After a thirtieth birthday party at McDonald's, a woman's body is found in the park. As the guests of the party are questioned, a mystery beyond the woman's death unfolds. The friendships are questionable, along with why some even refer to one another as friends, and hatred and cruelty abound. It is up to Detective Caius Beauchamp to not only solve a murder, but also help these young adults realize the outcome of their actions.

<i>The Other Half</i> could be an amazing whodunit, but it isn't. All of the elements are there, but Vassell's style and use of chronological order to tell the story ends up being confusing (especially for an American readers; I had to look up a lot of stuff to understand what the characters were referencing). I would have preferred that Vassell set the novel in the police station after Clementine's body was found and use flashback to unfold the story as each character is interviewed. I think this would have helped ease movement between the Caius chapters and everyone else. Hearing the story from all of the individual characters would help build the case for readers who like to solve the mystery as they read. I found the chronological format harder to piece the story together because I wasn't connecting the characters outside of Rupert, Nell, and Alex as well as if each told his or her story. I also struggled with the characters; Rupert and Nell have no redeeming qualities, and outside of the detectives, I'm not sure that any characters had redeeming traits. I understand that Vassell's purpose was to highlight the horrible characters and what wealth does (or can do), but I really struggled with how toxic the relationships were between the "friends and lovers". I could not understand how Nell could still interact with Rupert after all of the horrible things he did to her or how Rupert didn't see how he did anything wrong. It was truly mind boggling.

After all of this, I still would like to see more from Caius. I did enjoy his characters and his partners. I think Vassell is on to something with this character, I just struggled with everything else.

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

I started off loving this book - the dry humour, the banter between DI Caius and his DS Matt, the fact that Caius and suspect Rupert had the same last name (Beauchamp) but pronounced it differently, the hilariously posh names of all Rupert's friends, etc - but then I started to get tired of all the women being in thrall to the obviously appalling Rupert, and I really hate a crime story where large parts of the plot are left unresolved at the end - we don't even know if Nell and Alex get together.

**Contains spoilers**

Made in Chelsea meets Agatha Christie.

I find that the majority of books I read these days are all American, but this novel was refreshingly British. Although i found all of the characters unlikeable, including the detective, it was still a page turner that had me wondering 'whodunnit'. The premise of the book was classic and is usually my go to type of book. However, I do feel that the whole storyline got a bit chaotic towards the middle, with multiple victims and a large scale drug operation in the background and so many different elements that were haphazardly thrown in that it detracted from the original question of who murdered Clemmie. The shock factor of 'whodunnit' wasn't there for me. Character development of the trio (and Clemmie) was the main telling of the book, and so I didn't really invest in any of the other characters, and therefore the big reveal was a bit underwhelming. Having said that, it was an easy book to read and would be one for those who like a classic crime solving novel.

This was very slow reading for me. I suspect I am just not enough of an Anglophile for all the inside quirks. I did not “get” many of them. The plot was complex and told in many voices. The characters, those from the upper class, were not particularly likable, yet the police officers working the cases were fighting their superiors to close the matter and hopefully arrest a guilty party. With all of this, it was interesting and actually quite well done, just not for me. Thanks to Net Galley and intake and An hour Books for an ARC for an honest review.

I was excited to read The Other Half and try to solve Clemmie's murder with the British detectives, and Clemmie's "friends". But getting through this book was challenging, and not as fun as reading through other mystery novels. The characters were off-putting, and the story seemed to drag on way too long. I wanted to know how the story ended, but I found myself trying to skim to get to the end.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book! The pacing was perfect, making it the best, quick read. At first, I believed this book would be hard to understand; the first few chapters seemed complex. As the characters and the story picked up, though, it took off! The book drew me in, and I felt like I could sit and read it for hours. The twists and turns shocked me, and I never saw the ending coming.

The characters were solid! I adored Nell and thought her POVs were great. They offered relief from the horrible, misogynistic characters in the book (mainly Rupert, lol). As much as I liked Caius as another POV, Nell stood out much more. I liked that he offered another plotline, and I could see this book having a sequel. Honorable mention for Clemmie as well. Although we never really got to know Clemmie deeply, I enjoyed the bits and pieces that we got.

Overall, this was a fantastic whodunit. Vassell kept me on my toes, and I was genuinely shocked by the ending! This book comes out on November 21st, 2023, and I highly recommend it. Thank you to NetGalley and Vintage Anchor for allowing me to read it early.

A debut novel with sparkling dialogue, excellent interplay among the characters and a complex mystery. When society bad boy's girlfriend Clemmie is found dead the morning after his decadent birthday party, Rupert Beauchamp becomes a suspect. Rupert is ultra wealthy, politically connected and Detective Caius Beauchamp (no relation to Rupert) can't seem to solve the case. A startling look at how to get away with murder. Terrific characters all around.

This English mystery is a superb novel. It is written perfectly and the storyline is spot on! Det. Caius has to investigate how the other half lives and how they could be the murder. Loved this so much I completely got so absorbed in this I read throughout the night and have no regrets about it! I loved this!
I just reviewed The Other Half by Charlotte Vassell. #TheOtherHalf #NetGalley
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There were times this book was brilliant and I enjoyed the writing. My fave part was the quirky characters. But in the end, this book just wasn't for me. The ending didn't quite thrill or surprise me as much as I had hoped.

I’m not sure how to feel about this. In some ways, I enjoyed it. But the writing felt so pretentious and self serving a good portion of the time. Nell bordered on manic pixie dream girl territory. The details were too slathered on and I feel like overall it could use more editing.

I hate to give any negative reviews but I just couldn’t hang with this book. I requested it on NetGalley because the cover was awesome and the description sounded just up my alley. However, the actual book I couldn’t get into. It was a lot of banter and description of conversations and different classes. I was 40% of the way in and had no clue what had happened. I really just couldn’t keep up. An influencer was found murdered in the park, and her murder was investigated by Caius. It goes back and forth and discusses the upper class and their issues while solving the murder. This book wasn’t for me but it may be for you!!

The character of DI Caius Beauchamp and his staff are the saving grace of this book. The author did such a good job of fleshing out the main characters/suspects, but they are all so thoroughly unlikeable, I had a hard time caring who the murderer was. For me the ending seemed rather abrupt and incomplete. Overall, this book was just not my cup of tea.

The best mysteries are the ones that leave the reader wondering whodunit until the very end. Sadly, this was not the case with The Other Half. At least for this reader, the killer was obvious early on. And although there was a multi-layered plot featuring several mysteries, all were left dangling. Even if this book is the first in a proposed series, it needed a more satisfying ending than was written.

I honestly wasn't sure about this when I first started it - the protagonists all seemed pretentious and the literary metaphors were a bit much, even for this former English major. However, all the pretentious characters and even the metaphors grew on me over the course of the novel as I got to know the characters and figure out who was sincere and who was a jerk. At that point it became a satisfying whodunnit and a great set up for what I imagine will be a successful series.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. I was intrigued by the cover and the description, but this book just wasn't for me. I think it was partly because I missed a lot of the English and literary references. But otherwise it just didn't keep my interest. I felt like it went in too many different directions. I realize that the reader isn't supposed to like most of the main characters, but this just made it difficult for me to enjoy. If it weren't for the fact that I wanted to see who the murderer was I may not have finished it.

As a debut novel I think there is potential, especially for DI Caius Beauchamp. If he is going to be a recurring character, I think he could be quite enjoyable.

Fun read - that is told from various points of view of a murdered woman and the people involved.

Found the detective and his colleges to really make this book tick and laugh.

The Other Half was one of my most anticipated reads of 2023; the plot sounded right up my alley!

Things I loved:
- the overall plot and pacing; I kept coming back every chance I could to read “just a few more pages.”
- the Help for Hippos plot point was super intriguing and I really liked how it was slowly revealed throughout the story.
- well developed characters (and fun character names: Minty, Clemmie, etc)

Things I didn’t love:
- this was more of a me problem, not an actual issue with the book, but because I’m American I often struggled with the British slang used throughout. Most of the time I was able to surmise what was being said, but I did notice it taking me out of the book at times.
- the ending leaving some questions unanswered.

Final rating: 3.5 stars rounded up! Overall an impressive debut novel that was hard to put down.

As a long time fan of the murder mystery genre, I enjoy trying out new authors. Charlotte Vassell, through her debut novel The Other Half, has found a place on my watch list. Her first book was extremely enjoyable, and deftly combines a skewering of certain British Millennial elite, over-wealthy and under-achieving individuals, with a very well-plotted murder mystery. Vassell’s twenty-something descendants of the landed gentry seemed generally unpleasant, and their dialog was irritatingly condescending, excessively snarky and not always believable, but her characterizations of the normal folk, i.e, the team of detectives involved in solving the murder of one of the beautiful people “influencers," made these characters likable, relatable and realistic. Leading the police team, detective Caius Beauchamp, was quite appealing , and I suspect he is a possible protagonist for a continuing series which I would be happy to follow. With the exception perhaps of being overly descriptive, too many metaphors and similes, the book was very well written. The pacing and plotting were polished, and the storyline remained very compelling throughout, despite some unnecessary side-stories that were not especially well developed or wrapped up. All in all, this was a fun and sophisticated mystery romp that kept me eagerly reading to observe the world of the British Other Half, and see how they lived and died.

Thanks to Net Galley for providing an advance copy.

Great storytelling and well-developed characters. I was hooked from the first page. Mystery and intrigue all wrapped up in a gripping tale. Definitely recommend.

Imagine how satisfying it would be to know that a posh birthday party in rented out McDonalds ended in murder! The evil rich in this book are easy to hate and I laughed throughout. A satisfying mystery, with strong commentary on the class system.