Review: Six short gems from the pens of Sean Platt and David Wright
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 2, 2012
"Dark Crossings" is a compilation of six short stories by authors Sean Platt and David Wright. This Kindle edition was a 327 Kb download and retails for $5.99. These works kind of mimic the old TV series "The Twilight Zone" where an strange tale concluded with an unusual ending. The works are available individually.Background... I'd become interested in the writings of these two authors after reading their serial thriller, "Yesterday's Gone". An exciting urban sci-fi/fantasy adventure set in modern day America.The works found in "Dark Crossings" include... general theme <SPOILER>  alertPULL THE TRIGGER -- Ellie gets involve in a caper involving two resort owners: owners with entirely too much time on their hands and more money than they'd ever know what to do with.CHRIS WAKES UP -- a Zombie tale seen through the eyes of one of the newly infected.RESPERO DINNER -- reminiscences with Xavier at his farewell dinner extravaganza.THE VISITOR -- Blind and dying, writer Mary Fletcher has a visitor that offers her a new lease on life... well sort of.DINER FADED -- an old dilapidated diner in the middle of nowhere gives Zach a glimpse of the past.* of all the six stories here, 'Diner Faded' is the one that most fits in the mold of the old "Twilight Zone" shows.THE WATCHER -- Since the brutal death of Jenny, Frank Grimm has lost more that just his young daughter.Some thoughts...Quick, easy reading... every tale, although fairly short, moves along at a nice pace. No dragged out dead spots in any of these short pieces.All tales are well written and superbly focused on unusual and often macabre goings-on. Some are graphically violent, others bend the fabric of normal human interaction with some unusual diversions into the strange and bizarre.Situations in several stories that made me tense and edgy... made me want to get through to that last page and see what happened. To me a sign of a well presented, eerie tale.Each story is followed by a brief note by the author explaining how the story came about, some changes made and how the end result compared to their original goals and ideas.Favorite stories..."Diner Faded" followed closely by "The Watcher".Cover art...1.) although I kind of understand the black on white motif for the cover of "Dark Crossings", it just doesn't have that eye-catching appeal to it. Needs that splash of color somewhere to draw the readers attention. (yes, yes I know, picky)2.) also, liked the same size lettering for each author's name and the fact both names fitted comfortably onto one line. A professional appearance!Conclusion:Six short stories written with the same skill and accomplishment as the "Yesterday's Gone" series. Although very different in substance from YG, If you liked the writing style there, you'll like this as well.As it is... 5 StarsRay Nicholson