The Chalk Man (Michael Joseph Penguin Random House 2018) is the first book for C.J. Tudor and it is a rollicking, page-turning murder mystery that is engrossing from the very first page, when someone uncovers a girl’s head covered in leaves in the woods. From there, the story is told by the main protagonist, Eddie, in a twin narrative that switches back and forth from 1986 – when he was a teenager, to 2016 – when he is an adult sharing his home with his edgy and much younger housemate, Chloe. Eddie receives a letter which frightens him by what it says, and by what it doesn’t say. His mind is returned to the events of 30 years earlier, when he and the strange new teacher, Mr Halloran, saved a girl’s life after she was flung off a carnival ride and badly disfigured, and when Eddie and his group of mates – Fat Gav, Hoppie, Metal Mickey and Nicky – communicated their secret childish messages in code by leaving enigmatic symbols drawn on the pavement in coloured chalk. The chalk figurines become a metaphor for whatever is evil and sinister, hiding in plain sight amongst them. Mr Halloran is also the chalk man – an albino who is strange in appearance and unusual in his habits. As chalk figures begin appearing once again on the streets, and as Eddie’s dreams become nightmares that haunt his memories of past events, he struggles to unravel the occurrences of his adolescence, and to piece together the mystery that shrouds the present. When people again begin dying, he is determined to uncover the truth.
This is a good read that moves along at a fast pace with plenty of red herrings, suspects, motives and people with the opportunity to commit crime. Everyone has secrets, and some of the most unassuming characters have the biggest secrets of all. C.J. Tudor does a great job of spinning a complex web of intrigue and macabre occurrences. And it all begins with…what? The horrific accident that left a damaged and vulnerable girl? The arrival of Mr Halloran with his ghostly appearance and other-worldly charm? Was it when the children began drawing the chalk men? Or when they started appearing on their own? Or did it all start when they found the first body? The beginning is never certain, but the web of crime and mystery is interwoven with intricate family relationships and the complicated knots of adolescent friendships, with all their attending loyalty and betrayal. The story is written in an engaging voice with a style that is easy-to-read and sprinkled with humour, despite the dark subject matter.
The Chalk Man – C.J. Tudor
