Search - Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales

Fine collection of King short stories, most involving ordinary people who suddenly find themselves in very non-ordinary situations. The title story is a standout, revisiting one of King's earliest themes -- the teased and tormented youngster uses his (in this case) special powers for revenge on his tormentor. Also supremely creepy is "The Road Virus Heads North", about a very special and malevolent picture. Includes "1408", which was the basis for the current (2007) movie.

This was a great book. Quite a few of these stories scared me pretty good. All in all a great book!! Have to say though I was a little dissappointed when I reached the story 1408-as many of you know that movie just recently came out. I had only seen the movie, never read the story. And I was rather dissappointed in it. But Stephen King is an awesome writer and I love all of his books. I would definetely recommend this book to anyone.

Stephen King is one of my favorite authors, and he doesn't fail to delight/chill the reader in this anthology. Of course, I've never read anything by him I didn't like.

there is a hidden gem in this book...a roland deschain story. the dark tower series is my favorite book series and i was so excited to come across another little chapter in roland's life. the rest of the stories are pretty good, but i forgot them all as soon as i found roland's story!

Some of the stories are very compelling. King is a great storyteller.

If you are buying this book for the movie tie-in to 1408, you might be disappointed because the trailer for the movie and the plot of the short story really don't seem to mirror each other, so I have a feeling the two don't resemble each other down to the smallest detail. Word is that King gave approval to the movie version, so perhaps it maintains the emotional resonance of the short story which is, by the way, as spooky and eerie as you'd expect, so much so that it is easy to forget how well King writes.


In addition to the stories, one of my favorite parts of this book was the preface and author's notes on the stories, by King. Budding writers in this genre of horror or psychological suspense/horror should focus carefully on his writing advice. He doesn't give it lightly and he also doesn't mince words. You may primarily buy this book for the great and riveting tales within, but you may also find yourself equally fascinated by what King writes about...ssbout HOW to write and his own perspective on his craft. He confesses that he has been surprised that some stories which he considered less than stellar have won awards, showing that he is still capable of being surprised by his readers and reviewers. I expect that is part of the thrill of what he does, discovering what touches readers and what does not.

In the preface, for example, he brings up an important subject, the evolution of the short story and its possible demise. He writes so deftly about such a serious subject! I happen to be equally concerned, coming from a time when short stories filled so many magazines I read, from Atlantic to Redbook to Saturday Evening Post. I grew up reading them in magazines my parents had around the house. Try to find a typical, mass market magazine that contains short stories anymore, especially by writers whose words will become classic. Pretty hard, isn't it? Sad - at least to me and, based on what he wrote, to King as well.

He also touches on an E-book he wrote and his concern about how well it did. He was both fascinated and...yes, horrified. You'll have to read this book to find out why.

Anyway, this book is well worth reading, perfect for those who only have limited time and who find the idea of an entire book on one subject too daunting. I have a feeling you'll read this one straight through, even if you THINK you're going to only dip into one or two of the short stories. You'll be hooked and enthralled before you know it.

Some of the stories pay homage to other writers and if you are queasy when it comes to reading graphic details, consider yourself forewarned. I found the first story "Autopsy Room Four" to be particularly hard going but stuck it out - and I'm glad I did. Its genesis was an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents, something I'd never have known if King hadn't pointed it out. Once he did, I actually remembered the particular episode with Joseph Cotten and- like King - agree that it was one of the spookiest Hitchcock episodes out there.