MatthewHunter

Remember in my review of part one where I said Cal and Abbie are preparing for a long adventure together? Scratch that, at least for now. I don't know exactly where the deaths and resurrections will take us in the end, but I suspect their relationship prospects have hit an insurmountable obstacle or two.

I'm enjoying this serialized read so far. Hart's a gifted writer. The prose isn't weighed down with too much description of place. Description is reserved primarily for inner emotional landscapes and the horrifying violent events that shape them. For example, the reader knows exactly how a pregnant Marnie feels about her relationships with Cal and Tony. We also know what Marnie's mangled belly looks like after her infected baby aborts itself, clawing its way out of her abdomen. The fight scene between Cal and Tony is as vivid as it gets. Hart claims Stephen King's "The Stand" as an early influence. She does him proud in the first two parts of "The Resurrected".

I've never really done the serialized fiction thing before now. I like it! Obviously, it's perfectly suited for edge-of-your-seat thrillers. Hart leaves readers hanging with huge questions at the end of each part. I wonder how readers of Edgar Rice Burroughs and Arthur Conan Doyle got by between episodes back in the day. Thankfully, Hart provides her web address - www.meganhart.com/short-fiction/the-resurrected/ - for those interested in signing up for notifications of future episodes. She's already published seven parts. Who knows how far she takes this story before combining the parts into a book and selling another load of copies.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention one selfish reason for loving the serialized format of "The Resurrected" - it offers a great opportunity to catch up on your reading challenge. Well written, entertaining short works like those in "The Resurrected" series are bliss. But let's be honest, there's still not a chance in hell that I'm going to get to the 125 books read mark.