tudor. Used by permission of Ballantine Books, an imprint of Random House, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Book Details:
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Ballantine Books (January 28, 2020)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1984824996
ISBN-13: 978-1984824998
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