This was a fantastic read and kept you guessing right till the end. I would highly recommend this book

3.5 stars rounded up! This was a very long book and dragged a bit in the middle, it could definitely have been shortened a bit. I did guess the initial receipt, however a few further twists and turns were thrown in. In the end, they all got what they deserved.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for my e-ARC of The Other Passenger in exchange for an honest review.

The story is a bit of a slow burn (in a good way) and the characters are deliciously flawed. Jamie as the MC is good - he had me wondering if he was an unreliable narrator or if it was just misdirection. The bit about his issues with the Underground felt all too real. The story has underutilized potential though - I do wish the other characters were used better, especially considering they're so close to the plot. Also, the allusions to 'things that millennials get up to' were wholly unnecessary and didn't serve the plot.

I can usually predict twists (boo, me) and I did call it early on. BUT, when the story pivots, I did feel a satisfying frisson of pleasure and the actual ending STILL caught me by surprise. Big ups to the writer for giving us such a satisfying ending without the feeling of everything being wrapped up a little too well.

Would recommend to people who read fewer thrillers.

I definitely like the twists till the end; it is a great story. While I was reading the book, it is not just the story itself that attracted me, but also many of the issues we have in our society that the author presented. Affordable life, working poor, being financially responsible, fake news etc., which are common issues all over the world especially in major cities. The ending also made me think of “The Cop and the Anthem” by O’ Henry. The irony is that being in jail kind of solved all the problems (e.g., food, a place to live)… Is human history moving forward or repeating itself?

This is an epic story of cat and mouse, tricks and twists all wrapped up in an affair. This book grabbed me from the first chapter and I couldn’t put it down. There are amazing characters who are all so deeply flawed and self centred that they can’t see past themselves.

A tale of sordid love affairs, drugs, disappearance/murder. Just what has really happened and where does the truth start and the lies end. There are so many false trails and twists that I kept second guessing myself.

I can’t Thank Penguin Books and Netgalley enough for allowing me to read the ARC of The Other Passenger.

Rating: 4.3 / 5

**Received free ARC from Netgalley for honest review**

*twiddles thumbs* So...what to say.

Well, for starters, I can't say that the mystery's the greatest element, and here's why: the author relies on the stupidity of the narrator for the "twists" to happen, whereas anyone with common sense would just know the right things to question and therefore the shock value isn't as shocking as you might expect. But then, on the other hand, figuring out things that the narrator does not, that the author does not want you to figure out...yeah, it's a good feeling to feel like an ace detective, from a reader's standpoint.

So, what's the story? Well, Jamie, our main man, has had a bit of a spat with his friend Kit, who's disappeared shortly before Christmas. Days later, Jamie is confronted by two detectives, who want to get his side of the story and find out just what happened. Apparently, Kit's disappeared, and foul play may be involved. So begins the story of murder, sex, betrayal, "shocking twists", and a whole lotta bulls*** that wouldn't ever happen in real life to anyone with half a brain.

Or...pardon my language on that, I'm just a cynic, so I'm bound to question things that dumbbells like Jamie do not.

Anyway, told mostly in retrospect and entirely from Jamie's point of view, the reader is led from one conclusion to the other until we come to the rough ending. There were a few elements from the typical mystery novel that I recognized, as well as hints of Double Indemnity plot-wise. That's all well and good, but, as you can tell, I'm so-so on the plot element.

However, what I WILL say and praise to no end is just the glorious writing of this book. Good golly gosh, the author is a good writer!

Okay, so here's the way I see things. Every single genre of written work has its own set of requirements. In a romance novel, you'll have to be good at creating tension and, if it's an adult novel, writing smut scenes. In a comedy, maybe your writing doesn't matter so much as your sense of humor. In a mystery novel, it's the twists and turns that matter, the shock value and suspense.

It's only really in literary fiction that having spectacular writing is a quality that's required. (Not that it's not present in other genres, but it's not a basic requirement is what I'm saying, or at least not from what I've noticed.)

But this....THIS has spectacular writing worthy of literary fiction standards.

Jamie, as the narrator, is kind of like Bradley from The Black Prince: he's not really very likable as a character and does a lot of things wrong, but there's something about him that's kind of sophisticated and just gets you on his side. I've spent quite a bit of time thinking who to compare Jamie to, as something was definitely familiar to me as I read through his narrative voice, and that's the conclusion I've come to: Bradley. (And if you haven't read The Black Prince yet, I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLLLLLLYYYYYYY recommend it.)

The writing, in other words, is responsible for a good three of these four stars that I'm awarding this read. That being said, I'd be interested in checking out other works by this author because, even if this isn't the greatest plot in the world, her writing style, much like Lisa Jewell's, is something that I feel I can get into.

This book was alright for me. I found it slow at times and a little predictable. Overall it was an ok read.

You will never look at your fellow commuters in the same way again.
The Other Passenger is a little slow to get going but it quickly gets on track and you’re in for quite a ride!
Louise Candlish’s writing is not over burden with description. Her development of setting and characters is well crafted. I loved the feisty banter that prevailed between the Millennials and the almost Boomers. Sometimes things just seem like a good idea- but then there’s karma. Once on board, I couldn’t put it down.
Thank You to Louise Candlish, Simon & Schuster Canada, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Thank you so much to Simon & Schuster Canada for the ARC of The Other Passenger.

Louise Candlish delivers an intriguing tale of friendship and deceit in this twisty mystery set in London.

Jamie Buckby is a middle-aged Londoner living the good life with his long-time girlfriend Clare Armstrong. When Clare decides to "age successfully" she decides she needs new hobbies, ideas, and friends. The perfect opportunity presents itself when Melia, a beautiful and energetic young lady, is hired at the estate agent firm where Clare works.

Clare invites Melia, and her husband Kit, over for dinner one evening and the four of them hit it off. When it is revealed that Jamie is severely claustrophobic Kit proposes they change up their commute to work from train to river bus and impulsively they both decide to buy an annual ticket.
Aboard the river bus, their friendship develops as does the rivalry between the two.

While having drinks one night a heated argument takes place between Kit and Jamie. Accusations are made, and they go their separate ways. Unbeknownst to Jamie, there was another passenger that witnessed the whole thing. When Kit doesn't board the riverboat for the commute to work a few days later Jamie takes note of his absence. He isn't too concerned until he is approached by two detectives.

Kit is missing and it is soon apparent that Jamie is a suspect.

Jamie tries to make sense of Kit's disappearance and does some investigating of his own. He learns that his friend's drug use was out of control and that he had accumulated quite the debt. Did Kit just decide to disappear or even worse was he made to disappear?

As the story progresses it is obvious that Kit isn't the only one with secrets. Maybe Jamie isn't as innocent as he leads us to believe.

At the beginning of the story, I liked Jamie. He was an easy-going and laid-back guy with a good sense of humour. As the story progresses we see a darker side of Jamie. He becomes very selfish and allows himself to be manipulated and used. I did feel sympathy for him in the end though, eventually the bad choices he made caught up with him. His struggle with his mental health made him relatable and brought up my feelings on the subject.

I felt so bad for Clare throughout the novel. She was a victim to all the deceit and malice that took place in The Other Passenger. She was a successful, caring, and kind woman. She was betrayed by the ones who were supposed to care about her and held her head high through it all.

Melia, what can I say about her. A beautiful, young woman who was made ugly through her narcissistic personality and greed. She brought heartache and pain to everyone.

I never really liked Kit. He had a sense of entitlement that created many problems throughout the plot. He wanted all life had to offer him and he wanted it delivered on a silver platter for no reason other than he felt it was owed to him.

I really enjoyed The Other Passenger. Just when I thought I had it figured out Louise Candlish pulls the rug from under me and I'm flat on my face. The story was told shifting between the past and present which worked well for me. It kept my interest throughout and I was anxious to know just where this story was going to take me. The descriptions of London were detailed and gave me a sense of the place. Louise Candlish did not stigmatize mental illness in this novel, rather she gave quite an accurate description of the pain it can cause and just how much it can interfere in a person's life. I applaud her for that.
I would highly recommend this book, Louise Candlish delivered a fast-paced story full of twists and turns. I will definitely be reading more of her work.

The Other Passenger is the first book I’ve read by Louise Candlish. The story revolves around a middle age man Jamie, a claustrophobic barista who lives in a fabulous house in a posh London neighbourhood. Jamie lives in the swanky house all thanks to his girlfriend of ten years, Clare. Jamie and Clare are rather quirky and unconventional and strike up an unlikely relationship with a young exuberant couple, Kit and Jamie. Fast forward 11 months, Kit is missing and Jamie is the number one suspect in his disappearance.

While the book is meant to be a thriller I have to say it was a very slow paced thriller. The beginning of the story was intriguing but by the time I got to the middle I was getting bored with the storyline and found many of the characters despicable. Especially Jamie and Melia, who were self centred, adulterous, narcissist. Characteristics that make a person extremely unlikeable. Just when I thought I couldn’t read anymore a huge plot twist happened and drew me back into the story so I was able to finish the book.

All in all, it wasn’t my favourite book but The Other Passenger did have some good plot twists that completely took me by surprise.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the free electronic arc of The Other Passenger to be released in Canada July 20th 2021.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

This book made me want to move to East London, get a job in the City and commute by river boat. Other than that it wasn't great. It was clever in places, but the big twists were fairly predictable and the ending dragged on and on. I never got a sense that Kit and Jamie were friends at all, and Steve and Gretchen's characters were all over the place. My biggest issue was with Jamie commuting into central London to work a minimum wage job - at one point he comments on how two drinks bought on the boat cost him two hours' pay, but the ticket alone must have been more than he earnt...?