In what by now should be a surprise to exactly no one, Mr. King does it once again with his latest collection of twelve short stories designed to thrill, chill, and entertain, often leaving us with a tasty morsel to ponder as we lie in bed waiting for sleep to come. The stories themselves are of varying length, covering such far-flung topics as first contact with an alien species, an inexplicable case of once-in-a-lifetime divination gone horribly wrong, and why that old chestnut, ‘never talk to strangers,’ isn’t just sage advice for children. While I enjoyed all of the stories, there were three real standouts in particular. “Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream” features a protagonist whose life is torn asunder while simply trying to do a decent, responsible thing. It’s a whole new riff on the old saying, ‘No good deed goes unpunished.’ “The Answer Man” posits not the question of granting three wishes, but rather granting three truthful answers to any question—past, present, or future, so long as the question isn’t predicated with ‘Should I—?’ Free will is a thing, after all, and those types of questions are strictly off limits. It’s an interesting companion piece to W.W. Jacobs’ “The Monkey’s Paw,” in that we learn to be extremely careful in choosing which questions to ask, as we may not be even remotely prepared for those brutally honest answers. Finally, in “Rattlesnakes,” we are along for the ride as a recent widower opts to stay at a friend’s house on the Keys while working through his grief for a spell. We soon learn that the next-door neighbor is a friendly old woman whose own personal tragedy has put her a little off her nut, albeit harmlessly so. Her twin sons died in a tragic rattlesnake accident decades before, and yet she still pushes around their double-wide pram, laying matching twins-y shirts and shorts as placeholders where the boys once sat. She even talks to them, but with a wink and a nod, she’ll assure you she knows they aren’t really there. Or are they? This is hardly a spoiler at this point, but perhaps the biggest surprise of all in this creepy little gem is the discovery that our bereaved narrator is none other than Vic Trenton, father of a little boy who spent a terrifying afternoon with his mother, trapped in a sweltering car that was under attack from a rabid canine by the name of Cujo. Mr. Trenton knows a thing or two about loss, himself. With that in mind, I suppose some folks might find the title of this book a little misleading, expecting the stories to be a little darker, perhaps. I suggest it depends on your definition of “darker.” These stories aren’t overtly gruesome or gory, nor are they “a triumph of the human spirit”—a catchphrase I’ve come to realize means everyone dies in the end. It’s a somber sort of darkness that we all eventually experience through the unavoidable act of aging. As Mr. King approaches his 80th spin around the sun, his introspection on the topic presents itself more and more within his output of work, and since I ain’t getting any younger either, many of those shared experiences resonate in a more meaningful way than I would have ever appreciated in my younger days. It’s some seriously good stuff, folks.

Most non-fans of Mr. King think of him as a horror writer (usually thinking of gore - which he does very well), and are unaware he gave the world The Green Mile, (Rita Hayworth and) The Shawshank Redemption, Dolores Claiborne, and (The Body) Stand By Me. When I was a bookstore owner, I used those as a comeback to the countless customers who told me they did not like King's writing. In this set of stories "Two Talented Bastids" is wonderful literature masquerading as a bit of SciFi. I wish I were very wealthy so I could buy movie rights to this one, as that would be an excellent investment. I'm sure many "friends of Bill" will not like what Mr. King has done for the 12 Steps in "The Fifth Step," but I found it to be an extremely funny look at an idea. The main character here is going to have real problems when it comes to making amends, though. "Willie the Wierdo" actually is a horror story, but it is also close to Jacob's hundred-plus year old classic "The Monkey's Paw". "Danny Coughlin's Bad Dream" is another I would love to have enough money to invest in the movie/TV rights. It is going to be an excellent production. I could see exactly the right actors for the cast all the way through it. It is also the second story here that felt to me like exquisite writing. The story "Finn" reminds me very much of a Faustian idea I once had for writing a book, but I never got around to writing it. Thank you, Mr. King for doing the hard work for me. There is no horror or supernatural in "On Slide Inn Road". It is just a very good, very tight action short story that is very satisfying. Mr. King gives a nod to O'Connor, so I guess I'll have to try reading some. "Red Screen" is a brief glimpse into a world and some characters that you know how things are going to be, but you want it to go on anyway to find out how right or wrong you are. I have to say "The Turbulence Expert" is one that just did not impress me all that much. It was an interesting idea, and I liked the characters, but it just did not take me anywhere. "Laurie" is a nice story that moves a little slowly, but that's ok because it doesn't seem to have anywhere that it wants to go. It just introduces you to some diverse characters that are very much like people in your neighborhood and family. There is a bit of excitement, but no horror or supernatural to it. "Rattlesnakes" is another that will be a good production, either movie or TV. Again I would be willing to invest in the rights for it. It comes with a tip of the hat to John D. McDonald, who is another writer whose every work I read voraciously. This one does drift into the world of supernatural and good versus evil, but not as heavily as some of Mr. King's gargantuan novels. It brings back a character from Cujo in a setting close-by Duma Key, but you don't need to have read either of those to enjoy it (to be honest, I did not recall the character actually making an appearance in Cujo). The TV/movie script will be enormously bolstered by the very real, likable ancillary characters that work throughout this novella. "The Dreamers" was an interesting idea, but for whatever reason it did not do it for me. I really liked, and felt for the narrator, but the story left me flat. I did not grasp Mr. King's reference to Cormac McCarthy, whose beautiful prose in horrific, sometimes painful to read stories, I love. The advice to performing artists is to "Always leave 'em wanting more." And Mr. King certainly does that with "The Answer Man" as the finale for this publication. As a better reviewer remarked this story "reminds us that a life marked by unbearable tragedy can still be meaningful." At the conclusion of this beautifully written piece, you definitely want more while at the same time it gives a great feeling of satisfaction. And that is good writing!