The Passenger by Daniel Hurst
Genre: Psychological thriller, Suspense
Read: 19th September 2023
Published: 28th March 2021
★★★★★ 5 stars
DESCRIPTION:
She takes the same train every day. But this is a journey she’ll never forget.
Amanda is a hardworking single mum, completely focused on her job and her daughter, Louise. She’s been saving for years and now, finally, she can afford to give up work and chase her dream.
But then, on her commute home from London to Brighton, she meets a charming stranger - who seems to know everything about her.
He delivers an ultimatum . She needs to give him the code for the safe where she keeps her savings before the train reaches Brighton - or she’ll never see Louise again.
Convinced that the threat is real, Amanda is stunned, horrified. She knows she should give him the code, but she can’t. Because she also knows there is a terrible secret in that safe which will destroy her life and Louise’s too…
The Passenger – the stunning psychological thriller with a nerve-shredding climax. Perfect for fans of Mark Edwards, K.L. Slater, Miranda Rijks.
MY THOUGHTS:
All aboard for THE PASSENGER!!!
Wowsers! Now THIS is Daniel Hurst at his best. Of course I enjoy all his books, as entertaining and quick reads as they are, but this one is just pure genius. Everything about it is sheer brilliance. I have read plenty of commuter-type tales, the last being by his own dad Mark with his short story "The Last Woman". I did wonder if it was going to be something "The Girl on the Train" which many tried to replicate in their own unique ways and failed. But neither of those even come close to THE PASSENGER.
I really should have been focusing on getting my Netgalley shelf down but I decided one Daniel Hurst book wasn't enough so after finishing my previous read by him, his more recent "The Perfect Escape", I decided to rewind the clock a bit and go back to an earlier book by him knowing those were some of his best...and I was not wrong. I only came across him later the same year that this one was released with "The New Friends" then "The Break" and I was impressed. Anyway, I digress.
The story begins on the evening commute from London to Brighton. It's a journey that Amanda knows well having done it for years, all the while saving every spare penny she could so she could follow her dream of becoming a published author. And that dream is about to be realised because in two days' time Amanda will finish her boring office job and the dull commute to and from the capital each day. And then she can focus on being a full time author hopefully with publishers knocking at her door. It's been a hard slog to save the money that will make it possible for her to give up the steady income that has given her the financial security she needed to bring up her daughter as a single mum. Not that she has gotten any thanks on that score.
Louise is seventeen going on twenty five. She thinks she has her life all mapped out but she doesn't have the means to accomplish that. But her mum does. But her mum won't give her any of what she has stashed away so she can go travelling and enjoy herself. No, her mum told her that if she wants to go travelling then she needs a job to earn the money to pay for it. But why should she when her mum already has that money sitting in her safe in her bedroom? Louise clearly doesn't see anything wrong with this picture. She thinks the money that her mother has taken pains to earn and put aside by scrimping and saving is there for the taking for her to have a share in. Which is why she chucked in college and now stays at home all day, waiting for her mother to relent and give her the money to go see the world on her penny.
Little do either woman know is that their world is about to thrown into utter chaos before the evening commute is over. Because on Amanda's journey home she is going to meet "The Stranger" who will disarm her with his charm, a few winks and share in a few chuckles...before he reveals the true nature of the task at hand. For the Stranger knows all about Amanda, her daughter, her job, her commute and her aspirations of becoming a published author. He has been keeping a close eye on her for the past few weeks and has discovered that she is a creature of habit. So today on this evening's commute home, he is going to give Amanda an ultimatum that she cannot refuse...not if she wants to see her daughter alive again.
But the Stranger has has made a grave mistake. He has underestimated his opponent. She is not the predictable creature of habit he has assumed her to be. When he chose Amanda to swindle out of her life savings, he picked the wrong woman. She is nothing if not formidable...and resourceful. Because inside that safe is a secret that she will stop at nothing to protect.
Tagged as "a quick-paced psychological thriller with an ending you won't see coming", I wholly agree. For once I didn't see what was coming. I swiped those pages faster than the speed of light to see what was coming next, holding my breath in parts and cheering the women on in others. As the story unfolded I could see no way out without Amanda giving him what he wanted...but this is Daniel Hurst! There has to be something jaw-dropping coming our way. And boy, was there ever! I could not predict how it would turn out and as I swiped the final page, I finally let out the breath I'd been holding.
Intricately plotted, THE PASSENGER unfolds through the eyes of four narratives in which we are drip-fed information throughout as the twists are relentlessly delivered. No stone is left unturned in this one and you will be in no doubt as to who is who or who does what and why. It all becomes profoundly clear and it is sheer and utter genius. It's a quick read, as most of his books are, but it is still entertaining and engaging while still being able to shock and surprise. I read this in just about one sitting it is that easily devoured.
I would love to tell you what happens and how on edge I was all the way through...but of course I won't. I'll just tell you that this book needs to go on your TBR list of "must reads". It's so good it's that good it's brilliant! It's Daniel Hurst at his best...and I absolutely loved every thrilling minute of it!
Now I really need to get back on course with my tour books...but I want so much to devour another Hurst thriller after that one!! An easy five star read!
MEET THE AUTHOR:
He has been employed in several glamorous roles in his lifetime, including bartending, shelf stacking and procurement administration, all while based in some of the most exotic places on the planet, like Bolton, Preston and South London.
Daniel writes psychological thrillers and loves to tell tales about unusual things happening to normal people. He has written all his life, making the progression from handing scribbled stories to his parents as a boy to writing full length novels in his thirties. He lives in the North West of England and when he isn’t writing, he is usually watching a game of football in a pub where his wife can’t find him.
Since following his lifelong passion for writing in 2020, he has amassed a loyal and devoted set of readers, and regularly has several books in the top 100 of the Psychological Thriller Charts on Amazon. His title The Passenger became the #1 selling psychological thriller in the UK in October 2021. The Doctor's Wife is his first publication with Bookouture.
A prolific writer, Daniel likes to keep readers on their toes by self publishing even more books in between those released through his publisher.
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