Dark

Expedition 63 #2

by T.A. Creech

Sequel to Expedition 63 Book 1: Dusk

As the stranded inhabitants of the Space Station mark the opening of their second year since the world ended, Saito Naotatsu is determined to shake off some part of the grief infecting their temporary home. Maybe find a little happiness, too, with his best friend and communications specialist, Turlach Quinn.

The situation explodes when Turlach finds his attraction to Saito confusing and relentless. At every turn, it seems Saito is there to break his control. With the Station falling apart around their ears and the crew breathing down his neck, Turlach finally has enough.

Problems keep piling up. The crew is weary and waiting. Earth is a dark shadow of what it once was. Will they ever get home? Is there even anything left to go home to?

117 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 19, 2018

About the author

I am a house-parent to a rambunctious small child and happily mated to an equally rambunctious military spouse. My adventures in writing began with fanfiction, and once I was hooked I never looked back.

What I enjoy most about creating original work is the ability to delve into my stranger ideas without worrying about how I might apply them to someone else's world and characters. With my own creations, I take pride in twisting familiar tropes into something new and unexpected.

When I write, it is with the intention that my stories will leave a lasting impression. I hope you enjoy the characters and the worlds I create, and that they help you to find a place to exist, for a while, outside of your own.

--T.A. Creech

Reviews

[Tony Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thankfully, I did not have to wait to long for this 2nd installment of this awesome series. All the guys are in survival mode trying to stay alive and figuring out how to get back to Earth and when. Also, where would be the safest place to land, if they can land. Tension is high, relationships are strained. Once again, i read the entire book in 1 sitting. This one does leave you with a cliffhanger, but don't let that keep you from reading this almost too real book.

[Free_dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Scattered Thoughts and Roguew Words review

While “Dark” features a different couple than “Dusk”, I do believe you need to read part one before you can fully understand part two.

I wasn’t sure I wanted to continue the series after “Dusk”, which was just an okay read overall, but when the opportunity presented itself, I couldn’t resist. And it paid off. “Dark” was definitely better than “Dusk”.

Part of it was probably because Turlach and Saito are just getting together and we get to experience the whole falling-in-love thing. Usually, I enjoy established couples, but in this case, I think the new couple had a better dynamic than the established one. The connection I missed in part one was much more present in this sequel.

We also see a bit more of how life on the station works from day to day. Once again, not a whole lot actually happens action-wise. But we do get more details of how the crew stays alive, which was mostly skipped over in part one.

But once again, the book is just too short to fully live up to its potential. The setting is really unique and not one I’ve come across before. It’s a shame the story doesn’t get more room to truly unfold. There was also a bit of gay for you and drama because of lack of communication, which are two tropes I don’t particularly care for.

If you liked book one, you should read part two as well. While there’s still room for more, I definitely liked “Dark” more than “Dusk”. And now I really want to find out how this all ends.

The cover looks good but doesn’t really fit the story imo. The person looks like an alien, when there are none in the story. Once again, it would’ve looked better with just the space station.

[Serena Yates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crew number 63 has been stuck on the space station made up of various nations’ modules for over a year because nuclear war destroyed the Earth during their original mission. They don’t know what caused the disaster, but they can’t go back until the fallout is less severe. It is now 2027 and they have settled into a routine after dealing with the initial problems. New ones appear on the horizon though and they know that the longer they stay, the more technical issues will happen, not to mention the interpersonal dynamics they have to deal with. The technical detail throughout the story makes it feel very realistic, especially since most of it is futuristic rather than way-out-there science fiction. The emotional turmoil between the next two crewmembers to pair up takes precedence over the technical challenges though, and the cliff-hanger at the end of year two definitely has me wanting more.


Please find my full review on Rainbow Book Reviews.