When a pandemic ravages the world, three different points of view detail the unraveling of humanity as we know it.

<u>The Drift</u> was a wildly grotesque, fast-paced thriller that had a predictable/somewhat disappointing conclusion. Ultimately I dropped this down to 4 stars because while I loved the writing and the character development, I couldn't quite get over the obscene gore and the anti-climactic conclusion. I feel like Tudor almost set this up to be a series? I expect a sequel at this point because that ending just left me with more questions! Overall this was still so fast paced and disgustingly fun that I had to give it a solid 4 stars.

Unpopular opinion I was super bored reading this book.

Yes it was interesting at times but I found myself putting it down a lot and struggled to finish it. I was waiting to be scared and never quite there. There were also a lot of characters to keep track of which I’m not a fan of. Maybe this would have worked better as an audiobook for me?

Hannah wakes up in a mess after the bus she was on crashed trapping her and a few survivors in a snow storm. Meg wakes up dangling high above the snowy mountains in a cable car with a group of strangers who can’t remember how they got there. Carter is stuck in a ski lodge hoping the generator doesn’t go out. There’s something hidden in the basement that wants out.


The Drift is available January 31, 2023.

Thank you netgalley and randomhousepub for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

I as very excited to get a copy of The Drift, as I have been a big fan of Tudor’s other novels. This one, unfortunately, missed the mark for me. The alternating time lines were hard for me to keep up with along with the multiple names for the same character. Additionally, there were political undertones shining through that were not of interest to me.

My heart is still pounding

What just happened ? I’m an adult, how did a book shake me to my core ? Well, when you are C.J Tudor, you know how to skillfully craft a book that will consume and frighten even the coldest of folks.

I know I know. This is crazy . I can read Stephen King and not even bat an eye but I tell ya, this one is good, real good .

The Drift is a gripping thriller that will have you closing your eyes in fear of what will come next . Be prepared to be thrown on the ride of your life (literally) .

I think you should find out for yourself …

Teaser :

Hannah awakens to carnage, all mangled metal and shattered glass. Evacuated from a secluded boarding school during a snowstorm, her coach careered off the road, trapping her with a handful of survivors. They’ll need to work together to escape—with their sanity and secrets intact.

Meg awakens to a gentle rocking. She’s in a cable car stranded high above snowy mountains, with five strangers and no memory of how they got on board. They are heading to a place known only as “The Retreat,” but as the temperature drops and tensions mount, Meg realizes they may not all make it there alive.

Carter is gazing out the window of an isolated ski chalet that he and his companions call home. As their generator begins to waver in the storm, something hiding in the chalet’s depths threatens to escape, and their fragile bonds will be tested when the power finally fails—for good.

❄️Book Review❄️
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Summary: Hannah awakens to carnage, all mangled metal and shattered glass. Evacuated from a secluded boarding school during a snowstorm, her coach careered off the road, trapping her with a handful of survivors. They’ll need to work together to escape—with their sanity and secrets intact.

Meg awakens to a gentle rocking. She’s in a cable car stranded high above snowy mountains, with five strangers and no memory of how they got on board. They are heading to a place known only as “The Retreat,” but as the temperature drops and tensions mount, Meg realizes they may not all make it there alive.

Carter is gazing out the window of an isolated ski chalet that he and his companions call home. As their generator begins to waver in the storm, something hiding in the chalet’s depths threatens to escape, and their fragile bonds will be tested when the power finally fails—for good.

The imminent dangers faced by Hannah, Meg, and Carter are each one part of the puzzle. Lurking in their shadows is an even greater danger—one with the power to consume all of humanity.
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Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
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My thoughts: thank you @netgalley and @cjtudorauthor for allowing me an advanced copy of this one! It was released January 31st so run to pick up this amazing book! Highly recommend this one if you love post apocalyptic action reads or are also obsessed with the show The Last of Us 😍seriously this book is so much fun, you will never guess how all these stories are interconnected. Every chapter ends on a cliffhanger, it was just truly an addicting read!
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QOTD: do you enjoy post apocalyptic or action books?! I’m a big fan 😍
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#thedrift #cjtudor #bookstagram #booksofinstagram #booksofig #booksofinsta #bibliophile #booknerd #bookworm #bookwormsunite #bookish #bookobsessed #bookaddict #bookaesthetic #readersofinst

3.5 stars

I haven’t read many post-apocalyptic horror thrillers. It’s not a genre I’m naturally drawn to. But when I received an early copy of C. J. Tudor’s newest novel, "The Drift", I didn’t hesitate to accept it. I’ve read and enjoyed her last three releases, and I figured that if anyone could make me love a novel set in a world where a deadly virus runs rampant, either killing most everyone who contracts it or turning those who endure it into creatures called Whistlers, it would be Ms. Tudor.

But I was wrong. And it’s not because the novel isn’t page-turning, brilliantly plotted, or exciting. It is. "The Drift" is clever and thrilling in all the right ways. It’s an entertaining tale of survival, skillfully depicting what we, as humans, are willing to do to others in order to live.

So no, it’s not the book. It’s more a me thing in that certain aspects of the story left me a little sickened. Tudor tries hard to make the novel gritty, and while she succeeds in this, she takes it too far. There is one scene at the very end that I simply could not stomach. I didn’t need to read THAT.

But even though "The Drift" is not my favorite Tudor read, I know that more greatness is coming. More stories are heading my way – stories that I will love.

And I can hardly wait to read them.


My sincerest appreciation to C. J. Tudor, Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for the Advance Review Copy. All opinions included herein are my own.

The Drift by C.J. Tudor

The Drift was something I didn't realize I needed to read. This is about three main characters each of them are in a predicament that was unexpected. Hannah who is the daughter of the lead scientist at the retreat. Carter who is working at the retreat. Meg who is a former policewoman. Hannah crashes in a snowstorm and is one of the few survivors on the bus but they are trapped. Meg is trapped in a ski lift with others. Carter is staying at the retreat with others.

This was a complex story about survival at any cost when all the craziness of a virus during a pandemic that is changing people and killing them. It made you think about the pandemic we are currently in and the loss of many people who doctor's being overwhelmed had to pick winner and losers. The losers always died. The winners somehow got more expensive treatments that they could afford and survived.

The government action in this story in this dystopian world is not far from reality. If this book did anything but make me think more about reality and what will happen when all things get crazy during a pandemic.

All 3 groups are fighting for their lives from the elements and the virus, but perhaps the greatest threat to their lives comes from within. How long did it take for society to break down? Who is a good guy and who is a bad guy? Is everyone who they say they are? I was kept on my toes, never knowing who to trust. There are evil forces at play, of the human variety. After all, The devil was an angel once. I loved that quote. There is so much truth to that.

What would you be willing to do to survive during a pandemic would you kill someone else for your own survival? Would you be a bad guy or a good guy? So many questions you need to ask yourself after you read this book.

The book took me longer than I thought to read because it weighed heavy on me, and I spent time digesting what I was reading. This book is still impacting me in thinking about everything I just read. I recommend this book if you like dystopian world that is occurring during a pandemic? This was a five-star read for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing House for a free copy of The Drift for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

Could mankind be destroyed by a new disease? This novel explores an apocalyptical era where Earth's inhabitants die from an extremely toxic and rapidly spreading disease. Three separate scenarios all with the same dynamics.

The government sets up compounds where those afflicted can be quarantined. Old ski lodges are used for this purpose. A good portion of the story centers around survivors being stuck on a chair lift around 250 yards from the ski lodge. Those stuck in the gondola are trying to make it to the lodge but the cables have problems. They are stuck in the air one thousand feet above the ski slope.

The characters are well-developed and the novel points out the selfishness and avarice that people exhibit trying to save themselves. Killing is random and the more selfish of the group tend to become survivors.

Apocalypse on the heavy side of horror. It was well-written and paced but was just a little too much blood and guts for me. 4 stars – CE Williams

Meh. Nothing shocking or thrilling here, just kind of a mess. I’m disappointed as I have really enjoyed other works from this author. This one seemed rushed and not thought through.

This was a little tough to get into since it was multiple settings with multiple characters and I struggled to see the connection. I stuck with it though and was not disappointed when the puzzle pieces began to fall into place.

This is a must read! I devoured this in one day. Once I started reading it I couldn't put it down. There are lots of twists and turns that keeps you flipping thru the pages. The suspense is great.

There's a worldwide Pandemic and The Retreat is a secret virus research lab. They study on the survivors to try and develop an antidote.

This unfolds in 3 different threads told by different perspectives. Multiple POV's were a little confusing at first, but in the end it all made sense.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballentine books for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. I loved this so much, I purchased a copy from Amazon. I definitely recommend this book.

**4.5 stars**

I have read most of CJ Tudor’s books and I am a big fan. The Drift is her best yet. It’s also very different from her previous books.

Excellent post apocalyptic horror-locked room mystery-suspense-thriller, quite the page turner! Highly recommend! Thanks for the ARC I got from the publisher via NetGalley but as she’s one of my favs I preordered a hardcover copy as well!

Will definitely be one of my top books of 2023.

I did catch one continuity error that did bug me that I was surprised slipped by her early readers and editors but I still loved it.

Three groups of people stuck in different precariously deadly situations. Each one with dead bodies piling up.

This is my first Tudor and it's safe to say I have been missing out. Multiple characters with multiple POVs and twists that I did not see coming. Sprinkle in the horrors of a virus running rampant and the things that virus can mutate... than you're seeing the exact type of thrillers I enjoy!

✔️ Spreading virus
✔️ High Stakes Survival
✔️ Deadly Situations
✔️ Whose the killer
✔️ Redherrings
✔️ Major plot twists

Don't let the gorey horror parts set you back. This is more than that with its elements surrounding human nature, survival and revenge. A thriller at its heart with a pre/post-apocalyptic feeling that makes you sit back and wonder what you'd do in their shoes.

There are some areas that are a little slow or confusing as you're juggling people, places, timelines and scenarios. However, this is so cleverly put together that I enjoyed just about every aspect.

I'd recommend this hard to put down novel to those who enjoy horror/thriller hybrids with a pandemic touch. Thank you to Ballantine for providing a gifted digital copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. All thoughts are my own. True rating 4.5/5.

The Drift by C. J. Tudor was set in the most atmospheric location. I absolutely love closed-circle mysteries and The Drift has all of those mysterious who-dun-it vibes. I enjoyed the storyline and plot points but found it a little difficult to follow the characters since there were many of them. I did like some of the reveals and plot points.

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

This was a very well-written post-apocalyptic story, but overall, is probably my least favorite of the 4 books I've read by C.J. Tudor. I think this is partially my fault, because in a lot of ways I'm still not ready to read stories about pandemics and mass sickness given the last few years.

One of the best parts of this book was the sense of atmosphere and the descriptions of the cold, desolate landscape. I had a very vivid picture in my head of what everything looked like!

There were three perspectives in this, and I thought the way that they were connected was well-done. I will say, though, the voices of the three POVs felt very similar to me; in particular, Meg and Hannah felt nearly indistinguishable from one another. Because of this, I could never quite get a grasp on the characters, and this made it more difficult to root for them and/or care about their fates.

All in all, I think the lesson here is that if you don't think you'll enjoy a depressing story about a feasible apocalypse, you probably aren't going to love The Drift, even if it is written by an author you'd consider to be a favorite.

The Drift tells three stories, connected in a way I really wasn’t expecting, centered around the struggle to survive in a world that has been ravaged by a mysterious pandemic. I’ve always loved apocalyptic stories (not sure what that says about me, lol) but after what the world has gone through over the last couple of years, novels focusing on pandemics just seem to hit a little harder. I can’t go deep into the story without spoiling some major plot points/twists, but I will say each of the three stories is an intense tale of survival. I do wish there was more focus on the early days of the outbreak, that we got to see things fall apart. That being said each of the stories happen in unique locations which brings added stress to the events, as there is more than just the virus our characters have to worry about. I’d like to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eARC of C.J. Tudor’s The Drift.

https://www.amazon.com/review/R2EPE374NNJARY/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

This book is three separate POV stories of survival until they combine in the end to a thrilling conclusion. First, Hannah and a handful of other students from an exclusive school are escaping to safety, fleeing a brewing deadly virus that's sweeping the nation. A flash of light, a crash, and then nothing until she wakes up to find herself one of few survivors of the bus crash. The doors are jammed, there's no way out, and the temperature is dropping fast. They'll have to work together to survive, but Hannah isn't the only one with a secret.
After volunteering for a secret project, former cop Meg wakes up suspended in a stalled cable car, dressed in a stranger's clothes, with no memory of how she got there. With her are a group of strangers all except one, a familiar face from her past... and he's dead. With little hope of rescue, these strangers will have to trust each other to survive even though one of them is a killer.
In an abandoned ski resort, a small group is working toward creating a vaccine against the deadly virus. They are barely surviving, exchanging doses for vital supplies. But when the power starts to fail, the threat lurking in the basement gets closer and closer to escape and Carter and his small group of friends could be its first victims.
This book kept me on the edge of my seat and I couldn't put it down! With details of the reaction to the virus so familiar, yet so strange and the perfect time of year to read this snowy chilling story, it pulled me right in. I'm excited to read more by this new-to-me author.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

All I can say is wow! I didn’t re-read the blurb before reading and forgot what the book was about. I was greatly rewarded when I realized it was apocalyptic (one of my favorites). It’s told from the different POVs and takes place years into a viral pandemic during a snow storm. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time reading this. There are mysteries, secrets, survival and twists. There are a lot of tense moments in this one and great story telling.

Thank you for letting me read this wonderful book in return for an honest review.

I absolutely couldn't put it down. I got so involved with the characters that I wanted to see what was happening.

That twist at the end was something that I never saw coming. My only regret is that I can't read it again for the first time.

⭐⭐⭐/5

• violent survival horror
• heavy but well written
• strong ending

This one is very different from the author's previous work. In the beginning, I had a hard time keeping all of the characters and storylines straight in mind. There was a virus, a bus crash, and zombies in this post-apocalyptic setting. I did enjoy how it all came together in the end though.

🗣️ Thank you to @netgalley and @randomhouse/Ballantine for the opportunity to read and review this book via gifted eARC! All opinions are honest and my own.