My thanks to Michael Joseph Penguin Random House U.K. for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘A Sliver of Darkness’ by C.J. Tudor. It was originally published in September 2022. My apologies for the late feedback.

This was a collection of eleven chilling tales. I especially appreciated that Tudor wrote an overall introduction to the collection as well as short ones for each of the stories including background on what had inspired each and the circumstances under which she wrote them. I felt that she was very open in these providing insights into her writing process.

While I find that most short story collections are a mixed bag, I was impressed at the consistent high quality of these. A number had post apocalyptic themes including ‘End of the Liner’ and ‘Butterfly Island’.

Overall, I found ‘A Sliver of Darkness’ an excellent collection of Tudor’s short fiction that is sure to delight her existing readers as well as give new ones a taste of her unique style.

Absolutely loved this collection of short stories. Creepy and disturbing I would highly recommend this collection to any one that loves a scary story.

With every chapter a new layer of tension and deception, this suspenseful journey will keep you guessing and gasping until the shocking climax. Loved it

C J Tudor is one of my utter favourite authors! Everything I have read by her is brilliant and I can never put them down. This one has been no exception. Loved it

I enjoyed this collection of spooky short stories. I find that short stories are very 'hit or miss' they are either great, or terrible.
This collection fell on the side of great and I'd recommend this to someone who wanted to be chilled to their very core but doesn't want to read a long book

A scintillating and scary collection of short stories from the author of The Chalk Man. I raced through this book in one sitting and was utterly transfixed and equally spooked. Tudor proves once again that she is the master of horror genre. Can’t recommend this enough.

A sliver of darkness was a nice break, regardless of the title not all of the stories on this book are dark…

I would describe myself as a very dark character, I love murder and mayhem. But some of my favourite stories in this book was of the non dark variety.

Each of these stories tell a short tale, on a subject. They are all incredible, but why I loved most about this book compared to other short story collections I have read in the past is the introductions… each story comes with a short intro with a description of where the idea came from.

This wAs a fabulous easy read.

I find short story collections are either a hit or miss for me- this collection was definitely a hit!

A Sliver of Darkness contains 10 different horror short stories with all sorts of evil lurking in the corners.

I loved how incredibly unique every single story was. I’ve never read anything quite like the tales in this book. I also loved how amazingly vivid each story was, I could really picture what was happening and became so sucked in. Each short story is preceded by an introduction from Tudor. I absolutely loved this, it added such a personal feel to each story and really helped to set the scene.

There was only one story that was really able to scare me- and that was because my cat decided to attempt to meow, in the middle of the night, right when a high pitched noise was happening in the book. I jumped out of my skin! Although I wasn’t scared by each story, they were certainly creepy and I found myself completely hooked by every single one. This is an incredibly diverse short story collection, my biggest complaint was that I wanted more! I cannot wait to read more books by Tudor now, this is my favourite short story collection to date.

I recommend this book to fans of short story collections or light horror. I want to thank Netgalley, Michael Joseph and C.J. Tudor for sending me a copy of this book so I could give my personal thoughts.

I love Horror...I love short stories and I love CJ Tudor's books so A Sliver of Darkness was always going to be a fantastic read for me. A great mix of stories and I loved the introduction to them all which explained where the inspiration had come from. Highly recommend,

I don't normally go for short stories but I think CJ Tudor could write anything and I would still read it and enjoy it. Her style is magnetic, and her way of twisting simple scenarios and infusing them with darkness is remarkable.

This collection is delightfully creepy. I loved not only the stories but also (and probably especially) the little introduction each one of them had, explaining how the idea came by. A great insight to see how inspiration can come from everyday, common situations.

My favourite story was The lion at the gate, closely followed by Butterfly island – but that cliffhanger killed me! Hoping to see this last story maybe developed into a novella.

Definitely a book I recommend if you enjoy horror but are not in the mood for a big book.

Thank you NetGallery and Penguin Random House for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

NetGalley and Michael Joseph (Penguin UK) provided me with an ARC copy of this collection of short stories, which I freely chose to review.
Introduction
I have been reading C. J. Tudor’s novels since she published her first one, and I always look forward to her new work. Her plots and characters are unfailingly gripping; she is one of these authors who is happy to interact with followers and reviewers, and she is genuinely interested in what her readers have to say. I always enjoy reading authors’ notes and their introductions, and I found this one particularly moving. Those of us who have tried to write fiction or have thought about creating stories understand how hard the process can be, and how not everything one tries works out, and here Tudor candidly explains how this collection of short stories came into being. However much you’re looking forward to the tales, I’d recommend reading this introduction, before or after the stories, as it adds to the experience. Oh, and each individual story has its own introduction, and that means that this collection feels, at times, as if we were having a conversation with the writer. And I really liked that aspect of it.
Stories:
End of the Liner After a few words from the author, which help put the story into perspective, comes a story about a possible dystopian future, where most of the population and civilisation as we know it has fallen prey to some sort of disaster, and the survivors (or the majority of them, at least) spend their lives in cruise ships/ ocean liners, never setting foot on land, clinging on to new traditions, rules, and beliefs, and living an “ordered” life. The story can work as an allegory about controlling and authoritarian political regimes, but it also questions the stories we tell ourselves, how our perspectives and expectations change over time, the power of rumours, conspiracies, and misdirection, and as it is to be expected from this author, also includes a touch of mystery.
The Block The author introduces this story by explaining that she had been working on a YA story, and she finally decided that it didn’t need to be a novel, and it would make quite a good short story instead. It definitely has the YA vibe (young characters, a newcomer to the city, a boy trying to fit in within a group, a mysterious building, a bit of a dare...). It has something of the Gothic mansion story but in a derelict and inner-city setting, and those who enjoy monster or creature horror stories will enjoy this one. I particularly liked the members of the gang, the interaction between the characters, and the background story briefly hinted at. And the setting is quite something as well. It has touches of humour together with the infestation/monster horror, and it reminded me of the movie Attack the Block (though the story is quite different) and of Broken Shells by Michael Patrick Hicks.
Runaway Blues The main character, who tells us the story of ‘The Fat Man’ (and no, he isn’t really fat), is suffering from Alzheimer’s, so we wonder if we have to question his memories. The narrator’s unreliability, his voice, reflections on the nature of life, and sense of humour contribute to making this a cracking story, as do the noirish atmosphere, the blues music in the background, several twists, and the odd surprise as well. It might remind those who love horror (books and movies) of one or two things, but the winning combination of plot, character, and writing style makes it a perfect gem.
The Completion Any reader who has had a bad experience with a estate agent, selling or buying a house (or both!) will enjoy this one. And anybody who likes the sound of an end-of-the-world/zombie/pandemic story with a Gothic mansion thrown in, and a protagonist straight out of Glengarry Glen Rose, but with not a single redeeming quality, will have fun with this one. Curiously, I had just read a post about the importance of happy endings before I finished reading the story, and I wasn’t totally in agreement, as I felt it depends on the genre of the story, but this one made me think that perhaps the issues is not how happy or unhappy is the ending, but from which perspective we evaluate said happiness.
The Lion at the Gate I loved this one. Again, one of the strong points is the voice of the main character, a young boy with a complicated and traumatic background, and getting an insight into how his mind works (this is a first-person narration ) makes for a pretty scary and effective read. A tale of a group of friends who have an eerie encounter with unexpected consequences. Fabulous.
Gloria Once more, the author’s introductory note gives readers an insight into the process of creation of this story. Gloria is a character that appeared first in The Taking of Annie Thorne, and one I loved, so I was very happy to hear from her again. She also meets a character from another one of Tudor’s novels, The Other People, well, two characters from that novel, but she only interacts meaningfully with one. The author explains that she feels her novels all take place within the same universe, and that could result in some pretty interesting stories in the future. For those who haven’t read either of those novels, this is a story of quiet menace, internalised dialogue, strange interactions, the price of survival and its aftermath, and people who spend their lives in hiding or simply falling through the cracks, pretending to be whomever is more convenient at any given time, and never settling for what most of us would think is a “normal” life. The ending is left to one’s interpretation, and I liked it that way. I don’t think it is necessary to have read either of the two novels to enjoy this story, but if you have, it will probably leave you wondering even more.
I’m not Ted The author describes it as ‘short and sweet’, and I won’t take issue with that. It probably depends on how you define ‘sweet’. It has some dark undertones, but a lot is left open to the reader’s imagination. Once more, don’t miss the introduction. Those who write will appreciate it.
Final Course A story with touches of Pitch Black; reminiscent of classic mysteries where a group of people is invited to a mansion for some hidden motive; especially recommended to those who love the presence of eerie children in horror stories; and, of course, it includes quite a twist (or two). Oh, and although the story is told in the third person, you should remain vigilant. I’m sure you won’t be surprised if I tell you that things aren’t exactly what they seem.
The Copy Shop In her introduction, the author describes this story thus: 'a tale of a broken vase, a stale marriage, and a conundrum: can a copy ever be as good as the original?’ I’ll only add that it is pretty short, funny, and amusing, and it is likely to make everybody smile and wonder, would I?
Dust A charming hotel, dust, a holiday, a woman getting over a breakup... All pretty innocuous, wouldn’t you say? But memory can play tricks on us, especially when we refuse to remember, and ghosts won’t stay put. I found this story pretty disturbing and chilling.
Butterfly Island The author explains the autobiographical origin of this story (the initial seed of inspiration for many of these stories comes from the author’s life), and she also tells us it is one of her favourites, and it is easy to see why. I loved the “voice” of the unnamed protagonist, who has a very dark and dry sense of humour, and the situation has all the makings of a terrific horror novel. The author hints at the possibility of writing a novella based on it at some point, and I hope she does, because it is a fabulous read, and it is left wide open. (If you hate cliffhangers though, well...)
It is difficult to summarise this collection, because the stories spread across a variety of moods and genres, some truly scary, others more on the “what-if/Twilight Zone” territory, and some amusing little sketches, told from a variety of points of view, with a fair share of unreliable narrators, where things are often not at all what they seem. If there is one thing all of them have in common is that they are a fabulous read, the writing is solid and always at the service of the story, so people concerned about strange formats or getting lost with changes in time-lines or points of view don’t need to worry: although some are left open to the readers’ imaginations, they mostly follow a classic narrative pattern, with a beginning, a middle, and an ending, not always a reassuring one, as you might expect. Ah, and, no matter how scary they might be, there is always wit and a sense of humour (somewhat dark at times) hovering under the surface.
From the introductions, I gather that a couple of the stories have featured in previous collections, and although I hadn’t come across them before, people who often read short-story collections, especially in the horror genre, might want to check the titles and see if they are familiar with the content. As for warnings, some of the stories would be suitable for almost anyone, but there are some that feature violence, gore, and other subjects that might be upsetting, so a degree of caution is recommended.
I loved this collection, and I recommend it to anyone who loves horror, twisted, and wildly imaginative tales. If you love to read stories that make you feel uneasy and/or truly scared, you must give it a go. If you dare.

I enjoy reading books by this author but somehow I hadn’t realised it was all short stories. That’s what happens when you choose a book solely based on the author alone.
Not the kind of book I normally read. Prefer full stories. Each story was prefaced by a description of why they were written. I enjoyed some of them . Others I struggled to finish them.

This is not one whole story, but a collection of short stories written by the same author. Some of them are quite strongly horror, others just plain creepy.
I enjoyed them.

This is my second read by Tudor. Rating a collection of short stories is tricky, because it's unlikely that you'll enjoy every single one of them. That being said, I've included brief summaries of how I personally found each short story.

End of the Liner - This story was fine, but pretty predictable. It went exactly how I was expecting it to. I was more curious about what re-education entailed.

The Block - CW: self-harm. "Shannon had blonde hair and was kind of pretty. She also had a fat cousin called Courtney who wasn’t." I read this bit and was immediately grossed out, because being fat doesn't make you not pretty. Other than that, this story was fine.

Runaway Blues - I liked this one. A singer with a gorgeous voice and a beautiful dancer in love. But what happens when the singer loses his voice? People do evil things in the name of love.

The Completion - I wanted the sleazeball real estate agent to get the comeuppance he deserved. The further I get into this book, the less I think short stories are for me.

The Lion at the Gate - my favourite story in this collection, about a piece of graffiti that has a mind of it's own.

Gloria - This story revisits a couple of characters from two of Tudor's previous books. I quite liked reading about Alice again, but I haven't read the book Gloria was in, so this didn't hold much weight for me.

I'm Not Ted - this one was very short, and kinda interesting.

Final Course - I wasn't expecting the end of this one. Decent story, reminded me ever so slightly of the quiet place, but with darkness.

The Copy Shop - what would you copy if a shop could produce a copy better than the original?

Dust - this one was fine, but I saw the twist coming.

Butterfly Island - another dystopian story. I liked it, and would be interested to read more about this one.

I liked the horror elements sprinkled throughout the stories in this book, though I can't say I'll be losing sleep over any of them. I would definitely be interested if Tudor does write a novella version of Butterfly Island.

A collection of short stories based on the creepy and weird. Each story is provided with an brief introduction and are easy to read. Some stories were more enjoyable than others.

If you've been here before you'll know I'm not a fan of short stories. And yet.. I keep trying! They always take me ages to get around to and forever to finish, but who can say no to C J Tudor? So here I am, trying again.

What I loved most about A Sliver Of Darkness was the forewords and intro. Probably an odd thing to focus on, but reading Tudor opening up about herself and her experience through the last few years of turmoil we've all endured was a beautiful aspect of the book.

I struggle to invest in short stories because i need more character development, but with this collection I got to invest in the author herself, which was even better. Discovering what motivated and inspired Tudor to write these stories made me instantly intrigued to read them, so yes, I finally found a collection I enjoy!

Tudor does us right on the endings in this collection. Open, ambiguous or sudden ends are exactly what I want to see, especially so in a horror collection- which of course I chose to read over Halloween.

The length and pacing of the tales was perfect every time, leaving me content that I'd gotten a full reading experience from each one.
I'll not delve into them individually as it's too easy to spoil a short story, instead if you're a fan of social horror, dystopia or creature features I recommend you snap this up!

I'm not a fan of short stories but I'm a huge fan of CJ Tudor so I wasn't really sure how this would go. I did struggle with the shortness of the stories and not having much time for the tension to build. Tudor has her usual mix of fantastic characters and hints of supernatural which worked perfectly in this for an October read. She also provides an introduction to each story letting you know what her thinking was when she started it and where her inspiration came from. Some stories I loved more than others; I felt the first story was very strong, the story set in the tower block gave me the chills and the one with the father and daughter I thought was particularly good. We saw the return of Gloria in her own short story which I didn't love as much as I'd hoped to,

I absolutely love this author. I know that I am guaranteed to get a great read and this has been no different.
This is a book I have devoured in one sitting.

A Sliver of Darkness is C.J. Tudor’s inaugural short story collection. I’ve always said that short story collections are always going to be difficult to rate. You’re not going to love every single story, but if at least a few resonate within you, then it’s a win. I’ve not had the opportunity to read Tudor’s work previously, I know, please don’t come for me! I will be changing that pronto. Each story was complex and atmospheric, and it didn’t take much for me to envisage myself in the protagonist’s shoes, it’s safe to say every story was fully immersive.

A Sliver of Darkness feels a little like a treasure map dug up from a forgotten time. You need to blow the dust to discover stories that haven’t been heard in many years. It’s a fun journey traveling between each, discovering new characters, new stories, and twisted endings to be shocked by.

End of the Liner – A 75-year-old woman, Leila is part of the community that lives their entire life on a cruise liner. The world as they know it is over and now, they must live by a new set of rules. I mean there are harder things to do than drinking cosmos, swimming, and dancing each day, it beats the weekly grocery shop any day. Leila has lost everything – her daughter and her husband and now she is facing retirement, which isn’t as pleasant as it sounds.

The Block – This story scared the living crap out of me. There are quite a few derelict blocks of flats where I live and I completely imagined sneaking around until I heard those strange noises, I would be out of there quicker than a Cheetah chasing a Gazelle.

Runaway Blues – This was a story that Tudor dedicated to Stephen King, and it was very kingesque, especially in his Bachman era. Imagine the scene – A man with the most soulful, baritone singing voice, a stunning dancer who loves him beyond measure. But what would happen if he lost his voice?

The Completion – This was a personal favourite for me. A horrible estate agent gets his comeuppance. He’s trying to bag the sale of the most exclusive property in the town. The owner however seems to enjoy playing games with the estate agents. This agent is determined to bag it but just how far is he prepared to go?

The Lion at the Gate – A spray-painted lion on a fence seems to have a mind of its own.

Gloria – A returning character who is paid handsomely to get rid of dead bodies. She’s a haunted woman who has had to do a lot to survive. A chance encounter with a little girl leaves her willing to put her neck out.

I’m not Ted – Ted is convinced that he isn’t in fact Ted. He’s in the elevation department and he doesn’t know why or what it is. This one made me laugh a lot.

Final Course – The longest story in the collection. An end of the world dinner party story. I loved this one. Tom is invited to a big manor house to meet up with the infamous five from his university days. This is a place to provide a haven to this select few. Tom brings his blind daughter with him, but why does she cause such worry in the other guests?

The Copy Shop – Life can become very mundane as we age. An aging cat, a cantankerous husband, and a woman that wishes the past was still very much the present.

Dust – Villa de las Almas Perdidas in Gran Canaria is the place that Olivia has chosen to holiday to. The dust chokes everything and gets into every skin crease. But why is she there?

Butterfly Island – another dystopian backdrop. A butterfly sanctuary, murder, and a discovery in a gorge. Great ending.

I’m a big fan of short story collections and I loved the horror elements sprinkled throughout each story. I look forward to picking up C.J. Tudor’s next release.

I’m already a fan of Tudor’s writing and I absolutely love a creepy tale, so a book jammed packed with 11 of them was too hard to resist!

These are perfect to delve into on a dark and stormy evening. They range from creepy, to horrifying and even dystopian. Each one has something very different to offer, but each is a well crafted tale that brings a shiver to the spine. Most have a delicious twist at the end too.

It’s hard to pick a favourite but a stand out for me was The Lion at the Gate, about a piece of graffiti that may have a life of its own. I loved the originality of this one and the eerie feeling it left me with. As a Nottingham lass, I also loved that the introduction tells how it was inspired by a road I regularly drive along.

If you’re after a creepy collection for spooky season, this is a must!