Review: A Sliver of Darkness by C.J. Tudor

A Sliver of Darkness by C.J. Tudor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was provided an ARC of this collection via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.  

I really enjoyed this collection.  I've read and enjoyed a few of Tudor's novels previously and I love horror/thriller short stories.  There are some really great stories in here, while I didn't love all of them there isn't a bad one in the bunch.  The Block, Runaway Blues, The Completion, I'm Not Ted, Gloria, and Final Course were favorites in the collection.  These are perfect for when you only have a few minutes before bed or in between responsibilities but you still want to get some reading in.  I loved that the author gave an introduction to each short.  I always wonder what inspires an author to write a twisted tale and Tudor gives us some insight into what inspired her to write each of these.

If you are a fan of horror or thrillers or a fan or Tudor's work in genera I'd highly recommend this collection.  Nothing was overly gruesome or graphic in my opinion.  Each of the stories was interesting and held my interest.  I really enjoyed the collection as a whole and look forward to reading more by the author in the future!

View all my reviews

Review: The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor

The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I feel like I need to read this again, I’m still not sure what happened. That ending had my head spinning!

This follows Eddie and his group of friends alternating between events that occurred in 2016 and 1986. In 1986, Eddie and his friends are enjoying their summer vacation or holiday because this is set in England. One evening they head to the fair (aka carnival), and they witness one of the rides break and careen into a local teenage girl. Eddie and the new teacher in town help rescue her, and traumatic experience leaves a lasting impression on Eddie. While the summer drags on, Eddie and his friends devise a code to let each other know where to meet in town, of course it is made out of little chalk men. When they find a dead body in the woods one day when they are out playing, and it just happens to be surrounded by drawings of little chalk men, all suspicions point to one man in town who has earns the name of “The Chalk Man”. Now this is not the only harrowing even that happens this summer, each of the members of the group suffers some sort of traumatic even that changes them and their friendships with the others.

In 2016, Ed and his friends have a strained relationship because of things that have happened over time. They are all haunted and broken by the events that occurred in 1986 in some way. When they all receive chalk men drawings in the mail, the past is brought to the present and many secrets are revealed.

This was a pretty good thriller. It kept me engaged and turning the pages to find out what happened. Tudor creates a pretty creepy atmosphere and I was never quite sure what was going on. I like that in a thriller. As I stated earlier, I feel like I need to reread this because I feel like I missed something that was right in front of me the whole time. I enjoyed this and felt that the twists and turns kept me guessing. I’ll definitely be checking out more books by C.J. Tudor.


View all my reviews