Stephen King has collected his most recent dark thoughts into a series of short stories in You Like It Darker, with some genuine thrills in the mix (most of these being the longer of the short tales contained within). Though not every short story was a hit, I find King as reliable as ever in the short-story game.
Of the collection, I’ll slice it up into Superb, Good, and Middling
Superb
Laurie – A story of a lonely man who welcomes a dog into his life, with unexpected benefits. Need I say more? If a story could be genetically coded to be compatible with my DNA, this would be it. Even if the Aussie in me finds it hard to take an allegator’s threat seriously (I live in Croc Country, after all!). 5 watching canine eyes out of 5.
The Dreamers – Is there anything more mysterious than dreams? This story follows a researcher who is hell bent on discovering the truth behind dreams – no matter the cost. And as it turns out, the cost is some scary shit. This made me think of Revival, and scared me to my core in much the same way. I’d watch the hell out of a movie based on this. I really liked this unsettling tale. 5 red doors out of 5.
The Answer Man – Imagine driving down the road and you see a sign for The Answer Man. He does just what he says, for a price. He answers your questions. Would you believe him? What would you ask? And how would it change the course of your life? This was a wonderful short story that hit me in the heart, in the way only a creepy King novel can. 5 clock timers out of 5.
Good
Rattlesnakes – Rattlesnakes brings us back to the world that started in Cujo, where a mother and her child battled a rabid Saint Bernard. We return, though many decades later, to a familiar character introduced way back then. He’s now staying in a friend’s house in Florida and makes the mistake of being nice to the local looney lady. But is she so looney? I liked the premise and returning character-element very much, but the story just went on a touch longer than necessary for me. 4 squeaky wheels out of 5.
Danny Coughlin’s Bad Day – What happens if, randomly, you get a prescient dream about the location of a murdered body? What would you do? What if the dream kept recurring, like a nightly itch in the corner of your mind? This story unpacks this ‘what if’ in detail, with a few elements being a little too unbelievable for this Constant Reader. But it was certainly an interesting little story and worth a read. 4 hungry mongrels out of 5.
Two Talented Bastids – This story opens up You Like It Darker with a question of the Muses. Where does talent really come from? And what happened on a mysterious night in the wilderness between two friends, which unlocked the muses for each of them? I like it when King gets a little spacey and this one was a great start. 4 rising rivers out of 5.
Middling
On Slide Inn Road – A family taking a shortcut on a road trip gets more than they bargained for. This was tense and most unsettling because it’s not rooted in the supernatural. Gave me the willies, but not overly memorable compared to the other highlights above.
Willie the Weirdo – Willie is that weird kid that everyone knew growing up – the one who certainly fits the theme of ‘liking it darker’. The thing that sets Willie apart though, is his creepy grandfather. A man who sits with Willie for hours on end, in the dark, telling tall tales of the macabre. This was an effective and creepy little story, but not a stand out.
Red Screen – this was something to do with nagging women, a ‘Cell’-esque mystery, and an Invasion of the Body Snatchers situation. Didn’t really grab me, perhaps too short?
The Fifth Step – the title being a reference to the steps in AA. This had be in the first part, but takes such a dark turn at the end that it turned a little silly, in my view.
The Turbulence Expert – I was a little lost on this one, the concept was almost too bizarre, about people whose visualisation skills keep planes in the sky.
Finn – This is a mistaken kidnapping gone wrong, and was a total miss for me. It didn’t feel like King at all! Odd but blissfully short.
I realise that purely on the numbers, it looks like there is an over-representation of Middling in this collection, but that’s honestly not how it felt to read it. This Constant Reader came looking for classic King and did not leave disappointed!