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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. When reading King novels, I've often felt that the idea was good but the execution was too long and drawn out, and that in general his works would be better as short stories. So I picked up this collection of short stories and was less impressed than I'd hoped. Some of the tales were good, such as the title story, the first-person account of a man about to be autopsied alive, and the man who had been captured by terrorists, but I found most of the rest fairly forgettable. I guess I expected to be scared, at least a little bit. However, I'm not giving up just yet. I've been told by many King fans that his earlier stuff is best, so I'll be on the look-out for a copy of Night Shift. (  ) melydia | Oct 28, 2009 |  This collection of short stories from King is a bit uneven, ranging from some real snorers – like the story of a man who is bitten by a rare snake on a golf course, paralyzed by its venom but still aware of what’s happening to him, and is almost dissected on the autopsy table – to some true rippers. My favorites included “Everything’s Eventual,” a surreal tale of what happens to a young man who can inflict death with his mind when he becomes employed by the government; “L.T.’s Theory of Pets,” a comic-turned-horrific story about dog people and cat people; “That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is in French,” a real chiller about the last moments before death; and “1408,” a haunted hotel room story that kept me up way past my bedtime. I also enjoyed rereading “The Little Sisters of Eluria,” a long tale about King’s famous Gunslinger Roland when he was just setting out on his long journey, which was first published in an anthology edited by Robert Silverberg. All in all, the gems outnumbered the dogs, and this is a good collection for King fans who may have missed some of his stories that have heretofore only appeared in unusual editions, such as CD or electronic format. ( ) sturlington | Sep 5, 2009 | No fillers in this collection of short stories and some pretty spooky stuff too. Includes some non horror tales written originally for the New Yorker and a short dark tower tale featuring Roland of Gilead. (  ) andy475uk | Aug 21, 2009 | These were quintessential King stories, which were both eerie and fun. My favorites were The Little Sisters of Eluria, Riding the Bullet and That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is in French. My least favorite was The Death of Jack Hamilton. (  ) cranmergirl | Jan 15, 2009 | Deliberately not marking this as horror since King isn't all horror and this collection of short stories is definitely not horror. This was in the Red Cross box and while I didn't reread all of them, I reread some favourites especially the Little Sisters of Eluria and Everything's Eventual. ( ) skinglist | Jan 11, 2009 |  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com (ISBN 0743457358, Mass Market Paperback)In his introduction to Everything's Eventual, horror author extraordinaire Stephen King describes how he used a deck of playing cards to select the order in which these 14 tales of the macabre would appear. Judging by the impact of these stories, from the first words of the darkly fascinating "Autopsy Room Four" to the haunting final pages of "Luckey Quarter," one can almost believe King truly is guided by forces from beyond.His first collection of short stories since the release of Nightmares & Dreamscapes in 1993, Everything's Eventual represents King at his most undiluted. The short story format showcases King's ability to spook readers using the most mundane settings (a yard sale) and comfortable memories (a boyhood fishing excursion). The dark tales collected here are some of King's finest, including an O. Henry Prize winner and "Riding the Bullet," published originally as an e-book and at one time expected by some to be the death knell of the physical publishing world. True to form, each of these stories draws the reader into King's slightly off-center world from the first page, developing characters and atmosphere more fully in the span of 50 pages than many authors can in a full novel. For most rabid King fans, chief among the tales in this volume will be "The Little Sisters of Eluria," a novella that first appeared in the fantasy collection Legends, set in King's ever-expanding Dark Tower universe. In this story, set prior to the first Dark Tower volume, the reader finds Gunslinger Roland of Gilead wounded and under the care of nurses with very dubious intentions. Also included in this collection are "That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is in French," the story of a woman's personal hell; "1408," in which a writer of haunted tour guides finally encounters the real thing; "Everything's Eventual," the title story, about a boy with a dream job that turns out to be more of a nightmare; and "L.T.'s Theory of Pets," a story of divorce with a bloody surprise ending. King also includes an introductory essay on the lost art of short fiction and brief explanatory notes that give the reader background on his intentions and inspirations for each story. As with any occasion when King directly addresses his dear Constant Readers, his tone is that of a camp counselor who's almost apologetic for the scare his fireside tales are about to throw into his charges, yet unwilling to soften the blow. And any campers gathered around this author's fire would be wise to heed his warnings, for when King goes bump in the night, it's never just a branch on the window. --Benjamin Reese (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:18 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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