This was a very unusual procedural with a huge twist. Barbara, the protagonist, had been called in because a young boy’s remains had been found and the town’s people decided a colony of vampyrs had killed him and they wanted to exterminate them. Barbara instead looks for the killer and attempts to prevent more slayings. I generally do not read this kind of fiction but did finish reading the entire book which speaks for its well plotedness. Thanks to Net Galley and Random House for an ARC for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley!!

This is a very solid thriller, I really enjoyed this book. The main character Barbara was a complex interesting main character, I like how she was very fair while investigating the murder. I had a little bit of trouble with keeping track of all the characters but everything was interesting so I did eventually figure out everyone.

In the town of Deadhart, Barbara Atkins is called in to help solve a murder. A young boy was murdered, and by the looks of it, by a vampyr. Vampyr colonies and humans live together keeping their distant and there are laws protecting both, but when a vampyr kills a human or vice versa, emotions run wild calling for a cull. Can Detective Atkins keep the town calm while trying to solve the murder?

This book is a great whodunit with twists and turns. The story is depicts a small town in rural Alaska, where the Mayor is also the Police Department Assistant and everyone knows everyone. I first discovered CJ Tudor from reading The Drift and I am immediately hooked on their novels.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

I have been in a reading slump. I have DNF’d several books lately and I can’t focus to read. Where I normally read 2-3 books in a week, it has taken me 12 days to finish just 1 book. I know several others in a slump right now. Not sure what is going on. I had every intention of finishing C.J. Tudor’s The Gathering before it was published on April 9th. This book takes place in a world where humans and “vampyrs” begrudgingly live side-by-side. A boy has had his throat ripped out in a small town in Alaska. Barbara Atkins is a detective who specializes in vampyr killings. She is sent to the town to investigate who killed the boy and decide if a cull on the local vampyr colony should be ordered. She is almost immediately met with resistance from the locals and she quickly finds that everything is not as it seems. Besides the added vampyr aspect, this is a typical detective story. I really enjoyed The Chalk Man by this author, so I was excited to get the chance to read this story. I don’t know if it is my reading slump or what, but I didn’t find this to be anything special. It leaves the door open for more books to follow, but I am undecided on if I would continue reading a series in this world. 3/5 stars for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for allowing me access to an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Publication date April 9th, 2024. This review will be found on Instagram and Goodreads indefinitely.
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This mix of horror and police procedural was well done and a bit like a a car wreck, I just couldn’t look away. I didn’t think there was anything new that could be told about vampires. But the vampyrs in this book are unique and somehow spookier than any of the others I have read. In a tiny town in rustic Alaska called Deadhart there are 673 people…living. Detective and specialist in vampyr kills, Barbara, finds herself traveling there to determine if the young boy who was killed was in fact killed by a vampyre and if a culling (humans killing the vampyr colony that lives near their town) will be required. Barbara is determined to find the truth and doesn’t want to ok the killing of the entire colony except as a last resort, but the town of Deadhart has already made their minds up. Tensions are rising between the town and the colony and the more Barbara learns the more questions she is left with. This book is haunting. It was easy to imagine the hatred of the “other” but it was hard to picture a society of vampyrs who accept that while they are a protected species they are forever denied access to the creature comforts being human brings. The epilogue implied this is a start of a series and while that’s probably the last thing I need, I am definitely in for future books. Overall I gave this one 4.5 stars rounded up for originality.

Something about an Alaska setting always draws me in. Add in a small tight knit town where everyone has secrets of their own and I’m even more hooked. Add in vampires? Usually not my thing, not even a little, but it worked SO well in this book. I was hooked from the first chapter.

The Gathering takes place in Deadhart, Alaska; a small town living side by side with a colony of vampires. When a boy is found killed, seemingly from a vampire attack, Detective Barbara Atkins is called in to investigate and authorize a cull, allowing the town to hunt the vampires.

This book was ADDICTING. I loved the multiple POVs, the dreary darkness and cold of Alaska and the slowly unraveling of secrets in this small town. The ending got a bit over the top cheesy for me, dropping it down half a point. And that epilogue! 🤯

4.5 ✨
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

I love books that take place in Alaska in winter. There’s something so creepy about the snow and isolation, and now there’s vampires? A perfect mixture for a horror story! I did enjoy many aspects of the book, including the writing and some unexpected surprises, but it was a bit slow-moving for me overall. The only reason I gave it 3⭐️ and not more is because it took some time for me to get into the story. I was finally invested at about the 60% mark and then I couldn’t stop!

Another winner!! The colony has returned to Deadhart, Alaska and just like the last time they were here, another young teenage boy has died. A vampyr killing or someone trying to force a cull to be authorized? It’s up to Detective Barbara Atkins to find the truth without getting herself killed. An excellent, intensely suspenseful thriller!

In a small Alaska town, a fifteen-year-old boy is found with his throat ripped out and all the blood drained from his body. The residents of Deadhart blame the Colony, an ostracized community of vampyrs living nearby. Detective Barbara Atkins, a specialist in vampyr killings, is called in to officially determine if this is a Colony killing and authorize a cull which is what the residents want.

This was a different take on a vampire story. Humans and vampires have a truce and coexist together. There is a Vampyr Protection Act which protects the vampires. This book is basically a police procedural of a teenage boy's murder. There were some twists but nothing too surprising or exciting. Also too many characters to remember. Overall, I thought it was lackluster.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and C.J. Tudor for an ARC of "The Gathering".

3.5 stars

The Gathering is a horror police procedural set in the small Alaska town of Deadhart. Vampyrs are a protected class of U.S. citizens in this universe, although they live separately from humans. When a teen is murder by a vampyr, a detective is sent from the Department of Forensic Vampyr Anthropology to investigate. Will she be able to get to the bottom of the murder before the town revolts and illegally eradicates the vampyr settlement?

The Gathering may best be described as a dark mix of True Blood (the early seasons) and True Detective. But make no mistake, this novel is much more gritty crime fiction than a scary story. In fact, I could have done with more vampyrs and less human townspeople. Solving the teen’s murder is the true focus. I found the plot to be entertaining, although a bit slow in the beginning. I also felt like the ending was a bit ambiguous, allowing for a possible sequel.

C.J. Tudor knows how to write an atmospheric book that you easily become immersed in. And a small, former mining town in Alaska during the winter months is the perfect setting for this story. It is cold and mostly without daylight, mirroring the town’s attitude, and giving readers a chill.

When I read The Gathering‘s synopsis and understood that the vampyrs are a socially ostracized minority group (and that it takes place in the U.S. rather than Tudor’s native England), I hoped that Tudor would make some kind of statement with the narrative. The story is set up in a way that would easily lend itself to drawing a parallel to our country’s current political divide. However, Tudor seemingly did not make any larger statement in the book.

My only real issue with The Gathering is the number of characters and the character development. There are a lot of suspects and townspeople, a majority of whom are male with common names. I had a difficult time keeping all of them straight, especially as they are not consistently identified with both first and last names. I liked the female lead character and her backstory. However, I do not feel like she is well-developed or that readers really come to know her. I do not think the lack of character development detracts from the story; it just does not add anything.

Overall, The Gathering is an atmospheric and entertaining crime novel. And while I did not like it as much as Tudor’s last book, The Drift, I still recommend it.

I didn't read the description when I requested this book because I really like this author and will happily read any of her books! So I was quite surprised when I realized that there are vampyr's in this one! Honestly, I wasn't sure how that was going to work in a mystery/thriller book, but I loved it! I thought some parts in the beginning were a bit slow, and there were quite a few characters to keep track of, but the story was so good. Once I got a bit over halfway in, I could not put it down! Detective Barbara Atkins was such a great character, and I hope we see her again in another book!

Thank you, @netgalley and @randomhouse, for the #gifted e-arc of this book!

This was my second book by Tudor & while I liked it, I didn’t *love* it. The chilling, atmospheric vibe of Alaska was different than the run of the mill suburban settings we get in most thrillers. For me, I found that I’m not big on the vampire characters as I used to be. That’s not the book’s fault, just mine. Overall it was a really good story that gave me True Blood vibes & I will definitely read more by this author!

I'm a sucker for all the mysteries from Tudor. I loved it and was sucked in from the beginning. If you love a twisty dark mystery, read this!

I have always enjoyed CJ Tudor books but this one ended up being a DNF for me. The book was too political for my liking. There were also too many characters to keep straight. A little thing that also bothered me was this book was set in Alaska but there were many British words that were used, liked jumper instead of sweater. Really takes you out of the setting.

This book had such potential but didn’t work for me. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publish for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was awesome. Think True Detective meets True Blood. I loved it. Great mystery set in a small town in Alaska with vampires. I loved the atmosphere of the novel, the world building, and the vampire mythology. Really well executed with a bunch of twists and a sucker punch ending. This one just came out, check it out!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballentine Books for the digital arc.

If a book is set in a small town in Alaska, I’m going to want to read it. No matter the genre. (Odd quirk I know but it’s true.) And as it just so happens The Gathering, C.J, Tudor’s newest book, is set in just such a town. Deadhart, Alaska to be precise. Deadhart? Tell me you aren’t intrigued. I dare you. When a teenage boy is found, throat ripped out, body drained of blood, the residents are certain they know who is to blame. A member of ‘the colony’. Who are ‘the colony’ you ask? Oh just a supposed community of vampyrs living in an old mine not far from Deadhart. Detective Barbara Atkins, a vampyr specialist, is called into investigate. Enlisting the help of Jenson Tucker, the former sheriff of Deadhart, she is determined to uncover the truth and put an end to the killing before it’s too late. This is a wonderfully intense thriller that kept me reading late in the night…well into the early morning actually if I’m being completely honest. Excellent story with fantastic characters. Absolutely loved Detective Atkins and hope we’ll see her return for another adventure real soon. 4.5 stars. I’d like to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an eArc of The Gathering.

https://www.amazon.com/review/RS75S1XAKI7QV/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Rating: 4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Happy Pub Week!!!
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I’ve only read one other C. J. Tudor book but really enjoyed so when I saw this one NetGalley I was like okay I need this.
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I went into The Gathering completely blind, I really had no idea what to expect but let me just say - this was different, unique and definitely a treat to read. I mean who doesn’t like reading about vampire colonies?! Swipe for the synopsis so I can keep this one on the shorter end.
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The Gathering has some shifting of characters but all in the third person. In the beginning, I got tripped up a few times with the characters but quickly figured out who was who. I found the pacing to be a steady pace, not too slow but not something that was overly fast paced.
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I constantly found myself questioning different characters thinking they were the murderer. Perfect combination of likable and unlikable characters. The ending was awesome. Definitely didn’t see that one coming and loved how everything was wrapped up.
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Wasn’t overly thrilling or scary so if you are new to the thriller / horror genre I definitely think this would be a good one to start with. I think people are going to like this one a lot. The Gathering was just released on 4/9. Huge thank you to NetGalley, Ballentine Books and C. J. Tudor for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book and found it hard to put down. It perfectly combined l supernatural vampires with a police procedural.

A teenage boy is found with his throat ripped out and all the blood drained from his body. It has been 25 years since the small town of Deadhart, Alaska has seen a killing like this. The townsfolk believe that an ostracized community of vampyrs (vampires) known as the Colony is responsible. It is coincidence that this killing happened after the colony returns to the area after a very long absence? Detective Barbara Atkins, a specialist in vampyr killings, is called to investigate the case to determine if this is truly a Colony killing. Only once this is determined can a cull be authorized. Detective Atkins is determined to find the truth and ends up enlisting the help of former Deadhart sheriff, Jenson Tucker, who investigated the previous murder 25 years prior.

The cover really fits the book perfectly. Deadhart has a dark and ominous feel which is well-written. The locals are not hospitable and they do not make Barbara feel welcome as she proceeds with the investigation, but despite their mistrust and poor attitudes towards her, she remains always polite and determined to do the right thing.

I don’t usually read books about vampires, but <b>The Gathering</b> brings a fresh perspective that I really enjoyed. With so many lies and secrets, the mystery kept me glued to the pages trying to figure it out and as usual, the author had a few surprises up her sleeve that I didn’t see coming. While there always tends to be a supernatural element to her stories, I love how each of her books are all so different and always look forward to what she is going to come up with next. Although it veers a little into the horror genre, at the heart of the story is the mystery. I am quite a wimp when it comes to horror, so if I can handle it, the horror element isn’t heavy handed. I sure hope the epilogue was a teaser for another Detective Atkins book because I thought she was a great character and given her past, there is much more to explore with her. 4 stars 💫

Wow wow wow. I have come to know and love C.J. Tudor's books and this might be my favorite yet.

Set in a remote town in Alaska, a detective from the lower 48 has to solve a murder of a young child. While the population of the town does not agree with this outsider detective, she must carry on to get to the truth.

Tudor weaves such a perfect blend of supernatural and thriller. This book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time and guessing until the end.