Title: The Drift
Author: C.J. Tudor
ISBN: 9780241486245
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Pages: 400
Source: ARC from NetGalley Thanks to Penguin Random House South Africa
Prepare for the big chill . . .
A crashed coach full of students . . .
A stranded cable car full of strangers . . .
An isolated chalet full of friends . . .
Outside, a snowstorm rages.
Inside one group, a killer lurks.
But which one?
The Drift. . . survival can be murder
Due: 19 January 2023
Official Summary
29 August 2022
When my daughter brought home a copy of Chalk Man a few years ago I fell in love with C.J. Tudor’s writing and I have made sure to read all her books as they have become available. When The Drift showed up on Penguin Random House SA’s list of upcoming releases, I jumped at the chance to get my hands on a copy.
If you have been following this author, you will find yourself surprised by this book. This book is unlike any of her previous books. Don’t get me wrong, it is brilliant – but it’s different.
This author has a unique way of unpacking a story, she draws you into the tale and leaves your head spinning as events take one turn after the other. The Drift is a creative, dystopian look at a viral outbreak that destroys life as we know it. I am sure our experience with COVID played a part in inspiring this tale. But do not fret, this is not another COVID tale….
A group of students are trapped in a bus that crashed during a snowstorm. Surrounded by dead bodies, with limited supplies and the temperatures falling they must find a way out of the bus, or risk dying….
Six strangers find themselves in a cable car that has stopped moving after a power cut caused by a snowstorm. Swing from side to side in the middle of nowhere, with no food or water. One man has been stabbed and someone in the cable car is responsible for his death…. They are all hiding something, yet which one is capable of murder? How long can they survive the cold?
The staff of the Retreat know that a storm is coming, and while preparing for the worst, they never thought that a glitch with the power would lead to some of them dying.
The Drift reveals three separate tales of people struggling to survive a snowstorm on a deserted mountain. As the author moves from one group to the next you are left on the edge of your seat, shivering not only with cold but with anticipation for the next twist you know is coming. While this book was not what I expected when reaching for a Tudor story, I found myself deeply engrossed and racing from page to page. The Drift might be a little different, but it’s got everything we have grown to love about this author’s work.
The characters are guaranteed to leave you with questions. Their actions are harsh in the face of survival, which leaves you wondering how far you will go if faced with the same situations. When faced with survival, is there room for friendship and love? I found my blood boiling as I read some of the scenes in this book, but upon further reflection, I could understand it.
The author did a marvellous job in highlighting how easily life as we know can change completely when faced with a crisis. She explored what could happen if we are faced with a disease that we cannot control, and just how far we would go to protect ourselves. This is a scary story because perhaps with the right conditions it is not that hard to see this being a reality.
I loved this book. This is the most creative COVID inspired book I have read. This just might end up being my book of the month. What a brilliant read for my birthday month!
Tudor fans are in for a huge treat when reaching for this title. It brings a dystopian touch to a gripping thriller that will leave you chilled as you race from page to page in anticipation of the next twist. I cannot recommend this one highly enough. It is a FANTASTIC read – do not miss it!
Also by C.J Tudor
The Burning Girls
500 years ago: eight martyrs were burnt to death
30 years ago: two teenagers vanished without trace
Two months ago: the vicar committed suicide
Welcome, too Chapel Croft.
For Reverend Jack Brooks and teenage daughter Flo it’s supposed to be a fresh start. New job, new home. But, as Jack knows, the past isn’t easily forgotten.
And in a close-knit community where the residents seem as proud as they are haunted by Chapel Croft’s history, Jack must tread carefully. Ancient superstitions as well as mistrust of outsiders will be hard to overcome.
Yet right away Jack has more frightening concerns.
Why is Flo plagued by visions of burning girls? Who’s sending them sinister, threatening messages? And why did no one mention that the last vicar killed himself?
Chapel Crof’s secrets lie deep and dark as the tomb. Jack wouldn’t touch them if not for Flo – anything to protect Flo.
But the past is catching up with Chapel Croft – and with Jack. For old ghosts with scores to settle will never rest….
C.J. Tudor was born in Salisbury and grew up in Nottingham, where she still lives with her partner and young daughter.
She left school at sixteen and has had a variety of jobs over the years, including trainee reporter, radio scriptwriter, shop assistant, ad agency copywriter and voiceover.
In the early nineties, she fell into a job as a television presenter for a show on Channel 4 called Moviewatch. Although a terrible presenter, she got to interview acting legends such as Sigourney Weaver, Michael Douglas, Emma Thompson and Robin Williams. She also annoyed Tim Robbins by asking a question about Susan Sarandon’s breasts and was extremely flattered when Robert Downey Junior showed her his chest.
While writing the Chalk Man she ran a dog-walking business, walking over twenty dogs a week as well as looking after her little girl. She’s been writing since she was a child but only knuckled down to it properly in her thirties. Her English teacher once told her that if she ‘did not become Prime Minister or a best-selling author’ he would be ‘very disappointed.’
The Chalk Man was inspired by a tub of chalks a friend bought for her daughter’s second birthday. One afternoon they drew chalk figures all over the driveway. Later that night she opened the back door to be confronted by weird stick men everywhere. In the dark, they looked incredibly sinister. She called to her partner: ‘These chalk men look really creepy in the dark . . .’ She is never knowingly over-dressed. She has never owned a handbag and the last time she wore heels (twelve years ago) she broke a tooth.
She loves The Killers, Foo Fighters and Frank Turner. Her favourite venue is Rock City. Her favourite films are Ghostbusters and The Lost Boys. Her favourite authors are Stephen King, Michael Marshall and Harlan Coben.
She is SO glad she was a teenager in the eighties.
She firmly believes that there are no finer meals than takeaway pizza and champagne, or chips with curry sauce after a night out.
Everyone calls her Caz.
Thank you to Penguin Random House South Africa and NetGalley for this advanced review copy. This was a fabulous read. I have hard copies of all C.J. Tudor’s books on my bookshelf, and I will add this one to my collection as soon as it’s available locally.
Are you a Tudor fan? Which is your favourite book? Leave a comment below. Thank you for visiting the blog, until next time…Happy Reading!
