“Privilege has a price. But who will pay it?

On the eve of her seventieth birthday, Geri gathers her brother’s spoilt adult children together on the family’s private island and tells them that she’s ready to name her successor as CEO of the lucrative global empire founded by their grandfather.

Her announcement triggers a frenzy of suspicion, rivalry and back-stabbing. Each of the three siblings believes the role should go to them – despite the dark secrets that they all harbour.

As Geri uncovers the black heart of her own family, will the best among them win the prize? Or will the heirs to the Chalice crown finally get what they so richly deserve?”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of How the Other Half Die by Rachel North. How the Other Half Die is published by Corvus Books today (that’s Thursday 5th June 2025) and is available in paperback, audio and digital formats. I chose to read a free ARC of How the Other Half Die but that has in no way influenced my review. My grateful thanks to Laura at Corvus Books for sending me a proof copy.

Extremely successful businesswoman, Geraldine Chalice, is about to celebrate her 70th birthday. She’s known for being a tough, ruthless and results-driven CEO. So when she invites her three heirs (her two nephews and her niece) to the family’s private island for the celebrations, they’re shocked to hear that Geraldine will also, FINALLY, after all this time, be announcing who she has chosen as her successor. It’s what Jonny, Juliet and Benedict have been waiting years to hear. Every devious, underhand deed, every dark secret, has been for this moment. But knowing their fate will soon be decided unleashes a torrent of rivalry, hatred and double-crossing between the siblings. There’s already been one death on the island. How many more will there be before the end of the birthday celebrations…?

How the Other Half Die is a drama-filled tale of sibling rivalry, entitlement and the lengths people will go to get what they believe is theirs. The Chalices are horrible people. They’re thoroughly spoilt adult brats who irritate and infuriate each other in a race to be crowned the chosen heir. They wound me up no end with their dogged, underhand drive to usurp their siblings. Are any of them really capable of being CEO of a global company? Well, that’s down to Geraldine to decide. Geraldine isn’t really all that much better than her niece and nephews, having successfully dethroned her younger brother, who was initially handed the company by their late father, twenty years ago. Ian Chalice is a bitter, resentful man who, thanks to one of the siblings, turns up on the island looking for his share of the pot. He’s repulsive, arrogant and a misogynist. The kind of character who makes your skin crawl. I do enjoy a cast of unlikeable characters and North has created some truly horrible people. Characters you’ll love to hate!

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. How the Other Half Die is an intriguing family drama chock-full of intrigue and suspense. I was keen to discover how this was all going to end for the Chalices. Who would be the chosen one? I had several theories of my own, all of which weren’t quite what happened. But my theories were sort of along the right lines. I don’t want to go into detail as I could end up in spoiler territory, so won’t say any more on that. Moving swiftly on. The island setting was beautiful but also a little on the hostile side, which I loved. There’s a great scene in the first half of the book where the helicopter arrives on Isola dei Delfini. Rocking and swaying its way down to the cliffside helipad. This was one my favourite scenes in the book. Descriptive, vivid and ultimately surprising. All in all, I enjoyed the time I spent reading How the Other Half Die. The pace was a little slower than I initially expected but I’m a fan of slower-paced thrillers so that didn’t bother me at all. I enjoyed the multiple POVs from the family and the staff working on the island. The majority of the characters are terrible, unlikeable people but that only added to the book’s appeal for me. Enjoyable, suspenseful and highly intriguing. Recommended.

I chose to read and review a free ARC of How the Other Half Die. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

How the Other Half Die by Rachel North was published in the UK by Corvus Books on 5th June 2025 and is available in paperback, audio and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Rachel North was born in Scarborough and studied English Literature at Oxford University. She has worked as a cleaner, a receptionist, a kitchen designer, a market researcher, a company director, a celebrity shopper and a victim support volunteer. She has an MA in Creative Writing. Under the name Caroline Bond, she is the author of six novels, including two Radio 2 Book Club picks, The Second Child, and, her most recently published book, The Day We Left. She lives in Leeds with her husband and one of her three children… the other two having grown up and escaped.