Thank you Anchor for an advance copy for review!

The Other Half follows Detective Caius Beauchamp as he investigates the murder of Clemmie, a member of the upper class in London. As he investigates, he digs deeper into the world of the other half, and the sometimes unbelievable things that the rich and titled can get away with. But, the deeper he gets into his investigation, the more intricate the mystery gets, until it’s no longer just about the death of a young woman.

When I first started reading this book, I wasn’t sure if it was going to be for me. The prose felt a bit too high level (I like my first person romance novels, sue me), and while I at one point in my life really loved an intellectual read, I felt like my brain might not be able to comprehend this one. However, as I got further into the book, I realized that the prose really worked well for the story, and the underlying message related to classism in England. As someone who is in fact American, this isn’t something I’ve spent a lot of time researching, or have a lot of experience with (goddess knows we have our own problems over on this side of the pond), but I think I can say I did like how it was threaded throughout the story. Additionally, the mystery itself and the intertwining relationships become so intriguing I got past the prose that maybe didn’t sit right with me at first.

I think Vassell did an excellent job interweaving the relationships in the books and the characters, and there were definitely moments where I went “WOAH I didn’t see that coming…”, and I genuinely think that is a top indicator of a wonderfully written mystery. I think I also found myself kind of attached to some of the characters, wanting things to work out well for them.

I don’t love how it left off on a bit of an unsatisfying note, I wanted a bit more closure with some of the characters, but I think that there will be more in this world with Detective Beauchamp, and I can only hope that we’ll revisit the things that happen in this book as well. Also, it’s probably a really good parallel to the classism issues this book explores as well (I can’t say more without possibly spoiling).

Overall this was a solid 4 star read, and I look forward to reading more from Charlotte.

This one let me down a little bit - I was expecting more but since i have read quite a lot of mysteries and thrillers by now, this one felt a bit short. It was just average for me.

Let's be real. This one confused the ever-living FUCK out of me.
What was I even reading. I am really thankful to the publisher, audio, and hosting platform for letting me attempt this one, but it just wasn't for me.

I was unable to finish this book and thus will not be posting a full review on my blog. I found it absurd to the point of being painful to read. The premise was fine but the execution was poor. Thank you for the opportunity.

This literary-minded mystery was a refreshing change of pace and a fun but thought-provoking read. It begins by following two mostly-disconnected characters. Nell is a young editor trying to avoid attending the loathsome Rupert's birthday party; she wants to end the friendship, but is continually drawn in by Rupert's wealth and purported love for her. Detective Caius Beauchamp, recently dumped and feeling inadequate, is out for an improving jog and discovers the corpse of a woman who turns out to be Rupert's girlfriend. Nell and Caius's stories involve the same characters but only occasionally intersect, and the book is just as interested in mocking the internet bourgeoisie, skewering the upper class, and exploring the personal lives and philosophies of its characters as it is in solving the mystery.

This book will not be for everyone: the mystery thread bifurcates, and its more interesting branch is never solved; hardcore mystery loves may find it too frustrating. But as a satirical exploration of race and class, a deliberately-paced and entertaining read, it was delightful.

Rupert Achilles de Courcy Beauchamp has the good fortune to be born into obscene wealth and to be incredibly good looking as well. Because of this, he believes everything in the world is his for the taking with no repercussions. That is why he finds himself in something of a mess as his 30th birthday party gets underway, with several females who have had relationships (one way or another) with Rupert invited. He decides to hold his birthday party in the upper dining room of a London McDonald's restaurant, finding it beyond hilarious to have his rich friends turn up in black tie and evening gowns. He becomes upset when Clemmie, his girlfriend of many years, doesn't turn up. He tells everyone that if she doesn't show up, he's going to end their relationship. It turns out that Clemmie has a very good reason for not showing up when her body is discovered the next day by a police officer who is out for a jog. The officer, Caius Beauchamp (no relation to Rupert), then begins the process of trying to find out how Clemmie, an Instagram model and influencer, met her death. The case takes a lot of strange directions, involving drug rings, art thefts, MI6 investigations, and cover-ups.

The characters are all a bit odd and unsympathetic (well, mostly the spoiled rich brats, not necessarily the cops). All of the women seem to be infatuated with Rupert, and ALL of the men are instantly madly smitten with Nell, a college friend and sometime girlfriend of Rupert. The banter among the characters is very annoying and at times hard to follow. I'm still not sure at the end how everything was connected (particularly a second death, which never seemed to be completely fleshed out or resolved). Everyone has complicated, messy romantic entanglements and the whole thing left me feeling somewhat depressed. I generally give a huge bonus to any book set in London, but even that goodwill quickly evaporated.

Rupert's 30th birthday party is a black-tie dinner at the Kentish Town McDonald's—catered with cocaine and expensive champagne. The morning after, his girlfriend Clemmie is found murdered on Hampstead Heath, a single stiletto heel jutting from under a bush.

This is quite a good debut novel from Charlotte Vassell.

Friendships and love can be tricky things, then throw in some highly self absorbed and obnoxious characters and you have the makings of a very good book. A great plot that took me in and the book was read in an afternoon. The character development is excellent, I could not have disliked Rupert more if I tried and I found a lot of depth in Clemmie's that both contributed to growing the story. The other supporting characters such as Nell were also well portrayed. There are different themes in the book that focus on class, gender and the lasting side of friendships that span years back. Also loyalty, integrity and other wonderful human traits have flown out the window. If you are looking to pass a few spare hours I would highly recommend the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of the book, all opinions are my own.

I had hoped to like this book because of the cover and the blurb. The setting sounded interesting. But the writing style doesn't appeal to me. I don't care about the characters and don't feel drawn into the story.. Sorry, but I am a DNF for this book.

Such a fresh change from the regular Thrillers I have been reading. This book takes us into the world of influencers, the upper crust in England, and the differences and issues for individuals not from that world, or people of color in relation to that subsection. The story follows a young woman who is murdered, is an influencer, and is dating a very rich, posh, man. The descriptions were wonderful but the story itself was what kept me interested in the book. There were various different storylines that all worked together to make a fun and quick read. I highly recommend this book if you want something different, but still enjoy a good thriller!

This ebook was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Who killed Clemmie? Was it her boyfriend? Her godmother? The gallery owner with whom she’s been having an affair. Or maybe it was something else. There are so many suspects.

Detective Caius isn’t sure who the main suspect is, and so many of them have alibis. He’s the one who found Clemmie’s body, literally tripping over her on his morning run. With so many high profile suspects, he must wade through the facts, and put this case together delicately before the case is wrenched from his hands.

I struggled with so much of the book being written in conversational tone. This made for a lot of quotation marks, and it really made the book read choppy to me. Definitely not my preferred way to read a story. This book is split genre. Half is police procedural, and the other is the story of the privileged rich. I found almost all of the characters to be very unlikable. What kept me going and reading was the mystery, the strong whodunit. The mystery was fun and complex, and held my interest. The satirical nature of this book was also enjoyable, and I enjoyed the humor. I appreciated how everything came together in the end and things were wrapped up nicely.

I would recommend this one to those looking for an entertaining British whodunit.

Thank you so much to Vintage Anchor and Netgalley, @netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: November 21, 2023

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this book. At times a murder mystery, a police procedural, and an immersion into dramatic English academia - it had a little bit of everything.

Think Agatha Christie but bougie millennials. DI Cauis Beauchamp has come across quite the case. While out running, he finds a young woman murdered. As Beauchamp and his partner take on the case, they soon realize a stonewall will make it hard to solve. Life is so much easier for wealthy aristocrats and social media influencers. Who's willing to cover their tracks to tuck this murder neatly under the antique rug?

This had such potential in the beginning. I love a book about rich people behaving badly. It follows a loose police procedural with the splash of wealth. However, about 60% in, it slowed down and through in some plot lines that I didn't find necessary. It didn't add or take away anything. Characters, fantastic. I loved some and despised others. The plot felt a little drawn out, and lagging in spots. It's worth the read if you don't mind the added "stuff".

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy.

This was an interesting read. The difference in views between the really rich characters and the middle class characters were believable and well -developed. I enjoyed the plot line.

i'm not sure whether or not it was intentional that the two different storylines in this book felt so far removed from each other, due to the differences in class depicted, but i thought it was very cleverly constructed regardless. i really was rooting for the main female character 'nell,' even though her decisions surrounding the men in her social circle were so frustrating sometimes. during the middle section i did think it dragged on a little bit, and how complex the mystery element quickly became was a little hard to follow, but overall i thought it to be a very witty commentary.

thank you to netgalley and vintage anchor for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

I found it difficult to read. The characters are very unlikable. I was hoping the murder mystery would draw me in, but it sadly failed to do so.

This story failed to draw me in. The characters were annoying to me. I just couldn’t get into it. Perhaps someone who enjoys irritating characters would enjoy this!

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to receive this book for an honest review.

I love a good whodunnit novel and this one does not disappoint. This is set in London in the modern day .
Even though its modern day, the priviledged and money are still alive.

This whodunit has a clever detective named Caius and has help from Matt and Amy.

I have a feeling this team will be back with more murders to solve.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 3.5 stars for me on this one..Loved the premise on this one. High Society influencer Clemmie is found dead by Caius Beauchamp as he’s jogging. Whodunnit? Her long time boyfriend Rupert Beauchamp (pronounced differently), rich, upperclass jerk who gets away with everything, or any one of her friends at his birthday party at the posh McDonald’s usually reserved for children’s parties?
The characters are interesting. Really liked Caius, Matt and Amy and their banter. Rupert is an ass that of course all the girls like, because who doesn’t like a bad boy, right?! Not me!
Felt like the ending was a bit disjointed and maybe a bit rushed so thus the drop in rating. I would definitely pick up another book by Vassell.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this eARC. I am leaving an honest review

Thank you to Vintage Anchor Publishers and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced copy of THE OTHER HALF by Charlotte Vassell.

Synopsis:

Rupert is hosting his 30th birthday at McDonald's in Kentish Town, England. His girlfriend, Clemmy, is never shows up. Rupert was planning to break up with Clemmy the day after his birthday.

Instead, a young police detective stumbles on a dead body and further investigations finds the name of the victim - Clemmy. Clemmy has a big presence on Social Media. Rupert and Clemmy are part of the wealthy trust fund young adult children who also dabble in party drugs like Cocaine.

The references to Harry Potter and other new pop culture information was More interesting to me than the characters. Loved the descriptions of the locations, the scenery, and the backgrounds.

The title was perfect - THE OTHER HALF. The Other Half refers to the upper class with money. Have you ever wondered about the other halves' lives?

There is no happy ending in this novel. Sorry to say that I was Not Satisfied with the ending. I am not sure if there is supposed to be a sequel.

While I have seen others' rave about boow wonderful this novel is, it was not my cup of tea. IMHO, I do not think this was like Agatha Christie, unless you multiply the number of the rakes from Agatha Christie for the characters in this novel.

Content Warning: Drug Use, Rape, Emotional Abuse

The Other Half by Charlotte Vassell is a smart, witty, and fast-paced novel. This thoroughly enjoyable book offers a twisty satire that captivates readers from start to finish.