Sudden Departure of the Frasers

The Sudden Departure of the Frasers

I was fascinated by the premise of this book.

Why? Well, where to start? The title is intriguing enough in itself, (departure, not disappearance, a choice which highlights that they made a remarkably abrupt decision to leave, rather than being (say) spirited away by kidnappers, and 'The Frasers', creating a sense of unity (against who?) and almost mythology - they're not Mr and Mrs Fraser, they are The Frasers,) but the blurb is fascinating.

What's it about?

Christy and Joe Davenport have spent every penny they have, and a fair few they don't, on pursuing their dream of living on Lime Park Road, but as soon as Christy holds the keys to their dream home, her doubts kick in.

Why was the price so low? Why was show more the sale so rushed? Why did the previous owners go to so much trouble to renovate the whole house in luxurious style only to move out within a year? And why won't the neighbours speak to Christy? What is it they won't tell her?

One year earlier popular couple Amber and Jeremy Fraser brought a sparkle to the previously quiet road when they moved into the neighbourhood. Amber was a devoted wife, a great neighbour and friend to the other residents. Except, she tells us, 'This is a lie.'

So who was Amber Fraser really? And why did the Frasers depart so suddenly? Christy is determined to find out and as she struggles to uncover the truth, she moves closer to 'the dark and shocking story that tore the street apart'. Oooh.

What's it like?

Initially gripping. Typically compelling. Ultimately disturbing.

The first chapters are gripping as we meet Christy and experience her initial reservations, then meet Amber and are told that this is her 'confession'. We can only wonder what terrible thing she did. Back and forth we shift between wholesome Christy, being rejected by her new neighbours, and naughty Amber, being welcomed with ease.

It's interesting that Amber is given a first person narrative, the better to seduce the reader, perhaps, while Christy is kept slightly at arm's length by the third person narration, her gossipy dissertations on her neighbours' doings frequently undercut by Joe's disinterest and rational perspective.

And then. Then there are multiple chapters focusing on Christy's obsession and Amber's burgeoning secret. Given that the novel stretches to 500 pages, you'd be forgiven for wondering whether some of this could be cut. This will divide readers: some relishing the gradual slide into chaos and Candlish's careful depiction of character, others guessing the outcome and impatiently flicking ahead a few pages.

Finally, the denouement. And it's...somehow slightly underwhelming. It shouldn't be - Amber's crime is appalling, her husband is disturbingly complicit and the outcomes are severe - but it is perhaps a little predictable, and this can be hard to swallow when we've been promised something 'dark and shocking'.

Candlish's very brief, threat-laden prologue could hint at several outcomes, but once you know her characters well, and she ensures you know them inside-out, it sets like custard and we're waiting for nature to take its course.

That said, I loved the structure of this, the way Candlish layers the women's stories together with dark echoes and creates a plausible villain alongside her villainess. Leaving the events of the crucial day til so close to the end is cleverly done; removing Christy's narrative altogether by the end is a master stroke. Like the residents of Lime Park Road, it's Amber we're fascinated by, Amber whose past, present and future we yearn to understand, not Christy. (Amber has her own take on Christy, though arguably this once again simply reflects Amber's beliefs and concerns.)

Final thoughts

One reviewer compared Candlish's 'The Sudden Departure of the Frasers' to works by Liane Moriarty and Gillian Flynn. While I responded instinctually with yes - I already had 'Gone Girl' in mind - the comparisons also allowed me to shape my coalescing criticisms more precisely.

Unlike Moriarty's books, Candlish essentially follows one plot line here, despite having two central protagonists (or is Christy perhaps a Mrs de Winter figure, overwhelmed by Manderly and incapable of being a Rebecca?) Unlike Gillian Flynn's novels, there is ultimately one central question we zig zag our way towards resolving, rather than finding multiple twists that scatter the story in different directions.

'The Sudden Departure of the Frasers' has a different way of working than those novels, a more focused approach that encompasses a way of life rather than simply a clutch of exemplary or awful characters, but with its suspenseful title and its blurb proclaiming 'the dark and shocking secret' it is aligning itself with these kinds of writers and potentially encouraging readers to expect a slightly different experience from what Candlish has to offer. Think 'Rear Window' rather than 'Gone Girl' and you'll be ready to love this.

What Candlish does have to offer is an excellent story whose most disturbing elements will linger in your mind long after you've closed the final pages. show less

There are two storylines which alternate in this novel, involving two young women. We meet Christy first; she and her husband Joe have just bought a house in an up-and-coming street in London, and can't quite believe the price they paid.

However the neighbours won’t speak to them, the downstairs flat next door is also being sold, and there’s a hermit-like man living upstairs, who is abrupt and rude. Moreover, nobody seems to know what happened to the previous owners or why they vanished so suddenly.

Amber lived there a year earlier, and her story is told in the first person which works well, although she is not a very nice person. She makes it clear that she had a wild past, in her late teens and early twenties, but thought she had show more settled down with her older and quite wealthy husband … until something happens to change that.

I thought it cleverly written. The blurb on the back hints about dark secrets, yet it’s essentially a relationship-driven story. By the time the revelation comes, it’s fairly obvious how the plot is going, and there are really no surprises. Still, I was glad that the final chapters bring closure.

There’s more bad language than I’m comfortable with, but the author wisely skips almost all the detail in the many scenes of intimacy. The writing is excellent, the dialogue believable, on the whole, and the storyline so well crafted that I could barely put it down, and finished 500 pages in just a couple of days.

Latest longer review: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2023/09/the-sudden-departure-of-frasers-by.... show less

This began as such a promising story. From the title to the opening chapters, I longed as much as one of the POV characters what had happened that was so big people have packed up and moved out of this tony London neighborhood virtually overnight and that leaves the rest of the street silent and cool to the point of shunning toward newcomers? This is a great set up and I couldn't wait to get into it. Dirty deeds under a glittering and lush facade? I'm all about that.

Amber was several types of awful and Christy was obsessive and needy. While I could see why Christy obsessed about the Frasers (bored and out of work), I never did empathize with Amber's actions. She was completely mercenary and without conscience. She was interesting to a show more point but in the final analysis, she didn't amount to much. I won't say what the secrets about the Frasers sudden departure but suffice it to say, it's not anything you haven't seen before and ultimately doesn't play out in a way that you haven't read before. One neat turn though was that by book's end, I still liked the husbands and felt a bit sorry for them (okay, very sorry for one of them).

Also, this story could have culled about 100 pages and have made for a more tense read. Neither Christy nor the reader gets any real information on the titular duo until those last 80 or so pages so it's just more going round on the carousel to nowhere for the long middle of the book. It's drawn out to no plot worthy purpose but I did stick with it because I didn't want to miss anything that might be a clue or important. Candlish succeeds in making this a compulsive read but fails a bit at the pay off department in the end.

This is my second book by Candlish and I'd definitely read another. Recommended if you need something for vacay. It's utterly readable if you've a lot of time to laze about and was something kinda juicy. show less

Really enjoyed this page turner but was slightly disappointed with the end

It was an OK read but I'm truly getting fed up with reading about unpleasant characters who seem to get away with anything! It was a bit overlong for me and the ending was truly annoying. Where are all the nice characters hiding??