Member Reviews

What can I say about this book? Firstly C.L Taylor is another one of my favourite authors. Although I still have a couple on my ‘to be read’ shelf, I loved her previous books, The Lie, The Missing and Sleep. I thought the premise of her new book was mysterious and creepy and really piqued my curiosity, so I had to read it straight away. 


The book follows strangers; Alice, Gareth, and Ursula. Three seemingly unrelated people who are struggling through life in their own way. The characters’ stories are told through multiple points of view, and although it moves around this way it is easy to follow. 
This book was amazing. Creepy, suspenseful and intelligent. I couldn’t read it fast enough. I had a few ideas of how it would all come together but I could never, ever have guessed the ending. Brilliant. Highly recommended.

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Strangers is another fantastic book by CL Taylor. I've read all her novels and they are all great.

This time we are told the story through the viewpoint of 3 strangers, who we know are all tied together in some way. It begins with a body... All the best books do!

Alice, Ursula and Gareth live in Bristol and seemingly have completely separate lives, but are thrust together in the most horrific way.

Alice is a single parent of a teenage daughter, struggling with Internet dating. She's the manager of a clothing store... Where we find Ursula.

Ursula is currently homeless due to her stealing addiction, and frequents Alice's store to get her swag.... The store is in a shopping centre, patrolled by security guards... Where we find Gareth.

Gareth is a security officer at the Meads- the fictional shopping centre in Bristol where a lot of the book is set. He lives with his elderly dementia-stricken mother and is her full time carer.

The story follows the three of them over a few days that include stalkers, assaults, the police, murder, and loads of other stuff.

Difficult not to give anything away. But I would definitely recommend this.

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#Strangers #NetGalley
Creepy and totally original, an unputdowable read.
Three strangers, two secrets, one terrifying evening.
Ursula, Gareth and Alice are three independent living personalities who don't know each other. Ursula is a pathetic girl who has a bad habit of stealing from her surroundings is living with her school friend Charlotte in her house but one day her friend asked her to go from her house. She's a courier delivery girl who makes money only when she completes her day's goal otherwise not. After she's kicked off from that house, she searched papers and finally got a new place to live. Her new landlord Ed is a creepy person who has a locked basement in his house and asks her don't to turn off the radio but doesn't tell her the reason for that.
Gareth, a security officer who's duty is to watch people in trouble or anyone is shoplifting. He lives with his I'll mum, his wife and daughter.
Alice, a middle aged woman who left her husband Peter and is living with her daughter Emily. She's an employee in Mirage fashions. When her daughter forced her to met a guy in a restaurant named Michael, she agreed for the same but that guy Michael abused her and then she meets with another guy Simon who tells her that he works in insurance. And then the story continues and we come to know more about these three characters. They're standing around a dead body. They had to do it but why? Who's dead body is that? Read this amazing psychological thriller to know more.
Characters were good but Alice was excellent and is the saving grace of this story. Ursula also has an important character in this book while Gareth on the other hand is ok but not so interesting one.
Narration was excellent.
Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for giving me an advance copy of this awesome psychological thriller.
A must read.

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I received in advance for you just copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wow – this book was a bit of a slow burn but the drama heats up and that last half is a crazy crash until it finally goes off the rails. These people are scary, and not in the horror movie sense of the word. This will definitely have you sleeping with one eye open when you answer an ad for a roommate

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C.L Taylor has done it again! Strangers is perfect!

Following three very different characters, their stories and comes together with a terrifying conclusion! I absolutely loved this book. I loved how the characters all had very different identities. I really enjoyed the three subplots and how everything came together. I would love to see this on Netflix! It’s gripping, twisted and damn bloody good!

5/5

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Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books UK for the eARC.
My goodness, that was such a good book. I had never read a C.L. Taylor book before and was so impressed I will check out her other books, adding her as,a new author to add to my favorites.
The story is told from the viewpoint of three characters, each of them with an interesting and intense story. They're all flawed, but basically good people who have had difficult experiences and are trying to hold their lives together as best they can. They don't know each other, but come together at the end in a very tense situation. The tension builds throughout the book, so you can't put it down...great stuff.
The denouement is terrific and the last chapter made me smile, although a little guiltily. Definitely highly recommended!

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Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy. This was a good book. First book I have read by C.L. Taylor. It kept my guessing as to how all three people were going to be connected. Suspense was good; could have been better, but overall I enjoyed the book.

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Please excuse the following acrostic, I couldn’t resist!
Such
Tense
Reading
And
Nightmarish.
Gripping
Ending
Really
Shocks.

C.L.Taylor has done it again. This is a really absorbing book which keeps you snared in the drama until the twisty and surprising end. I can honestly say from the very first page, I was hooked! The story is set in Bristol and much of the action takes place in the fictional Meads Shopping Centre. The novel focuses on three central characters, Alice, who is the manager of a fashion shop, Gareth who is in charge of security and Ursula, a delivery driver and sometime shoplifter. The action starts with a dramatic incident in the shop and then backtracks between the characters to fill in the gaps. It’s hard to say much more than that without spoiling the intriguing storyline.

Although this is told from three perspectives it flows really well, the plotting is good and there are several cliffhangers as you progress through and it becomes very hard to put the book down. The characters are well depicted and many are likeable. Alice and Gareth are very caring and once you see past the things that Ursula does you realise she is suffering because of something that has happened a few years previously. She is also kind as there are a number of events where she could have walked away but she didn’t and she puts herself at risk for others. There are of course some weird and very creepy characters and some that are potentially dangerous. There are a number of very tense scenes, there’s plenty of suspense and some moments when the fear is palpable. It’s an action packed book with lots of interconnecting storylines.

Overall, a really good, twisty and exciting story which I recommend to fans of this genre. In my opinion, this is the best C L Taylor I have read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books for the ARC.

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Wow oh wow, she’s done it again. CL Taylor, you are the absolute queen of psychological thrillers and this latest newbie has not disappointed.
I am a huge fan anyway, this is a book that immediately went in my calendar in preparation for the release date. I actually happy danced when my request to complete an advanced review was approved.
I was hooked from the very beginning. I have absolutely adored the main characters involved in the plot. Ursula’s roommate made me uneasy but I was completely unable to put my finger on why.
I have guessed the ending of this book several times incorrectly, it is absolutely fantastic and has kept me on the edge of my seat. I love how it has had me guessing and suspicious of different characters throughout.
This may even be my favourite CL Taylor book yet and I’ve read them all. I am super excited to see what else 2020 has to hold for CL Taylor.
This is an easy book to rate as it is highly deserving of a five star rating- I really wish I could give more because this is an author who is absolutely amazing and has created another compelling and gripping story. I have devoured this book in a matter of hours (sorry- I know some authors hate hearing that).
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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I am ashamed to say this is the first CL. Taylor book I have read. I am now about to binge read the rest. Damn this was a good book.

Though it's three different stories that will connect at the end, the stories all stand alone.

Just a really supurb read that I literally stayed up all night reading. Loved that ending.

Each main character had flaws and each main character was a good person. There were a few surprises which shook things up.
I so highly recommend.

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