“Vassell’s crackling debut skewers England’s current crop of gilded youth. . . . [Detective Caius Beauchamp's] search takes him through a web of overprivileged suspects on whom the detective casts a half-contemptuous, half-envious eye, and eventually delivers him to the doorstep of a murderous, elite conspiracy. Vassell gleefully plunges into the underbelly of 21st-century entitlement, creating vivid sketches of aimless young Londoners gorging on designer clothes and designer drugs. . . . A diamond-sharp satirical whodunit in the vein of Liane Moriarty.”
—Publishers Weekly“
The Other Half is a perfectly modern whodunnit. The plot is as entertaining as its skewering of aristocracy is astute, and the characters feel real enough to walk off the page. I can’t wait to read Charlotte Vassell’s next book!”
—Harlan Coben, #1 New York Times bestselling author of I Will Find You"Imagine
A Handful of Dust meets
The Great Gatsby on a Northern Line tube to Kentish Town. That’s
The Other Half by Charlotte Vassell, a crime thriller as sharp, witty and energetic as it is bitingly satirical. Vassell’s lively prose is utterly compelling and so stylish she can meld ancient Greece and 21stCentury London without batting a Euclid. Reminded me of Waugh with every turn of the page. In
The Other Half she might just have created a
Vile Bodies for the Millennial generation."
—Janice Hallett, internationally bestselling author of The Appeal and The Twyford Code “Brilliantly compulsive storytelling and in a completely repellent milieu. I could not stop reading this book.”
—Denise Mina, bestselling author of Conviction "An accomplished crime debut that is part mystery and satire, from a writer to watch.”
—Steve Cavanagh, bestselling author of Thirteen
“The Other Half is a sinister, erudite, and clever whodunit; a modern story propelled by literary allusions and a sophisticated wit that seem to have sprung from the era of the bright, young things.”
—Peter Swanson, New York Times bestselling author of Nine Lives “A scintillating debut which shifts effortlessly from the sacred to the profane by combining a cast of compulsively ghastly characters, a truly engaging cop, Ancient Greek, Instagram, a corpse on the Heath and a butler in McDonald’s. Much of what I loved about
The Secret History is to be found here, but with a thoroughly modern sensibility all of its own."
—Harriet Tyce, author of Blood Orange “Donna Tartt for the North London glitterati - sharp, funny writing meets tight plotting in a unique, new voice.”
—Ajay Chowdhury, author of The Waiter and The Cook “An incredible crime debut.
The Other Half is the love child of Evelyn Waugh and Susie Steiner, I devoured it. Gripping, funny, enraging and incisive.”
—Erin Kelly, author of He Said, She Said and The Skeleton Key “
The Other Half by Charlotte Vassell is an incredibly accomplished debut - the writing is pin-sharp and skewers class and pretension with hilarious precision. The plot is complex but well handled, and the characters - especially the protagonist Caius - are brilliant and so well realised. I really hope this is a series, because I can't wait to read more! Vassell is a unique and much-needed voice in crime fiction, and sure to be a new favourite for many!”
—Cailean Steed, author of Home“Smart, pacy, and good fun.” —
The Guardian“Smart, witty, and fast-paced, this is a thoroughly enjoyable, twisty satire. With razor-sharp observation, Vassell creates some memorably unpleasant characters in her successful skewering of upper-class pretension.” —
Daily Mail
“First in a series about British Detective Camus Beauchamp, this mystery takes us into London’s high society to solve the murder of one of the gentry’s ‘It’ girls. DI Beauchamp is intriguing — I’m looking forward to more of his cases.”
