Bobby B

With a drawn-out first third, that though I did not dislike, was a door shielding the rest of this book; and the world within it. Transported to a beautiful fantastical realm with eldritch horrors and curses that remind you you're reading a King novel.

Even with a lot to like, King's constant political bashing and unneeded allusion to Covid/lockdown drag down an otherwise solid book. I understand a writer's want to interject their own feelings and thoughts into their work, but to a point it gets overbearing, and is why it took me so long to finally finish this read. I read fiction to escape from the realities of our world. Talking of a future virus that has no bearing to the story was unneeded; and no matter your political leanings, the constant republican bashing was unnecessary. Other wise, this was a middle of the road “feel-good” (or at least as feel-good as King gets, ex. Stand by Me, Shawshank). Was not his best or most inspired, but other than my few qualms was an otherwise good read.

A slow but necessary first two acts builds to a gripping third that is hard to put down. Though a touch of King's normal unneeded political rants takes you out of the story sometimes, the development of these characters is some of his best work in my opinion. Outside of his typical northeastern setting, this reads as a mix of untouched territory for King, with him at his best. An overlooked and underrated story that is a must read for King fans. Fingers crossed on Mike Flanagan adapting this one to the silver screen at some point.

A collection of short stories, that, for the most part, may have been better off left either in the magazines they were originally published in, or forgotten in the filing cabinet in which they were found. The almost constant, and (mostly) unnecessary Covid & Trump references date these stories terribly. In recent years however, King's obsession with both has bled too much into his work, far surpassing “normal” for personal values injected into one's work. This aside, what really bothered me about this book, was how un-scary it is. Especially given the title of the collection, I expected to be kept awake at night, feelings of terror that his older works brought upon my youth. If that too is what you're looking for, you'll be unfortunately letdown. This all being said, I will undoubtedly still pick up the next King I see on the shelves, and I've accepted that I have no say in that matter.

Two Talented Bastids - Again, given the collection's title, I expected the first entry to be scary and dark. Though intriguing, the only real darkness in this story is the allusions to death that has become a staple in Kings recent writings. It's easy to tell King has accepted that he himself is getting older, and this has sat heavily upon his mind.

The Fifth Step - Though one of the shortest entries in the collection, this is one I thoroughly enjoyed. Short and sweet, in a bitter way of course. Be careful of which strangers you talk to.

Willie the Weirdo - Intriguing, short, ends on a high note artistically speaking. Though it seems to be missing something. Definitely not as fleshed out as both the author or reader wants it to be.

Danny Coughlin's Bad Dream - In my opinion, the best of the collection. Enthralling, though again, not scary. Creepy? Dark? Undoubtedly yes to both, but not the King I grew up loving. Nonetheless, a fantastic tale.

Finn - I didn't find the point in this one. At least, not much of one. One of the weakest stories by King I've ever read, perhaps the weakest. At least it was short.

On Slide Inn Road - Well written, I suppose. Not particularly creepy, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Red Screen - Again, well written, but left me wanting more. Ending was dark, but the basis of this one could have been a much longer story. Though perhaps, it's best left this way.

The Turbulence Expert - Interesting basis. Well written. Didn't blow my socks off, didn't disappoint. About as mediocre as it gets. Sadly though, it may be one of the best in the collection looking back on it.

Laurie - A touching story of finding meaning during times of loss and mourning. Has a singular scary encounter. Sweet at points, sad during its “climax” if you could call it that. Again, didn't see much of a point in this story. Alas, that's about the only ongoing theme in the collection.

Rattlesnakes - A forced sequel to Cujo. Didn't need the relation but nonetheless, it was interesting to see what happened to the Trenton's following those hot summer days in that broken down Pinto. I believe I would have preferred to keep my own personal conclusion rather this tale of the haunted pram.

The Dreamers - One of my favorites in this collection. Creepy, still not scary, but beggars can't be choosers I suppose. If any of these get picked up for a movie to be more fleshed out, I see it being this one. I do hope to never see that red house with its green door in my dreams.

The Answer Man - Some things are better left unanswered. In my top three with Dreamers and Danny Coughlin's. Again, ends on a topic I believe to be on King's mind in recent years, and will probably be more and more prevalent in his following stories as he grows older, and the sun begins to set on his metaphorical day.

All in all, did I hate it? Not at all. Did I love it? An even more resounding negative. They can't all be winners, and given King's track record, this can be forgiven. To those saying this will be the last of his they read, be it because of the writing or the unnecessary Trump/Covid references, congratulations. I, again, know that me picking up his next work is out of my control.

Though now dated due to technological advancements, Cujo is still a riveting story. I could only imagine reading this before the days of cell phones. King is able to take an event that could happen to anyone (though much more plausible in the time period that it was written) and make it into a nightmare. Take a good dog with rabies, mix in some car troubles, a dash of broken home(s), and you have a deeply dark story that is as hard to put down.