Ugh!

A wannabe X-Men. Call in Professor Xavier!

But it had a ton of potential to be something much more interesting. Unfortunately, the author decided to make this one a simple short story.

Don't get me wrong; short stories are great if they have the ability to wrap up something nice and sweet. These don't do it. They leave more questions than answers, which is a real pity. I could have enjoyed this book immensely if it had been a bit longer and the world-building had been fleshed out more. Even the characters seemed to be one-dimensional.

I don't think I will try any of the other short stories. ( )

This is quite a decent story, engaging and intriguing, but it's more suited to being a prologue of a longer piece than a standalone short story. Everything opens up instead of reaching some sort of conclusion at the end.There are also obvious similarities with X-Men, even to someone like me who has limited knowledge of the franchise. ( )

Fall 2022 (Nov):
~ From the Amazon Original Stories Collection Into Shadow

This one was a little better than the last one. The writing and plotting were quite gorgeous. All the leadup, mixing today and the far back future, piecing together the stories for both of the children, was lovely. Again, here, there was a lack of an ending. We know what happened to Persephone's Father, but not what they are, who the organization was, or where things end up. I loved it so much and then it met a cliff. ( )

X-Men Rip-Off
Review of the Amazon Original Kindle eBook (November 15, 2022)

I'm not having a good streak with this latest collection of short stories from Amazon Originals. Two Unsatisfactory Ending Alert ™s in a row is not a good sign.

Without giving too much of the plot away, this reads like the first chapter of a novel where so-called "gifted" children are swept up for education at a secluded site, only instead of Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, we have the apparently more malevolent Conservatory. It barely gets going and then it ends.

Persephone is the second of seven Amazon Original Kindle eBooks/Audible Audio audiobooks released on November 15, 2022 as part of the Into Shadow Collection of short stories where "Some truths are carefully concealed; others merely forgotten. In this spellbinding collection, seven acclaimed fantasy authors create characters who venture into the depths where others fear to tread. But when forbidden knowledge is the ultimate power, how far can they go before the darkness consumes them?"

Trivia and Links
You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Kindle short stories which are usually paired with their Audible Original narrations at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region). ( )