Author: C.J. Tudor
Publisher: Crown
Date of publication: January 2018
In 1986, Eddie and his friends are just kids on the verge of
adolescence. They spend their days biking around their sleepy little English
village and looking for any taste of excitement they can get. The chalk men are
their secret code; little chalk stick figures they leave for one another as
messages only they can understand. But then a mysterious chalk man leads them
right to a dismembered body, and nothing is ever the same.
In 2016, Eddie is fully grown, and thinks he’s put his past
behind him. But then he gets a letter in the mail, containing a single chalk
stick figure. When it turns out that his friends got the same message, they
think it could be a prank . . . until one of them turns up dead.
That’s when Eddie realizes that saving himself means finally
figuring out what really happened all those years ago.
“Readers will undoubtedly be reminded of the kids of Stand by Me and even IT…[the] first-person narration alternates between past and present, taking full advantage of chapter-ending cliffhangers. A swift, cleverly plotted debut novel that ably captures the insular, slightly sinister feel of a small village. Children of the 1980s will enjoy the nostalgia.”—Kirkus
“I haven’t had a sleepless night due to a book for a long time. The Chalk Man changed that.” —Fiona Barton, New York Times bestselling author of The Widow
I was super excited to read The Chalk Man. I had seen lot of the hype about it and it made my most anticipated list of 2018. It's been a while since I have found a good thriller/horror novel that freaks me out. This book waffles between the past when the main characters are kids and the present when is seems that the Chalk Man has come back.
So, did I love it? Sadly, no...I liked it, I just didn't love it. Don't get me wrong. For a debut novel, I found it well written and well thought out. I liked that I didn't call all of the twists so I was surprised in the end. As a mystery, it was pretty enjoyable. If not a bit slow at times. I liked the main character, Eddie and the flashbacks to the kids' childhoods was most enjoyable. However, I felt a bit deceived. I was expecting a psychological thriller that would "keep me up at night". It just never lived up to that expectation. I think if you go into it knowing it's a just mystery you will be fine. I am interested in trying out this author again in the future.
Purchase Links
About C. J. Tudor
C. J. TUDOR lives in Nottingham, England, with her partner
and three-year-old daughter. Over the years she has worked as a copywriter,
television presenter, voice-over, and dog walker. She is now thrilled to be
able to write full-time, and doesn’t miss chasing wet dogs through muddy fields
all that much. The Chalk Man is her first novel.
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Connect with C. J.
C. J. Tudor’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:
Tuesday, January 2nd: BookBub
blog “18 Books for Stephen King Fans Coming in 2018”
Friday, January 5th: BookBub
blog and Facebook video “16
Novels We’re Looking Forward to Reading in 2018”
Monday, January 8th: Jenn’s
Bookshelves
Tuesday, January 9th: @everlasting.charm
Wednesday, January 10th: She Treads
Softly
Wednesday, January 10th: Moonlight
Rendezvous
Wednesday, January 10th: Tome
Tender
Thursday, January 11th: Books
a la Mode – author guest post
Thursday, January 11th: Rockin’
& Reviewing
Friday, January 12th: Snowdrop
Dreams
January 15th: BookBub
Blog – author guest post “Eight Thrillers with Scary
Children/Teenagers”
Tuesday, January 16th: Bewitched
Bookworms
Tuesday, January 16th: Booksie’s
Blog
Wednesday, January 17th: Suzy
Approved
Wednesday, January 17th: A
Chick Who Reads
Thursday, January 18th: Lit
Wit Wine Dine
Thursday, January 18th: Bibliotica
Friday, January 19th: Write Read Life
Monday, January 22nd: What
is That Book About
Monday, January 22nd: Ms.
Nose in a Book
Tuesday, January 23rd: A
Bookworm’s World
Tuesday, January 23rd: The
Book Diva’s Reads
Wednesday, January 24th: Girl
Who Reads
Thursday, January 25th: Black
‘n Gold Girl’s Reviews
Friday, January 26th: Lovely
Bookshelf
Monday, January 29th: A Literary Vacation
Monday, January 29th: Patricia’s Wisdom
Tuesday, January 30th: From the TBR Pile
Wednesday, January 31st: Staircase Wit
Thursday, February 1st: No More Grumpy Bookseller
TBD: Jathan and
Heather
Read it and reviewed it myself actually! I felt the same. I liked the characters but I felt like there was less of a thriller in it than I was hoping.
ReplyDeleteI was completely sucked into this one. Like you, I didn't guess the ending, so it was a win for me.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts on this book for the tour.
ReplyDelete