I love Stephen King so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this one.
This book is a collection of twelve short stories (although two of them are quite long) that range from science fiction to small town life to horror to just plain bizarre. I am always impressed at how King manages to make you care about his characters, even in a short story.
These stories are intended to be a little on the dark side of life in varying ways. Each one dances around fate, mortality, luck, and reality in King’s trademark weirdness.
Whilst I enjoyed each story, two stand out to me as being exceptional.
Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream – This one had me fully engrossed in the main character Danny, who has a premonition in a dream that turns his life upside down. It was so well written with all the character traits and plotlines laid out to perfection. I literally couldn’t put it down.
The other stand out was Rattlesnakes – this is a sequel to Cujo and it really takes you on a journey. It’s the longest of the stories but doesn’t feel like it. It is classic Stephen King with its creepy, nightmare inducing theme and that fine line between paranormal and losing your grip on reality.
This is my favourite book I have read this year. Easily.
-Kim, RRL Administration Centre
