DEPTH CHARGE - Craig Bernardini

I found the story interesting. Since I am a distracted reader, any story that begins with a long description puts me off. There was only one paragraph describing the winter and the author jumps to dialogues (I loved that, two people talking about something I do not know). It was like working through a puzzle, trying to decipher what Alesis and Gavinn were talking about, what their relationship was and what the purpose of the story was.

The dialogues were colloquial and close to real life scenario. They felt unscripted (definitely a deliberate attempt by the writer) – the speakers jumped from one topic to the another and then came back to what they were talking about. The dialogues worked well to let the reader in on the thoughts, experience, and relationships of the two speakers

When Gavin says “All fires go out,” it sounds almost like a philosophical statement. He wasn’t just talking about the fire in the shots. I pondered for a while – was he talking about his own dreams, the desire to fight for them, or a lost love, or a friend whom he sees no more. There are so many possibilities about his past that pop up.

Similarly when Alexix says that he needed a gun, not wanted, but needed, “like getting socks,” a range of images come up. He didn’t seem like a goon or a ruffian (from the conversation that I had read so far) then what did he need one for? To protect himself from someone? To get revenge? (the possibility of suicide did not cross my mind) But I was definitely curious – why would a twenty one year old need a gun?

The only part that I read twice was the second to the last paragraph. It described how Alexis was rescued and I actually read it twice to ensure Alexis was save (:D :P) and also because the description was vivid.

I liked the suspense of the story (even when Alexis was enroute, I did not expect him to drive off the rails) and the urgency with which the author describes his desperate attempt to save his life. Alexis was repeating the numbers and the steps in the bar and when he was under water, he tries to remember them but the steps become fuzzy. Alexis was aware that he was missing number three and the step number four also refuse to surface in his mind. He forgets the eight one and keeps taking deep breaths which were full of salt and brine, but desperate to save his life, Alexis keeps trying.

The structure of the story is linear so it was easy to follow what happened when, there were few jump cuts and the time frame was small – from the night till the crack of the day – so the story did not feel like a novel condensed into a few pages. I found it to be a simple and lucid read.

I would have liked to know more about Gavin (who is he other than a middle aged bar tender/owner who once robbed a gas station with his friends). He seems likeable, he tries to talk sense into Alexis, and from the dialogues he seems to like the young guy too. I am also curious about Alexis’ back story – why did he want to attempt a suicide? There has to be a reason, a past story.

Overall the story had me on my toes, connecting the dialogues, the mood, and the theme.