The Chalk Man (C.J. Tudor)

I don't actually read mysteries that often. This one really drew me in after about 100 pages. I thought the way it is told, by going back to 1986 and then continuing with today (2016 in this book) it was quite effective and definitely kept me wanting to read just one more chapter.

So many secrets…

“Everyone has secrets, things they know they shouldn’t do but do anyway. Mine was……

There were some nasty scenes: rape of a young boy and murder. If you're sensitive, those will be pages to skip. The details of them aren't that important anyway.

I was surprised to learn this was the author's first book. It's a good start to a writing career, for sure!

Quotes:

p. 9 There's nothing better than doing something you shouldn't and getting one over on an adult while doing it.

p. 88 Teachers should be nice and friendly, but they should also be a bit apart. Mr. Haloran and I shared a secret now and, although that was cool in one way, it also made me feel awkward around him, like we had seen each other naked or something.

p. 151 That's the point, Eddie. The thing you have to understand is that being a good person isn't about singing hymns, or praying to some mythical god. It isn't about wearing across or going to church every Sunday. Being a good person is about how you treat others. A good person doesn't need a religion, because they are content with themselves that they are doing the right thing. (Eddie's mom, to Eddie)


I think this is a book I should read again and see what hints I missed as I read it the first time. There must have been some. I'm too unsuspecting a reader though. I need to hone my mystery reading skills!

Characters:
Eddie
Eddie's parents
Fat Gav
Metal Mickey
Nicky
Nicky's father (vicar)
Hoppo
The Pale Man (Mr Halloran)
Waltzer girl
Blond friend
Sean Cooper
Chloe

Goodreads says:

In 1986, Eddie and his friends are just kids on the verge of adolescence. They spend their days biking around their sleepy English village and looking for any taste of excitement they can get. The chalk men are their secret code: little chalk stick figures they leave for one another as messages only they can understand. But then a mysterious chalk man leads them right to a dismembered body, and nothing is ever the same.

In 2016, Eddie is fully grown, and thinks he's put his past behind him. But then he gets a letter in the mail, containing a single chalk stick figure. When it turns out that his friends got the same message, they think it could be a prank . . . until one of them turns up dead.

That's when Eddie realizes that saving himself means finally figuring out what really happened all those years ago.