People Person

Wonderful. People Person is about 5 half-siblings (1 dad, 4 mothers) who, in response to a crisis, meet as adults and start shaping themselves into a family. It’s a warm novel, funny and full of emotional intelligence. The tone is light-hearted, even comic at times, but underneath there’s an undertow, a steady drumbeat reminding us of all the microaggressions black people experience on a daily basis - and that white people are mostly oblivious of. I cannot recommend it highly enough. * Marian Keyes *People Person is a triumph. I was so moved by this tender, often humorous, portrait of these five siblings, their burgeoning relationships and all their complexities. I loved every one of these beautifully rendered characters and I’m sure the world will too. I couldn’t put it down. * Caleb Azumah Nelson *People Person is fresh, funny and tender - Candice is the voice British fiction needs. * Pandora Sykes *People Person is a portrait of a family that is as poignant as it is hilarious. It had me belly-laughing, then picking up my jaw from the floor, then nodding in delighted agreement. Candice is a writer who is not only revealing modern Britain with each of her novels; she is defining it. Cyril Pennington is a character for the ages, but this story truly belongs to the children he never managed to parent. I loved it. * Sara Collins, author of The Confessions of Frannie Langton *I loved People Person. Candice is so gifted at pulling you in as a writer. The storyline is hugely arresting and I was gripped immediately. Candice is remarkably perceptive in the way she writes people; her characters that are so well drawn, and so believable. When I wasn’t reading People Person I was thinking about it and I had to finish it at the earliest opportunity. * Annie MacManus, author of Mother, Mother *People Person is more than just the title of this phenomenal second novel. It’s a statement of intent. It’s a declaration that when Candice Carty-Williams writes she captures the hearts and minds of readers everywhere. * Melissa Cummings-Quarry, Black Girls Book Club *The Pennington’s are a large, messy family and I got to know each member intimately. This is an expertly crafted novel about family secrets that kept me on my toes from start to finish. * Liv Little *A dark comedy full of zinging dialogue and all the consolations and complications of family. A treat. * Jesse Armstrong *As warm and infectious, as familiar and true as Queenie. A funny and touching study of sibling relationships. * Diana Evans *It’s a funny, heartwarming story of inheritance, kinship and influencer culture, told through one dysfunctional south London family, and as with Queenie, a maddening but loveable protagonist. Candice puts in print the word on the street; her eye is on a thriving Afro-Caribbean social and lyrical tradition. * Paul Mendez, author of Rainbow Milk *People Person is a fresh blend of brilliant wit, delicious drama, and all the ways family ties can be strained and strengthened. I fell head over heels for the Penningtons, quirks, flaws, and all. * Zakiya Dalila Harris, author of The Other Black Girl *People Person makes explicit the extremity of inheritance. It’s a funny, vibrant exploration of the failures that happen among family and it asks difficult questions about healing and what we owe blood. * Raven Leilani, author of Luster *Carty-Williams has written another big-hearted blockbuster that will make her many fans smile and ache. She paints a vivid picture of the pressures on young people in modern Britain and a poignant one of how a vulnerable outsider can, with the right network, find a sense of belonging and self-acceptance. * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Where Candice reigns is in writing humorous speech… poignant. * OBSERVER *Funny, tender, poignant…everything you’d expect from Carty-Williams * EVENING STANDARD *Delivering a great second novel after a stellar debut is a big ask, but Queenie author Carty-Williams has done just that. * HEAT, Book of the Week *Carty-Williams’s prose is snappy and propulsive, full of busy, telegenic set-pieces * GUARDIAN *

Candice Carty-Williams is a novelist, showrunner, culture writer, and author. Born and raised in south London, she has Jamaican heritage.

Her novels include the Sunday Times bestsellers Queenie and People Person, as well as the young adult novella Empress and Aniya. Queenie won the Book of the Year Award and was adapted for Channel 4 and Hulu in 2024.

Carty-Williams wrote and showran the original drama Champion, which aired on Netflix and BBC One in 2023 to critical acclaim, receiving five stars across the board.

In 2016, she created and launched the Guardian and 4th Estate 4thWrite Prize, the first inclusive initiative of its kind in book publishing. Carty-Williams is also a former Guardian Review books columnist and has written for numerous publications, including i-D, Vogue, The Face, and the Sunday Times.

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