Well... wasn't this action packed all the way! We start in what appears to be a children's home. Seven children, all the same age, being looked after by a couple. One day, they are told to pack certain things, and get in the old school bus. They do just that. But when the bus stops... long story short, the children are then found drugged on the side of the highway. The remaining living children are taken into care and carefully questioned and evaluated and, once deemed acceptable, offered for adoption. We then follow Ed as he grows up with his new family. As he goes to school, and suffers there for his past, and eventually leaves home for college, where he "bumps into" a face from the past. A past that he has scant memory of but he knows that this person is trouble. So he returns home. But that is also no longer a safe haven. So he goes on the run...
Now... where the rest of the book was a tad on the indestructible, Captain Scarlett kind of theme, it was also quite cleverly done. Ramping up the suspense and peril, dragging the reader in with that alongside the slow reveals of more of Ed's origin story. Then quieter moments to progress the overall narrative before off we go again with the action. Sounds a bit disjointed in the way I have described but it is anything but in reality.
It probably helped that I took to Ed right from the off and rooted for him all the way through. How he grappled with his past. I especially liked that fact that he learned things at the same time as the reader, which also helped the connection. He's a young man, still working out who and what he is and then thrust into this dangerous world, of which he is clueless.
Yes, OK, a bit of belief suspension is called for, and some trust in the author, as things happen before they are explained so occasionally you have to hold onto some confusion for a while. But it did all come together at the end, mostly to my satisfaction.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Oneworld Publications for this eCopy to review

When I started Caller Unknown, I wasn’t prepared for how quickly it would pull me into its shadowy world. The story opens with a chilling premise: seven children found drugged and abandoned on a highway. They’re known as the Apostles—products of a sinister organisation with a terrifying endgame. I was immediately intrigued.

Ed Constance, is one of those children. Raised in isolation and stripped of his past, Ed is released into the world with only fragments of memory. Just as he begins college, an old adversary resurfaces, triggering a cascade of revelations about his identity and purpose. Ed’s instinct is to run—and I found myself running with him, page after page.

Johnson’s writing is taut and cinematic. The tension builds steadily, and the mystery surrounding Ed’s origins kept me guessing. I appreciated how the book balanced psychological depth with high-stakes action. Ed isn’t just a pawn—he’s a young man grappling with autonomy, fear, and the weight of a destiny he never asked for.

A compelling debut that blends conspiracy, identity, and survival into a thriller that’s hard to put down. If you enjoy stories where trust is a luxury and running might be the only option, Caller Unknown is worth reading.

Seven children are found under oddly sinister circumstances - drugged and left by the highway. But one is different from the others. Why?

The answer is even stranger than you think. This is a story packed with conspiracy theories, shadowy protagonists and one man desperate to escape the destiny planned for him. On the whole, the story is entertaining, although it does require a suspension of disbelief.