Friday 10 April 2020

BLOG TOUR: Strangers - C.L. Taylor


Ursula, Gareth and Alice have never met before.

Ursula thinks she 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.

The million-copy bestseller returns with a gripping new novel that will keep you guessing until the end.


What did I think?

You're always guaranteed a good read with a C.L. Taylor book and her new novel Strangers does not disappoint.  With a massive hook in Chapter 1 that drew me in immediately, I absolutely raced through the book and read it cover to cover over a 24 hour period, begrudgingly putting it down so I could go to sleep.

Strangers is well named as it is a bit strange; reading the backstories of three unrelated characters and wondering how they all end up being in the position where we are introduced to them in Chapter 1.  The three characters are all very different but hover around the periphery of Alice's life: Alice manages a clothes shop in Bristol Meads Shopping Centre, Gareth keeps a watchful eye over the centre as a security guard and Ursula is a shoplifter.

With three separate stories there's a lot going on, but not so much that it ever gets confusing.  Alice ends up with a stalker when she starts online dating, Gareth has his hands full looking after his elderly mum and Ursula is so desperate for somewhere to live that she moves in with creepy Ed.  Ed really made my skin crawl and if I was Ursula I'd rather sleep in my car than spend another night under his roof.  As well as what's happening in the characters' lives there is also a story of young men going missing in Bristol and I loved how C.L. Taylor adds social media posts of people chatting about this to bring the story to life and to keep it in our mind.  

Rather surprisingly, I don't think I had a preferred character; I loved reading about all of them and how they each cope with their own loneliness.  I felt for Alice suddenly finding herself single, Gareth putting his life on hold to look after his mum and Ursula who is punishing herself for something that happened in her past. While I was reading, I was wondering how these three separate stories could ever intertwine but of course C.L. Taylor does this magnificently.

Fast-paced, gripping, intriguing and completely addictive Strangers is another outstanding novel from C.L. Taylor, the queen of psychological thrillers.  Strangers is a top of the charts guaranteed bestseller and a recommended read.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon




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