Quick Synopsis

A detective investigating a grisly crime in rural Alaska finds herself caught up in the dark secrets and superstitions of a small town in this riveting novel from the acclaimed author of The Chalk Man.

Publisher’s Synopsis

In a small Alaska town, a boy is found with his throat ripped out and all the blood drained from his body. The inhabitants of Deadhart haven’t seen a killing like this in twenty-five years. But they know who’s responsible: a member of the Colony, an ostracized community of vampyrs living in an old mine settlement deep in the woods.

Detective Barbara Atkins, a specialist in vampyr killings, is called in to officially determine if this is a Colony killing—and authorize a cull. Old suspicions die hard in a town like Deadhart, but Barbara isn’t so sure. Determined to find the truth, she enlists the help of a former Deadhart sheriff, Jenson Tucker, whose investigation into the previous murder almost cost him his life. Since then, Tucker has become a recluse. But he knows the Colony better than almost anyone.

As the pair delve into the town’s history, they uncover secrets darker than they could have imagined. And then another body is found. While the snow thickens and the nights grow longer, a killer stalks Deadhart, and two disparate communities circle each other for blood. Time is running out for Atkins and Tucker to find the truth: Are they hunting a bloodthirsty monster . . . or a twisted psychopath? And which is more dangerous?

Book Review

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.

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Character Development