The People On Platform 5 by Clare Pooley

 

Everyday the same people do the morning and evening commute. Even though they see the same faces each day, no-one speaks. Until one day when one of the commuters starts to choke, this is the ice breaker and from that point on the small group involved in saving the commuters life strike up an unlikely friendship.

I loved this book, really felt as if I was one of the small group of friends and became fully involved in their lives. Being from the north, where we know each others life story within 20 minutes of meeting a stranger, the thought of not speaking to the same people you commute with each day seems really strange. 

There is a wonderful mix of characters, someone for most people to identify with. The main character is Iona, eccentric, stubborn and forthright. Iona is a magazine therapist (DO NOT call her an agony aunt) but at 57 her colleagues consider her a dinosaur. What her colleagues don't realise is that she was an influencer decades before social media existed.

Emmie works in advertising, she loves her job but wants to do something more rewarding than simply sell toothpaste. Sanjay is a nurse who moved from A&E to Oncology because he wanted to connect more with his patients. Sanjay has adored Emmie from afar for months but isn't brave enough to ask her out.

Piers is an arrogant city trader, he hates his job but has a lifestyle he has to maintain for his family. Martha is an awkward school girl, struggling on the fringes of the in-crowd at school. Things become even worse for her when she does something really stupid.

Each of our characters is dealing with problems; school, work, relationships. As individuals these problems are huge, but when they begin to share their concerns they are met with support and solutions. 

Yes all the problems are tied up neatly, but that is what you want from a feel good novel. I'd love to re-visit the characters in a couple of years time to see how their lives develop.

The People On Platform 5 by Clare Pooley will be published on 26th May 2022. My thanks to NetGalley and Transworld Books for a review copy.