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A review by miguel
Behind Dark Doors by Susan May
2.0
Susan May's Behind Dark Doors is a barely adequate collection of short stories, ostensibly unified by the theme of a Twilight Zone-esque twist at their conclusion. Unfortunately, only the first story, "Hell's Kitchen," raises up to the challenge with a decent foundation laid for a surprising twist at the conclusion. "Hell's Kitchen" has other problems, however, including cringe inducing pop-culture references that blunt the impact of the story quite a bit.
The remaining stories are disappointing, particularly the final story in the collection, "The War Veteran." The fantastic premise is squandered by an overlong narrative and predictable character development.
The collection's format engages because Susan May gives insight into her inspiration and process. These digressions were more engaging than the stories themselves, particularly in the case of May's description of the story "Mitigating Circumstances." Her recounting of her own experiences as a mother and her dark thoughts about the authority figures at her son's school lead me to believe May is a far more interesting person than her stories would lead one to believe. Though these stories are a good effort, one might be better off looking elsewhere for tense thrills and inspired twists.
The remaining stories are disappointing, particularly the final story in the collection, "The War Veteran." The fantastic premise is squandered by an overlong narrative and predictable character development.
The collection's format engages because Susan May gives insight into her inspiration and process. These digressions were more engaging than the stories themselves, particularly in the case of May's description of the story "Mitigating Circumstances." Her recounting of her own experiences as a mother and her dark thoughts about the authority figures at her son's school lead me to believe May is a far more interesting person than her stories would lead one to believe. Though these stories are a good effort, one might be better off looking elsewhere for tense thrills and inspired twists.