C. J. Tudor has put together a mixture of short stories that has lots to offer the reader. Many are set in a world on the edge of the apocalypse and this seems very timely at the moment. Alongside how humanity behaves when pushed to the edge there is also the subtle hint that something more sinister is lurking on the periphery.
As you would expect from a sinister selection of stories we have themes such as deals made with the devil, creatures lurking in the darkness, sanctuary on a desert island that may not be all it seems, a near-death experience that changes a person and graffiti that takes on a life of it's own.
The first two stories in the collection are my favourites. The End Of The Liner is set on a cruise ship that has been at sea for 50 years because land has become inhospitable. Resources are scarce so life-spans have a defined limit. The second story, The Block, is the creepiest. Set in an abandoned tower block a group of children find beetle type creatures looking for a food source.
A Sliver Of Darkness by C. J. Tudor will be published on 29th September 2022 in hardback, ebook and audio format. My thanks to NetGalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for a review copy.
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