Not a bad short story, but one that I have read before in different ways. Stephen King has done a ton of short stories about being careful what you wish for, so this felt very King-like. Of course it makes sense when you know who Owen King is (Stephen King’s son). I think that King could have changed it up a bit by showing a different/darker ending. I thought that is where he was headed, but instead we get something different. I don’t know, it just felt off to me in a way.
“Letter Slot” follows teenager Blake. Blake is very much the essence of a good kid. But he and his mom due to circumstances out of their control are headed to their lives going totally off the rails which may leave Blake with no mother at all. When he’s given an assignment to write a letter penned by someone he knows, he chooses his mother. Feeling angry and upset about his mother’s health and just the overall terrible day, he walks home and comes across an abandoned house. And then finds out he is given a choice.
I will say that King wrote Blake very well. I often get taken out of stories with how authors write teens or pre-teens. He did a great job with Blake and the changes that he goes through in about a more than year long period. It felt real and made sense.
King throws a plot-twist I didn’t see coming though which had me asking a ton of questions. I really wanted to know more about what is revealed, but of course, no details were forthcoming.