The Drift by C.J. Tudor, 4 Stars

Hannah awakens to carnage, all mangled metal and shattered glass. Evacuated from a secluded boarding school during a snowstorm, her coach careered off the road, trapping her with a handful of survivors. They’ll need to work together to escape—with their sanity and secrets intact.

Meg awakens to a gentle rocking. She’s in a cable car stranded high above snowy mountains, with five strangers and no memory of how they got on board. They are heading to a place known only as “The Retreat,” but as the temperature drops and tensions mount, Meg realizes they may not all make it there alive.

Carter is gazing out the window of an isolated ski chalet that he and his companions call home. As their generator begins to waver in the storm, something hiding in the chalet’s depths threatens to escape, and their fragile bonds will be tested when the power finally fails—for good.

The imminent dangers faced by Hannah, Meg, and Carter are each one part of the puzzle. Lurking in their shadows is an even greater danger—one with the power to consume all of humanity.

My Review:

Sometimes I read so many books that I just don’t remember the premise when I start a book. And with The Drift, it’s one of those books were once you get into it you are kind of like, oh, wait! It’s like the time I went to see From Dusk Til Dawn and didn’t realize it was about vampires.

The Drift is an amazing book, but just fyi, it is a little apocalyptic. Although really, it’s just a story about a pandemic that was a just a touch more deadly than our most recent one. And its appropriate because in Tudor’s last book, A Sliver of Darkness, a collection of short stories, she explains that her novel was due but she opted for the short stories instead because the pandemic was distracting for her. How appropriate that the next book should explore this theme.

I’d love to divulge details about this pandemic in the book, but I feel that it would give away important plot points, so I will stop there.

Early on in the book, we are introduced to three sets of characters in three settings. And as the story slowly unfolds in these parallel situations, it’s up to the reader to start to pull together the common thread, and try and figure out what (or who) specifically holds them together and what order these stories have taken place in. So this element is definitely interesting and a lot of fun for someone who always likes to try and figure it out before the end of the book.

The Drift is a great read for anyone who likes putting the pieces of a puzzle together. It kept my rapt attention from beginning to last page. Special thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review. This one is out January 31. Get your copy!