Review: Interesting Concept, Mediocre Delivery
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 29, 2011
I read this short story because of its authors. Both are great authors and the story had potential. Unfortunately, while a good read, it doesn't live up to its full potential.A driver picks up a hitchhiker. Kills him. A hitchhiker is picked up by two stoners and kills them. Third chapter: The serial killers meet and all hell breaks loose.Except that hell is a little bit predictable. But graphic.I had to read the story twice. I didn't read the description or advance marketing copy before beginning the story so I was not prepared for the POV shift in the second chapter. It confused me until I went back and read it again. The cliffhanger from the first chapter appears to lead in to the second chapter quite naturally, but the POV shift was a shocker until I understood how the authors collaborated and who wrote each part. After that, the story made better sense. That's probably my fault for not reading the promos.Still, the writing is not completely terse. There are parts of it that can be tightened. Adverbs where none are necessary. Sentences that could have been shorter. But these are nitpicks. The plot and story line are actually decently implemented.The problem is the authors could have spent a little more time on the collaborative effort in chapter three to make it more unpredictable. Some of the characterization is a little flat even for a short story. Otherwise, I'd say it was a decent read.Doesn't quite deserve four stars, but it's better than three stars. Probably more like a 3.8.