The Taking of Annie Thorne by C.J Tudor

 

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Michael Joseph (21 Feb. 2019)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0718187458
• ISBN-13: 978-0718187453

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synopsis

Then . . .

One night, Annie went missing. Disappeared from her own bed. There were searches, appeals. Everyone thought the worst. And then, miraculously, after forty-eight hours, she came back. But she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, say what had happened to her.

Something happened to my sister. I can’t explain what. I just know that when she came back, she wasn’t the same. She wasn’t my Annie.

I didn’t want to admit, even to myself, that sometimes I was scared to death of my own little sister.

Now. . .

The email arrived in my inbox two months ago. I almost deleted it straight away, but then I clicked OPEN:

I know what happened to your sister. It’s happening again . . .

Review

The Taking of Annie Thorne is he new book by C.J. Tudor, the author of last years bestseller The Chalk Man.  Like the previous novel, this has a chilling and tense plot line that will make your spine tingle. Joe Thorne receives a mysterious email telling him that what happened to his younger sister, twenty five years ago, is now happening again in his home town of Arnhill.  Taking a teaching job at his old school, Joe has to face fears of the past as well as the present to finally put an end to the dark events that surround Arnhill.

There is no doubt as to C.J Tudor’s skill as a thriller writer; she writes an original and gripping story with flawed and unbalanced characters.  Written in the first person, Joe is our narrator, although not a very reliable one.  Joe has an addictive personality, he has troubles with gambling and alcohol that are ruling his life damaging his judgement and putting him in danger.  The events at Arnhill give him a chance to run away from his gambling debts, and hide while he tries to sort out his life.  Although, he doesn’t get much of a welcome as old friends and enemies don’t want him there bringing up old histories that could effect their lives.  I did have some sympathy for Joe, life hasn’t been easy especially after the incident when his sister disappeared, but I did want to give him a shake.  His heart is in the right place, although he doesn’t like anyone getting close to him, he uses sarcasm as a defence mechanism.  There are plenty of unsavoury characters that Joe has to contend with, many hiding secrets and having agendas of their own, and C.J Tudor’s wonderfully descriptive writing bings them to life.

The plot takes place in the present and twenty five years previously as the details of the night Annie Thorne, Joe’s younger sister, are slowly revealed.  The suspense and tension are kept throughout, and there are many dark and nail biting moments to keep your attention. C.J Tudor really captures the depression and despondency of Arnhill, the town and the school, where nothing changes and outsiders are frowned upon. I really wanted to give this book a five star rating, however, I found this too much like The Chalk Man; the flawed main character returning to his home town after events from his childhood start to happen again, a depressed atmosphere of the town, tension between childhood friends, a feeling of the supernatural.  I still enjoyed this book, it did have me gripped and intrigued but it did feel familiar.

The Taking of Annie Thorne is a dark and sinister thriller that builds the suspense until the dramatic and surprising conclusion. C.J Tudor captures the atmosphere of the fear of the unknown and adds a touch of the supernatural that makes this such a nail biting read;  be prepared to gripped and shocked, a great read.

 

I would like to thank Penguin and Michael Joseph for my copy of the book to read and give an honest review as part of the blog tour.

Thank you to my followers for taking the time to read my review.  If you fancy giving this book a go it will be released on 21 February.