A few years back Win Scott Eckert published Crossovers: A Secret History of the Universe which made connections to many different characters through the links of crossovers.
I reviewed these back on the old blog (which will have to be reposted here soon) and found them to be excellent works that were well researched. However, by its very nature such a work is incomplete - new crossover stories are written all the time and older ones await rediscovery. Win handed the title of Crossover Chronicler to Sean Levin who after several years of work has published these two new volumes.
Levin has taken Win's format and built two new volumes that have the same breadth and scope of history as Win's works. Indeed if all four volumes were to reedited into one giant sized telephone sized work I may have some trouble identifying which entries were by which author but this is a good thing it makes Crossovers Expanded feel like an organic outgrowth of the original volumes.
Looking through both volumes I was frequently surprised by crossovers I was unaware of and pleased to see some familiar authors and names appear in this book. Full disclosure, several of my stories are referenced in this work and Sean has done a great job at spotting the connections I have sprinkled through my stories.
I bow to Sean's knowledge of pulp and adventure fiction. I must also compliment the artwork that littered the work that provided a visual link to the works. Keith Howell has done a great job on the covers illustrating several heroic archetypes.
As a fan of pulp and adventure fiction these are invaluable reference works.
Wow - thanks so much, Brad! Coming for a writer of your ability, this meant a ton to me. You did neglect to mention, though, that you alerted me to several of the stories included in the books, including some cool Aggressor crossovers. ;)
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