Everything's Eventual : 14 Dark Tales - Hardcover

King, Stephen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0340770732 ISBN 13: 9780340770733

Publisher: Scribner, 2002

Synopsis

A wonderfully diverse volume of compelling stories showing the richness, depth and variety of Stephen King's highly-acclaimed storytelling. The collection will include enthralling masterpieces such as LT's THEORY OF PETS, IN THE DEATHROOM and 1408; classic tales of supernatural and psychological terror and tales of everyday life with unexpected and brilliant twists such as AUTOPSY ROOM FOUR. It will also contain the highly publicised RIDING THE BULLET, only previously available as an ebook. The stories are new or have only been published as audio books, in magazines or limited book collections.

About this title

Review

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

About the Author

Stephen King is the bestselling author of more than thirty books of which the most recent are HEARTS IN ATLANTIS, DREAMCATCHER and his non-fiction book ON WRITING. He lives with his wife, the novelist Tabitha King, in Bangor, Maine.

About this edition

• Publisher: Scribner
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0340770732
• ISBN 13: 9780340770733
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 432