I remember watching a movie called “30 Days of Night” which was set in like an Arctic tundra and I remember thinking “I wish there was a book like that”. The Gathering gave me that same vibe with the Alaskan wilderness and vampires….I really enjoyed this book a lot. The ending was a tad bit confusing, but overall I liked it a lot.

Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for an advance copy of The Gathering. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely given.
C.J. Tudor never disappoints. Her latest work is a fresh take on vampires. Set in Alaska, the author brings to life the sense of cold and isolation that comes when darkness is a large part of the day. Young people in the town have been killed and it is up to a detective who specializes in vampires to find out if one of the local colony is the killer. Or, is someone framing them, and why?

**Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House - Ballantine, and C.J. Tudor for an ARC of this book!**

"Dash her on the paving stones
It may break your heart to break her bones
But someone's got to do the culling of the fold" - Culling of the Fold, The Decemberists

It may be time for just such a cull...and the residents of the tiny isolated town of Deadhart Alaska are determined to make that decision. It's been many years since they've had a resurgence of vampyrs...but the fear is real, and after a teen boy is murdered, they call in the Authority on Vampyr Killings: Detective Barbara Adkins. She's seen her share of grisly murders, and when she arrives in Alaska, the evidence at first seems pretty clear cut: the teenage boy's body has been drained of blood and his throat has been violently ripped out. Although it's been several years since vampyrs have proven a threat in the area, the residents of Deadhart are VERY aware that they lurk close by...a Colony, in hiding.

But when Barbara takes a closer look at the video footage, she discovers that the murder looks a bit TOO neat...and several clues point to the possibility that the video footage was staged...and someone is out to FRAME the vampyrs to launch the cull, regardless of the ramifications for the town. Barbara reaches out to former police officer, Sheriff Jenson Tucker, who used to be very involved at keeping the Colony at bay, but has been living the hermit life in recent years after being ostracized by the citizens of Deadhart. Despite his recent years of solitude, he has plenty of knowledge about the secrets of Deadhart and is still dedicated to protecting and serving his town and working through the mystery with Barbara. But as Barbara quickly discovers, the folk of Deadhart don't take kindly to strangers...and when more bodies start piling up, it's clear that Barbara has ruffled the wrong feathers (or WINGS, perhaps!) Can she, along with Tucker, discover if and when the vampyrs are set to make their next move and proceed with the cull...or is this all an elaborate ruse to disguise an even DEADLIER enemy?

After my encounter with the Burning Girls (which led me to an EASY 5 star review) and also being thoroughly entertained by the creepy anthology of stories that was A Sliver of Darkness, to say I sped to add EVERY Tudor book to my TBR is an understatement. When I heard her latest book was about VAMPIRES, I was even more excited. What started as a love borne from R.L. Stine's Goodnight Kiss books back in my youth developed over time (okay, yes Twilight did have something to do with that too...it is what it is!) and vamps have long been my favorite mythical creatures, so I was excited BEYOND belief to jump into this book!

All of this excitement, however, MAY have caused me to overlook a couple of things...namely, that this read is far more of a police procedural than it is anything else...and unfortunately, police procedurals are not normally my cup of tea. That is not to say this book gets too far into the weeds, because it doesn't delve into super forensic, scientific, wordier-than-it-needs-to-be blather that often makes police procedurals a dull experience for me. The main characters are also competent in general, which was a HUGE relief: no armchair detectives here, and it was nice to have a team that worked well together rather than one bumbling around and missing the obvious while you the reader scream out loud at the book.

Despite the different 'feel' of this read vs. my previous Tudor reads, there is plenty of 'signature Tudor' to be found here, from a chilling atmosphere (if you don't feel like you NEED a blanket while reading about the all of the snow and cold, you're better than I am!) to a strong female lead who takes no guff (yes, Rev. Jack Brooks, I was thinking of you!) and I felt right at home in many respects reading this one. The mystery aside, there is plenty of social commentary woven slyly in, from what it means to be an outsider to the dangers of judging a whole group based on the actions of one or two misguided individuals (sound familiar?) and the disturbing role that preconceived notions can play in society and how we govern in general. I found this especially interesting as Tudor is British and yet has such a clear and interesting viewpoint on how politics and prejudice plays out in different countries and how various groups handle differences in either a more equitable or less equitable way, and also just how dangerous it can be to ignore the disparate treatment entirely. "Don't judge a man until you've walked a mile in his shoes" certainly fits the bill here. (Although in this case, maybe it's don't judge a vampyr...but I'll leave that for you to find out!)

Another quibble with this particular story was the plethora of characters and just the pacing in general. Although the chapters were short, there was A LOT of information presented at times and also plenty of different characters (both vampyr and human) to keep track of, and at times I felt like we were bouncing all over the place a lot...and this subsequently slowed the pace down for me. With so much history and backstory to get through (especially in regards to the Colony and their past) it almost felt like Tudor could have written ANOTHER book (or a supplementary book) to help elucidate some of the more complex plot threads and help expand on the past. There is also a mysterious (unnamed) captive for much of the story who also tells you THEIR story, and it just felt like a LOT to keep top of mind at once. By the end, Tudor DOES deliver a couple of fun twists, and writes an enticing, leading epilogue, so that was all the encouragement I needed to bump up my rating...AND to possibly strap in for a TRUE part two in a sequel!

And in the end, although this book is a little less on the scary and gory side of the street, Tudor DID play on my biggest fear. While being trapped near a colony of vampyrs is bad...being trapped near a colony of vampyrs in SNOW?

Color me TERRIFIED!

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 for solid writing

I am so glad vampires are making a comeback! Especially since authors seem to be making their own unique, fresh twists on the genre. Case in point, The Gathering. This isn't a formulaic vampire book; in fact I'd say it is the opposite. It's really an atmospheric mystery-thriller that just so happens to take place in a world that vampires inhabit. Now, in this book, they are referred to as "vampyrs". Their particular habits were quite intriguing, and the author did a tremendous job of comparing the hate the vampyrs encountered with other disgusting brands of hate in our society. Because of this, the story felt extra relevant.

Anyway, we meet Barbara, a detective who specializes in vampyr shenanigans, who has just been assigned to a case in small town Alaska. There is a vampyr colony nearby, and a teenager has been found murdered, suspected to be from vampyrs from the townspeople. The town does not like that a vampyr colony lives close to its borders, and is looking for any reason to literally destroy them- even if they may have had nothing at all to do with the murder. So, Barbara has her hands full: a town full of folks who have already made up their mind on guilt, an isolated locale with few resources, and a lot of people trying to hold onto a lot of secrets.

This story was non-stop, and I devoured it. There were so many times I was completely mind-blown by the twists and secrets that unfurled, so obviously I could not put the book down. My only (very minor) qualm was that I may have liked a little more character development, as it sometimes felt like a bit of an afterthought, but still. The story and the world were incredible, and the last thing I noted in my Kindle when I finished was "a series, mayhaps?", because although it is not listed as a series, it very much ended in a way that leant itself to be one. And if so, I am 100% here for it!

Bottom Line: Vampire-meets-detective-meets-Alaska? Yes please!

I am so thankful and so happy to have been able to get this advanced copy.
And this was one of the best thrillers (if not the best) that I've read this year so far. I felt so immersed in the story and the setting. The writing was amazing, the progression of the plot worked perfectly for me and the characters felt at the same time real and supernatural (as it should).
One extra thing was that CJ Tudor was able to make me embrace the idea of vampires being real and how it gets inserted in our society. I had just finished a book with no supernatural aspects where the actions of most of its characters felt so unnatural and unbelievable that this one was doubly gratifying.

There were a few moments where the quotation marks were missing or wrong, but that was all. And I believe it's already fixed.

Thank you to Ballantine Books for the free ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review! This is out now!

Detective Barbara Atkins, and expert in Vampyr killings, is sent to the tiny rural town of Deadhart, Alaska to investigate angrily murder of a teenage boy. Tensions in the town are already high as The Colony of vampyrs has recently moved back to the area after being gone for 25 years - when another teenage boy was found slain and the town killed three vampyrs as retribution. But the case is anything but cut and dry, and the more Barbara digs in, the more things don’t add up and with a winter storm rolling in, her time to solve the case is running out before the situation in the town spins out of control.

@jordys.book.club made me do it and he wasn’t wrong when he said this was like True Detective meets True Blood. I loved the pace of it, the tension is built up throughout but did not make it feel like a “slow burn” by any means. My ONLY qualm - why the hell were they keeping dead bodies in a restaurant freezer when it’s so cold outside they could have kept them in a shed?! But I digress, overall this was a solid thriller/horror and I liked the open ending - I would def read a sequel with Barb solving more vampyr crimes!

In a small rural Alaskan town, the colony of vampyrs (vampire) and regular townspeople have an uneasy truce of sorts. The colony live deep in the woods outside of town and must leave the townspeople alone or risk officials authorizing a cull of their colony.

But a boy is found dead, apparently from a vicious vampyr attack. Barbara, the lead detective, and a vampyr expert, arrives to investigate if it was indeed a vampyr attack and authorize a cull of the colony of vsmpyrs. As she works the investigation, she suspects something even more sinister is afoot.

I loved Barbara. She’s in her 50’s a bit out of shape, loves food (but no reindeer please), and is intelligent, empathetic, and unafraid to stand up for that’s right.

I think the author did a great job of including vampires (vampyrs) in her story without making it into a traditional horror book. These are not the vampires we know from Dracula type stories. Instead they look and act just as normal people do. Except of course they need to drink blood and they live hundreds of years (Ha!)

This story, at its heart , is about discrimination and hatred and two opposing viewpoints: those who think the only good vampyr is a dead vampyr vs those who have empathy for the vampyrs and are content to let the them live in peace. There are laws that protect the vampyrs but that doesn’t stop the crimes against them.

C.J. Tudor is one of my favorite authors and gets props for writing such a unique murder mystery/police procedural with a side helping of horror lite that felt strangely believable.

Horror

Vampires and humans living together - total anarchy!

Barbara Atkins travels to Deadhart, Alaska to investigate the murder of a young man. The perpetrator is possibly a vampire and if Barbara can confirm that, she can order a cull. A cull would be a complete annihilation of the group of vampires that have settled in that area. When she first arrives the circumstances around the teen's death don't add up. Was the murder staged? If so, what are the motivations? Who wants to incite a cull? It turns out there are a lot of possibilities. As Barbara investigates more people die and more bodies get stacked up in the local kitchen freezer.

This story was a very interesting take on a What If? type scenario. It plays out like a typical detective novel, but with mystical creatures with extraordinary capabilities. I liked all of those aspects of the novel, but as the story progressed, I sometimes had problems telling the characters apart. This led to some of my dislike for the ending. There is a lot happening and I was unsure which character was which. I also didn't like some of the endlines of the characters. All in all, though, this was another successful novel. It wasn't my favorite of Tudor's books, but she is still a must-read author in this genre.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC of this novel.

DNF @20%

I forgot that I said I wasn't going to read anymore of C.J. Tudor's books after The Drift. So I acknowledge that this is my fault. I think there is a way to casually put social issues into a book and I think that important topics should be discussed in books. This author doesn't know how to do that. With this book in particular, she decided to make indigenous people into vampires. And the fatphobia in her books continues to persist. With that being said, I do understand why people might love her books, they just aren't for me and I need to remember that.

This book was amazing! It has murder, a detective, more murders, a cold case and more murders. Also vampires. Kind of Karen slaughter vibes in a weird way maybe. I went in blind - other than knowing it was set inAlaska and had vampires. I recommend doing the same. So much fun.

When a young boy is found dead and exsanguinated in the old tiny mining town of Deadhart, Alaska, the community assumes it is a “colony killing”—a killing done by one of the vampires living in the colony close to town. When Detective Barbara Atkins, a member of the Forensic Vampyr Anthropology department, shows up to investigate what happened, she uncovers the town’s dark past and that this is not the first killing like this that has happened in the small town. But will she be able to learn the truth before the town seeks vengeance on the colony?

This was a really fun vampire lore book. First, the atmosphere was perfect. An old tiny snowy mining town with a history was incredibly atmospheric. It was almost a character itself. The vampire lore, history, and world in this book was also incredibly interesting and created a sort of social justice feel to the book as there were some people who believe that “vampyrs” are an abused minority population that are just as human as everyone else and need to be protected, while others have an extreme prejudice toward them including slurs, servitude, and violence. With all of that in the background, this is also a cool police procedural/who dunnit with a great ending. There were some unforgettable and unique characters in this as well. I would absolutely read another book in this “universe” and really enjoyed the way the existence of vampires is portrayed here. If you are a fan of who dunnits or vampires, I highly recommend this book. The level of gore is also on the more mild end for people who don’t enjoy that as much, or are horror beginners.

C.J. Tudor has really been hitting it out of the park for me. The Burning Girls is one of my favorite thrillers of all time. While vampire centric stories can be hit or miss for me, I was immediately engaged in The Gathering. The vampire angle of this story was very unique and executed perfectly. The Alaska vibes of this story was immaculate (it reminded me of the vibes we got from the newest True Detective season). I was interested in the underlying murder mystery, but that almost became secondary to the dynamics of the whole town and everyone's view of and attitude towards vampires. The resolutions to the mysteries surprised me, I enjoyed the characters, I enjoyed the setting. Overall, this was a great thriller/mystery.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publishers for the Arc. I LOVED this book, love love love. It was fun to read, and was not the gruesome, bloody mess I thought it would be. I've read a few of Tudor's books before and found them just a little too scary for me, so I assumed this would be another one for my DNF shelf. It definitely was not! If you're not into vampires, you probably wont dig this. I haven't read a vamp book in years, and purposely don't because most are stupid or too bloody. This wasn't super heavy on the grossness of vampires, so don't worry about that, but they do play a large role in the book (duh).

I do want to note, that my review is for the entire book EXCEPT for the last 20 pages. I wish they could have fixed the ending before they released the book, because I feel like many will find the ending unsatisfying and abrupt. I was so mad when I finally finished the book that I had to put off writing a review because I knew it would be a 1* review just based on the ending.

I want to thank NetGalley and Ballentine Books for this e-arc. Without them, this review would not be possible.

Stories involving vampires have never really been my main go-to for horror. So, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew that I loved every book I read by C.J. Tudor. That is why I requested this title for review. That is also why I am glad I did. Let’s dive in!

The Gathering takes place in an alternate reality where vampires and humans coexist. In an excellent location like Alaska and a small town with a population of 876, nearly all the boxes are checked for the foundation of a great horror story.

Our small town, Deadhart, has its fair share of secrets—secrets that will come to the surface as our protagonist, Detective Barbara Atkins, investigates the murder of a young boy named Marcus Andrews. Together with former Sheriff Jenson Tucker, the investigation gets underway, and every time you think you've figured out where the clues are leading, you’re wrong.

The townspeople of Deadhart are convinced the murderer is from a shunned sect of vampires. Are they right? Well, you will have to read the book to find out. This was a thoroughly entertaining read, and I will recommend it to others. It’s a solid five stars.

I should have noticed that this book was about vampires with the giant fangs on the cover but I had no idea until I started the first page. I remember enjoying The Chalk Man but I just couldn't get into this. The way the author kept describing the female main character's weight just rubbed me the wrong way.

Maybe I'll give this another try one day, see if after some reflection time I like it more.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review.

I feel like l'm late to the @cjtudorauthor party, having just started reading her books last year, but either way l'm happy to be here!! Her books are so unique and so atmospheric. I fell in love with the cover and synopsis of this book and knew I had to read it! I think 2024 is going to be the year of vampires and I am here for it!! I love being thrown into these dark worlds that are clearly fiction, but I feel like I can envision it all as if it were happening in real life! The characters are so perfectly developed, during what I felt like was a slow start, but also necessary to really thrust the reader into the story. I thought the execution of the story was spot on, building up to the reveal and big twist! At times I wasn't sure who I was rooting for and who I was rooting against! I love when an author makes you question yourself!
While the book centers on vampires, I think it really dives into diversity and how society shuns those who are different and not living within society norms. I took a lot away from this book and was so happy Tudor ventured into this territory! I can't wait to see what she comes out with next!

I am such a fan of CJ Tudor’s writing. And a vampire book? Say less. I absolutely adored this book. The premise was solid and set up perfectly for a series. I loved the development of the story and the shocking reveals/ twists throughout. It had the perfect amount of suspense, horror, and drama. One of the best vampire books I’ve ever read.

4.25 stars!

This was...SO good??? CJ Tudor is one of my favorite authors, and I like her even more after this novel because of how she's combining the thriller, horror, and dystopian genres. I thought it was so intriguing to take this isolated town and mix in not only the tension of murder, but the conflict of vampires living adjacent to a small town.

My only letdown was that I didn't really feel like anything was too too surprising. I think Tudor built such an interesting world with really great lore and that's what carried the novel and had me on the edge of my seat, but I wish the mystery portion had been able to do that. That being said, I keep thinking about how great this book is that I might need to reread it again this winter and I need her to keep writing things that blends genres.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I didnt realize I needed a Whoddunit, True Crime-Serial Killer, Vampyr Mash-up!
The banter, inner diagloue and real world themes (prejudices, racism, etc) were executed perfectly and without info dumping.
This was a ridiculously bingeable read.
Time to hit Tudor's backlist!

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the eARC!

I love that C.J. Tudor has been switching from straight mystery/thriller into a mix with horror. Her last book, The Drift, had 'whistlers' (zombies) and now we have vampyrs. They're not supernatural creatures but they are super dangerous. Barbara (the detective) is supposed to decide if a Cull to the vampyr Colony is appropriate. She takes her work very seriously and has to keep fending off the cries of 'we want a cull' from all directions - tavern owner, suspicious Reverend, creepy old hunter guys. I would not want to be in her shoes but I definitely enjoyed reading it.

I've read all of Tudor's books and would rank them from most enjoyable as: The Other People, The Gathering, The Drift, The Burning Girls, The Chalk Man, The Hiding Place, and A Sliver of Darkness. I look forward to more.