Another set of stories that might frighten you just after sunset... ( )

I'm not a big fan of King's novels, but as people kept encouraging me to try his short stories, I picked this up. The stories are well-written, entertaining, and occasionally brilliant. They run the gamut from serial killers to ghost stories to a Lovecraft tribute and made for a great read. ( )

I've heard that some of these stories were previously published, I myself haven't read any before. I do remember The Cat from Hell being part of Tales from the Darkside the movie.
Among my favorites was The Gingerbread Girl. I could not put the book down while reading this one. It's classic King, suspenseful, creepy, with a touch of sarcastic humor when you least expect it. I love that about him. When you're heart is pounding, just at that scary moment, King will add humor that will make you burst out with nervous laughter. Maybe some who have read his books will know what I mean. I can see this short story being made into a tv movie.
For the most part, I did enjoy most of the stories in this collection. However, there were a few I didn't like. Rest Stop for example is one I didn't enjoy. It wasn't boring, but I wanted creepy and scary; this wasn't.

I don't know what it is about Kings work lately, I didn't enjoy his past two books, Lisey's Story and Duma Key. For me, his older stuff is better. And his short stories are usually great. My favorite short story collection of his is Everything's Eventual.
read my full review here
http://thebookworm07.blogspot.com/200... ( )

Well, I've read the first two stories. I bought this book at the airport as a treat because The Author, in his intro, says, maybe Dear Reader is at the airport and needs divertment? Why yes, I did. Early Stephen's work grabs me around the throat and won't let go, streamlined character development or not.

This wasn't my favorite collection of short stories, but it still gave me goosebumps a few times. The stories themselves seemed to be filled with deeper meaning at times and less designed for the simple fear factor. I love the Gingerbread Girl, Willa, and The Things They Left Behind, each for different reasons. The Cat From Hell was fun too. ( )

One could say these are King at his most mature, or one could say there isn't the horror he earlier evidenced in his writings. And one could definitely say he has an anal obsession -- read "A very Tight Placel" and only someone with such an obsession cold write something like this. Bedsides, it underscores much of his other work. ( )

I've always found King's shortstories to be worthwhile, and for me this was a fascinating mix of literary suspense and traditional King-style horror. About half of the stories, while of dark content, just aren't horror--they are good, though. Reading them, though, I could understand how some of King's long-standing readers might be disappointed. About half of the stories have nothing of the super-natural, though they're fast and spellbinding reads. Because of this, the book is a really fascinating look into an author who literary critics consistently disagree about as to his lasting literary value versus just mainstream entertainment. I have to admit that while I don't think much of a few of King's works (Cell stands out as a low point for me), much of his work is literary--smart, well-written, and ready to stand up to time in both material and writing style.

As a collection, Just After Sunset is a roller-coaster ride of suspense and horror stories, some of which may well keep you up at night. With the caveat to steadfast horror lovers that not everything here is of a supernatural nature, I recommend the collection to King lovers and short story lovers alike, as well as to those folks who just like a good story of suspense. I may not come back to this collection like I come back to some of his others, but it's a good read. ( )

I really hate saying it, but I hate even more that King keeps proving it: he hasn't had "it" since finishing the Dark Tower series. Yes, his writing has gone down hill since he "stopped writing." Anyway, nothing really stands out here. The stories aren't necessarily bad, but at this point in his career, I guess I expect more than that. ( )

This is another short story collection by Stephen King. As a whole, I felt the collection was lacking in horror. The subject matter for some of the stories were a different take for Mr. King. There were few stories that contained the juice of his older work. The stories were ok I wouldn't but re-read them. ( )

A balanced selection of stories from the weird to the outright horrific.None of them really fail.Well read, including by Mr King himself. I listened to a library's Playaway version and had a paper copy for reference.I'm liking "Playaway" more and more. Love the lightness. Still have some minor problems with garrbled sound. ( )

A balanced selection of stories from the weird to the outright horrific.None of them really fail.Well read, including by Mr King himself. I listened to a library's Playaway version and had a paper copy for reference.I'm liking "Playaway" more and more. Love the lightness. Still have some minor problems with garrbled sound. ( )

You know, Stephen King writes one hell of a good short story. No matter what you think of his novels, his short stories are excellent - well-crafted, full of suspense, and rich with wonderful, descriptive language. They are the thing he does best, in my opinion, and even if I never read another one of his novels, I would always gobble up his stories. ( )

A tremendously average collection of stories. I think old Steve has lost his edge. Readable but missing the the odd darkness that used to be there. Compare earlier collections to these tales and note the difference. There were no surprises. There were a couple of good stories but overall a C. ( )

Just After Sunset is a mixed bag. Some of the stories in this collection are classic King, full of suspense, tension, and dread. But some are full of gross-outs that you might expect from an Eli Roth movie. I did enjoy reading all the stories, and I think King did a good job of ordering the tales to vary the pacing of the work as a whole. There are also tiny (and largely irrelevant) details that connect the stories to each other - a nice touch in short story collections.

Read the rest of the review. ( )

13 well wtitten short stories by King ( was 13 stories on purpose?) Out of the 13 I really liked 3 the rest were mediocre. "Gingerbread Girl", "A Very Tight Place" and "N" were the best for me. This book of short stories does show the diversity that King is capable of. For me I would rather have from King more "gross out & suspense " rather then "sentimental". I did like that he put in the back of the book how or what influenced him in writting each story. ( )

A collection of thirteen short stories by the master of horror. Out of the thirteen, there was only one I thought was really great, and a few more that were okay. ( )

All the usual entertaining, cheesy, thrilling, creepy short stories -- King's explorations of the psyche. At his best, King is stunning in his ability to manipulate Jungian themes and archetypes. At his worst, he is cardboard, comic book Jungian. But I love it all because his sense of story flows from a true source. The man has a direct channel to the unconscious and knows how to honor it. My favorite story in this collection is "N." about OCD and its purpose -- to keep the world from disintegrating.

I have found that I tend to prefer Stephen King’s short fiction to his novels. For my taste, the novels often lack the tense, taut, highly strained level of tension King is able to sustain in his shorter works, and if I am going to be reading a horror story, I want to be on the edge of my seat at least 80 to 90% of the time, if possible! So I was pretty happy when I saw that “Just After Sunset,” King’s first collection of short fiction since 2002, was coming out. In the introduction to the collection, King credits his editing of the 2007 edition of “The Best American Short Stories” with re-inspiring his desire to work with the shorter form…which was, he tells us, his bread-and-butter in the days before he made it big as a novelist. Most of the stories in this collection were written after his 2007 editorial stint, with only one dating to an earlier period of King’s career.

The collection is hit-and-miss, but when it hits, it hits hard! Some of the shorter works, such as “Rest Stop” and “Graduation Afternoon,” work best as slightly disturbing character studies. Others, such as “Willa” and “The Stationary Bike,” provide old-school Stephen King thrills, leavened with a bit of heart. The real stand-out in the collection, however, is the unutterably creepy “N.” Inspired by Arthur Machen’s “The Great God Pan” and borrowing equally from the style and themes of H.P. Lovecraft’s Mythos stories, “N.” morphs slowly from an absorbing profile of obsessive-compulsive behavior into a tale of the darkness that lurks behind the known world, waiting to break free.

All in all, not a bad return to the form by King! Here’s hoping he keeps it up rather than churning out more of the doorstop novels that only become interesting a few chapters from the end. ( )

So Far it is EXCELLENT! ( )

Perhaps it was because his kindly face kept peeking out at me from the jacket flap, but I read this book immediately after ankle surgery, when I was in a fevered state of muted pain and a complete inability to sleep and each story was a winner. 'The Gingerbread Girl' and 'A Very Tight Place' were my favorites. The post 9/11 tale, the things they left behind, was especiially touching. ( )

With this latest collection of short stories,King once more assumes the mantle of a great story-teller,something that has been missing from his recent novels I fear.
Here are 13 tales of which most are excellent,notably 'Willa',a surprisingly gentle ghost story ; 'The Gingerbread Girl',my personal favorite,is a pure page-turner about a woman in the hands of a homicidal maniac ; 'Rest Stop' tells of a situation that could happen to anyone and could turn very nasty indeed ; 'The Cat from Hell' is about,well,a cat from hell,and 'N", which King mentions in his useful notes which complete the book as influenced by Arthur Machen's 'The Great God Pan' I would have thought was influenced by H.P.Lovecraft instead,
There are many clever twists and turns to be found between these covers and all power to him for them. It is unfortunate that King being King, just cannot resist going well over the top on a couple of occasions. 'Gross-out' I believe he has called it. Other readers may well like it,but I think that he spoils himself and would be a much better writer if he reined himself back.
Apart from that a first-class collection. ( )

With this collection of short stories, King has returned to the level of suspense-driven, intimate storytelling that characterizes his best works, and it’s about time. After a string of lackluster novels, I was about to give up on my favorite author, but Just After Sunset has made me a fan again.

My favorite two stories were the two that open the collection. “Willa” is haunting and eerie, yet also romantic, a musing about what happens to the dead after they die; I found it to be more affecting than the other story that explores a similar theme, “The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates,” even though in his notes, King thought the second story was stronger. And “The Gingerbread Girl” is harrowing, heart-pumping suspense; like King, I like that in this story, everything hinges on the details.

Other standouts for me were: “Stationery Bike,” a tongue-in-cheek response to our health-obsessed culture; “The Things They Left Behind,” a meditation on September 11 and its lingering effects on the survivors; and “Ayana,” about how healing powers might work and the curse they might bring. There are some examples of vintage gross-out King, as well; do not read “The Cat From Hell” or “A Very Tight Place” unless you have a strong stomach. And of course, there are a few weak offerings, such as “Harvey’s Dream” and “Graduation Afternoon,” which both originated in dreams and show it.

I tore through even the weak stories, and simply devoured this book whole. All I can say is thank you to Mr. King for this great collection and for showing that he hasn’t lost it after all. ( )

Stephen King encouraged more people to read than all the literary prizes of the world combined and while no-one denied he was a good writer his genre, horror, precluded his being afforded much respect since the last ghost story to be taken seriously by critics was probably Macbeth.

A prolific creator of both full length novels and short stories, King dominated the field for over 20 years: more recently however he has almost abandoned the occult for the mundane and distressingly common horrors that dog human existence.

These new harrowing stories have met with critical acclaim and, because he writes so well, all but the most confirmed horror fans continue to read the new Stephen King books: personally, I find King without the occult to be like a vegetarian braai, and lacking in the essential ingredient.

In his introduction to ‘Just after Sunset’ King confides ‘there were stories I no longer knew how to write’: a stint at editing Best American Short Stories reawakened his confidence and inspired him, resulting in this collection.

I hoped this signaled a return to form. To those wonderfully spine tingling occult vignettes that comprised collections like Night Shift and Skeleton Crew or the chilling novellas in Four Past Midnight.

Alas: these stories are good, make no mistake, but they are not vintage King although they do come close to an unpopular collection he published in the early 80s called Different Seasons, his fist foray into non-horror fiction.

To be fair, at least eight of the 13 stories here contain an element of the supernatural, and all of them are pretty horrible: worse yet, most of them are believable in a way that ghosts and goblins simply are not.

We have the man imprisoned in the Port-O-san and left to die amid a sludge of reeking excrement and the young girl stricken as New York is destroyed by an atom bomb. Then there is the woman in the Florida Keys who is targeted by a psychopath and has to run for her life, or the crime writer who is at a lost when confronted with a real crime…

These and other scenarios are all too believable: we have no doubt they have happened or could happen but although the stories are exciting none of them send shivers up the spine or really engage the imagination.

As for the paranormal tales they are, if anything, more prosaic than the straight stories, Bored and anxious ghosts who don’t know they are dead, supernatural personal effects from the 9/11 Twin Towers victims, a satanic cat, telephone conversations with the deceased – not much of a thrill to be found among the lot of them.

His genius used to lie in his ability to write short stories on fantastical and unbelievable subjects and despite the fact we knew they weren’t true, could never be true, we were still scared stiff and slept with the lights on.

There are many good writers and there are many horror writers, but there are not many good horror writers: Stephen King was one, and one of the greatest, so it is a pity Just After Sunset is a tame collection of well-written but ultimately unexceptional stories, a book you can read with complete peace of mind even when alone in a old empty house in the middle of the night.

Sanitized and sedate, shorn of all but the most stolid supernatural subject matter, this is a book that will satisfy critics and book clubs: discerning horror aficionados are advised however to give it a miss. ( )

Although he is better known for his novels, Stephen King got his start writing short stories. “Just after Sunset”, his first short story collection since “Everything’s Eventual”, brings him back to his short story roots and what a glorious return it is.

“Willa” is a haunting love story. Readers (probably intentionally) will realize what is going on long before David does, but King takes his time revealing the truth. “Willa” gives new meaning to living happily ever after.

“The Gingerbread Girl”: to me this was the best story in the collection. King is known for his horror novels, but the horror in this story is all too real as Emily faces not once, but twice a living nightmare.

“Harvey’s Dream”: This story reminded me a lot of the short story “The Monkey’s Paw.” It is one of the shortest stories in the book but one that will linger in your mind long after you’ve finished reading it.

“Rest Stop”: This is an ironic short story in which the good guy finds himself in a bad situation and discovers he may not be so nice after all.

“Stationary Bike”: this story reminded me a lot of King’s novel “Rose Madder”. It’s nothing new, but mildly amusing as only King could turn the simple act of riding a stationary bike into a trip into another world.

“The Things They Left Behind” is King’s poignant tribute to 9/11. There is a touch of supernatural in the story, but the real horror comes from the events of that day.

“Graduation Afternoon”: this very short story felt like filler to me (perhaps to bring the total number of stories in the book to thirteen). There’s nothing new here and the story is forgettable.

“N.”: I know this story is a favorite of many King fans but this was my least favorite story in the book. It was a little too long and too much like Lovecraft for my taste.

“The Cat from Hell”: in his notes at the book of the book King equates this story to a hidden track on a CD. It’s definitely early King with an emphasis on horror and gross out moments. I think the story would have worked better with less horror and more subtleness.

“The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates”: another haunting love story that will stick with you long after you’ve finished reading it.

“Mute”: a quiet story (pun intended) that has a nice twist towards the end.

“Ayana” is a good, but ultimately forgettable short story.

“A Very Tight Place” is not for the squeamish and not a story to read while you’re eating. King isn’t afraid to go for the gross out and does so several times in this story. This story will have you looking at portapotties in an entirely different way.

“Just after Sunset” is a good short story collection that shows just how diverse a writer Stephen King is. ( )

Stephen has been on my shitlist recently. Finally though, a book of short stories, exactly what I was craving from him. Luckily, this didn't disappoint.

King has a distinct knack for short stories, drawing you in and scaring the bejeebus out of you that he just didn't do in his later novels. In short stories, you have such a limited space to tell your story so you have to be a bit more adept with words. My favorite stories are the ones that plop you right in the middle of a situation and then pulls you right back out again. Haruki Murakami is excellent at this.

King manages to creep the reader (ME!) out by merely suggesting a situation. For example, the story N. gave me creepies that disturbed my sleep simply by telling a story of a guy going to a shrink. The story was told by the shrink's notes and depicted a patient who had severe OCD and firmly believed that a field he had went to was possessed. That's the story, big deal, right? No, the suggestion of what the character believed was happening was enough to put the thought into the readers head. If you look at the story, it's just what a patient tells his shrink - with some dire outcomes. But still, NOTHING really happens. But I was still creeped out.

I really liked Willa although King admitted in his notes it wasn't the best (it wasn't) and The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates was on par with Willa. What happens after death is a special playground for writers with vivid imaginations.

The Cat From Hell reinforced my sincere dislike of the feline variety.

The Things They Left Behind would have pushed me over the edge, had it actually happened to me.

And lastly, of my favorites, The Gingerbread Girl actually made me hold my breath.

Good show, old man. This was a really good collection of what you do best. ( )