Presenting a compilation of short stories penned by C.J. Tudor, this diverse collection spans a wide spectrum of narratives, encompassing apocalyptic scenarios, eerie encounters with otherworldly creatures, and enigmatic characters whose true natures remain shrouded in mystery. These stories are succinct and well-paced, ensuring readers a brisk journey through their imaginative landscapes.

Many of these captivating tales were conceived during the challenging days of the pandemic, infusing them with a sense of dystopia and impending doom. Within these pages, readers will encounter a medley of spine-tingling and chilling themes, encompassing elements of horror, the demented, the ominous and unsettling, the peculiar, and, occasionally, infused with the darkest undercurrents of humour.

In sum, if you have an inclination toward short stories interwoven with elements of horror that are bound to send shivers down your spine, this collection is poised to fulfil your expectations.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

As is often the way when I experience an episode of anxiety and stress, I lose the concentration needed to read - A hobby I love and enjoy, temporarily eludes Me. Even good old Uncle King and his masterpiece "Fairy Tale" failed to rescue me from my recent bout and has sat, barely started, on the shelf. I have practiced patience, dipping into books and accepting the resistance, waiting for this to pass - And have been rewarded and rescued this Christmas with this genuinely incredible collection of macabre tales by the excellent CJ Tudor! The book itself feels like velvet and is a delight to handle, while the tales inside are like meeting up with familiar if slightly demented, old friends - Only in the most disturbing, nightmarish landscapes! I cannot recommend this more passionately.

Each of these stories was very unique and well written!! I have come to expect a certain level of awesomeness when it comes to C.J. Tudor’s writing and this does not disappoint. I was pulled in every single time and thought each tale was its own universe.

I don’t actually normally like short stories, so I feel like it’s saying a lot that I like this collection. There is certainly a story for everyone in this set and I found that they were all my type of story. Intriguing, more than entertaining, and I couldn’t guess the ending.

I recommend this collection to those who enjoy short stories that are creepy, uncanny, and entertaining as hell. Tudor knows how to write a tale, whether it be a long or short one.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Verdict: Eleven spine-chilling tales ranging from a cruise ship at the end of the world to an abandoned building that appears out of nowhere to a case of mistaken identity. There’s a brilliantly creepy story for everyone here.
Tudor introduces each story with background on how and why she came up with it. The stories were each original and terrifying in different ways. Here are a few with my opinions. Bottom line, if you like horror and darkness, this book is for you.

End of the Liner
“She often dreamed of drowning.”
“Regrets. Mistakes. No life lived long is short of them.”
Imagine being stuck on a cruise ship forever. What an excellent idea for a story. Cruise ships are fun, but that wouldn’t last if you could never get off the ship. Think of the issues that would arise, including overpopulation. How to control that? Limit the number of children? Limit the length of life? So many possibilities. This story was very interesting. With the “Creators” in control and the life-size characters making appearances and singing songs, it seemed like a Disney cruise ship without actually naming Disney. Clever and creepy as hell. I’ll never look at cruise ships the same way again.

The Block
“No one remembered it being built.”
This story reminded me of The Black Slide by J.W. Ocker, with how the building appears out of nowhere. The kids decide to go in despite everything that says it’s a bad idea. What they find inside is unexpected and completely terrifying. The ending of this story is perfect.

Runaway Blues
“Let me tell you about the Fat Man.”
This story leads you to believe one thing the whole time and then drops a killer twist at the end.

The Lion at the Gate
“Stiff saw it first.”
This story focuses on some interesting graffiti that changes unexpectedly and then comes to life - or does it? Ultimately, you wonder if any of it was real - mind-bending stuff.

Gloria
“She was dying her hair in the hotel bathroom when the phone pinged.”
This is a fantastic story, and I want MORE!

I’m Not Ted
“I’m not Ted.”
A guard at the Elevation Department insists the man is Ted. He doesn’t remember who he is but knows it’s not Ted. Is there anything that could make the man claim to be Ted? How many of us could pass the temptation test? Very short and very crazy story.

Final Course
“Are we nearly there yet?”
A group of five friends from university are coming together to survive the end of the world. They all brought their partners. Tom brought his blind daughter, Millie. Some people claim that blind children attract the monsters and communicate with them. But who is the real monster here??

Really enjoyed all of these short stories. It's rare that I find a short story collection where I end up liking all of the stories within. These were all great.

I really enjoy CJ Tudor and this collection of short stories was a lot of fun to read. Creepy and good. Short stories don’t always do it for me but these were fun .

If I see C.J. Tudor's name on ANYTHING, it's an instant read for me. These stories were gripping and chilling and I was so sad when I was finished because I wanted more! Absolutely fantastic.

This wasn’t what I was expecting or have come to know from Chan Tudor so I have dnf ed it. Didn’t enjoy

Horror and dystopian science fiction combine in these short stories.

I enjoyed Tudor’s previous novels, The Chalk Man, The Hiding Place, and The Other People, so I was looking forward this book of short stories.

The stories:
1. End of the Liner
2. The Block
3. Runaway Blues
4. The Completion
5. The Lion at the Gate
6. Gloria
7. I'm Not Ted
8. Final Course
9. The Copy Shop
19. Dust
11. Butterfly Island

Enjoyable and interesting stories. Dark and twisted.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Unlike "The Chalk Man" or "The Other People" this is collection of short stories. Some of these were spot-on, chilling and OMG while others were confusing/lackluster. I wanted to love all these short stories but some were better than others. Somewhat disappointed.

Still recommended because of the author but looking forward to her next novel.

Thanks to NetGalley, CJ Tudor and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine Books for an ARC in exchange for honest review.

Already available.

Really enjoyed this collection of short stories. I'm not a huge short story fan, but I have always read and loved Stephen King's collections, and I was super excited to see one of my favorite authors have a collection. Really great, overall 4.25 stars and I'm pushing it up to 5.

I was already a C.J. Tudor fan and this short story anthology just solidified my opinion of her work even more. Sliver is a great collection if you enjoy the dark, creepy, horrific, and twisty. I often found myself wanting more because I was so intrigued but also very satisfied by the conclusions of the stories. There's a good mix too between current world and dystopian settings.

It's hard to pick a favorite but I adored everything in "Gloria" and "I'm Not Ted" with "Final Course", "Dust", and "Butterfly Island" (this one I would love a novella of) as runners' up. I still enjoyed the other stories but these five were absolutely stellar.

Definitely recommend this collection to any horror or dark fiction reader, as I would Tudor's full novels.


Note: I received a free electronic edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank them, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to do so.

Really enjoyed this novel. Story was very interesting and engaging. Looking forward to reading more by this author. Highly recommend!

I’m not a huge fan of short story collections but a few of these were pretty cool and I enjoyed them. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this review copy

Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me a copy. Life got in the way of me reading this before the time expired :(
it seems really good, so will be checking it out from the library or purchasing it from my local bookstore
5 stars for the vibes it gives

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm DNFing this book at 34%. I enjoyed the first short story but unfortunately felt a little uncomfortable with some of the language in the second story. There is a plus-size character that the main character and his friend make fun of. They joke that she'd probably perform sexual acts for a bag of chips. At the end of the short story, she turns into a human-eating creature. This situation left me with a weird feeling and I'm not interested in reading the other stories at this time.

I'm rating this 2 stars because I didn't read every short story and therefore feel I can't fairly say this book doesn't have an audience for most of its stories. I have enjoyed C.J. Tudor in the past and will continue to recommend those novels that I did enjoy.

End of the Liner - 3 Stars
The Block - 2 Stars
Runaway Blues - 3 Stars
The Completion - 3 Stars
The Lion At the Gate - 2 Stars
Gloria - 4 Stars
I'm Not Ted - 4 Stars
Final Course - 4 Stars
The Copy Shop - 4 Stars
Dust - 5 Stars
Butterfly Island - 5 Stars

C.J. Tudor has been of my favorite horror authors for awhile so I was really excited that she made an anthology of her works. I definitely enjoyed the latter half of this book more than I did the beginning. Some of the stories were just plain weird and others genuinely freaked me out and I wished the story was a full novel and not just a short story. Overall a pretty good collection of stories though.

Many thanks to Ballantine Books for the gifted copy for my honest review.

I don't typically read short story collections but I love me some CJ Tudor! I liked every single story, some more than others. There were none I disliked. I was often disappointed at the end of them because I felt like I missed something. I wasn't entirely sure I picked up on what the ending meant for at least half the stories. They were not necessarily open ended but they were vague. I usually have trouble with endings like that. But I felt invested and intrigued by every story in this collection! My favorite part of the book was the intro to each short story. There was a short explanation of how each story came to be. I think the was such an added special touch!!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of A Sliver of Darkness by C.J. Tudor.

These are a variety of short, scary stories, each with a preface from the author and how the story came to be. I really enjoyed that part. I also enjoyed most of the stories, all very different and fun. I will caution you this though, don't read or listen while eating dude! These are horror stories, I made that mistake so that you don't have to.

This short story collection was put together during the pandemic and I loved that each story came with an introduction about her inspiration or what was going on at the time that led to the idea. I enjoyed so many of these stories, and I think they get stronger as you read deeper into the collection. My absolute favorite is The Lion at the Gate, the imagery is perfect and I think about it often. Other standouts include Runaway Blues, Gloria, and I’m Not Ted. If I could change one thing, I would take out the first story, End of the Liner, and make it its own novel!! I was absolutely gripped by this cruise ship suspense story and was disappointed when it ended without giving me every answer that I wanted!