The Other People: Fiction for the non-fiction obsessed

As your friendly neighborhood CrimeCon Informant, one of my jobs is to alert true crime enthusiasts to new shows, podcasts, and books that make your morbid little hearts burst with joy -- and sometimes we need to switch up our true crime obsession with some fictional mysteries. For that purpose, Ballantine author C.J. Tudor's new book The Other People is *chef's kiss.*

In The Other People , Tudor offers up something for everyone: there's a mystery to solve, plenty of nail-biting suspense, and even a touch of the paranormal. The book follows protagonist Gabe as he drives home one night, stuck behind a rusty old car. He sees a little girl’s face appear in its rear window and she mouths one word: " Daddy!" . Gabe recognizes the girl as his five-year-old daughter, Izzy, but the car disappears. Three years later, Gabe spends his days and nights traveling up and down the highway, searching for the car that took his daughter, refusing to give up hope, even though most people believe she’s dead.

I recently had a chance to speak with the UK-based author and discovered that she has a lot in common with the average true crime enthusiast: a tendency to fall (or plunge willingly) down rabbit holes, a tinge of ever-present suspicion, and a natural urge to solve puzzles.

CCI: Where did the inspiration for the book come from?

CJT: We were driving back from visiting relatives and found ourselves stuck in traffic on the M1 [motorway in England]. A long line of cars crawling through roadworks. It was late and we’d been stuck behind this same car for miles; a beaten-up old car with loads of faded stickers around the rear window. I found myself wondering, what would happen if a face appeared in the rear window? What if it was someone in trouble, being kidnapped? Then I started thinking, what if it was someone I knew? And then my mind tumbled down the darkest rabbit hole: what if it was my own child, being driven away in a strange car when she should be tucked up in bed at home?

CCI: What elements from real-life crime stories do you pull together to create a fiction work that appeals to the true crime obsessed?

CJT: I don’t draw on any specific real-life crime stories, but I’m always very interested in normal people caught in extraordinary situations – what would we do, how far would we go if really pushed? My own darkest fear would be losing my little girl. I think it’s the same for every parent. We know that terrible tragedies happen and yet we cling on to this belief that somehow our family is special and protected, it will never happen to us. Bad things only ever happen to other people. But all it take is one twist of fate and any of us could be the other people.

CCI: What was your biggest challenge in writing The Other People ?

CJT: Tying all the different strands together. At one point I wasn’t convinced I could make it all work! Different characters, viewpoints and a hint of the supernatural. Yeah, it was a headache! Plus, as the action takes place up and down a motorway, I had to make sure that all my characters could realistically get from one place to another in the time I needed them too. I know far more than is healthy about motorway service stations now!

CCI: There’s a bit of a supernatural element to the subplot involving a character named Alice. How do you introduce those elements and still keep it believable?

CJT: Most crime novels require some suspension of disbelief but when you’re adding in a supernatural element, you obviously have to work even harder to keep it believable! I think the most important thing is the characters – if people believe in and care about the characters, they want to take that ride with them. Also, don’t cheat the reader – don’t make the twists and reveals reliant upon the supernatural aspect. And finally, get your reality right. If the mundane stuff is convincing, then people will be more willing to believe the unbelievable!

What ties the book together for me, as a true crime buff, is the description Tudor offers of the titular Other People:

We are people just like you. People to whom terrible things have happened. We’ve found solace not in forgiveness or forgetting. But in helping each other find justice.

 The Other People hits bookshelves on January 28. Click hereto pre-order your copy and lose yourself in the mystery and intrigue of The Other People .