Are you a fan of Stephen King? Stephen King has been loyally followed from his very beginning when Carrie pushed him into the limelight. Fans applauded and esteemed him "The King of Horror" and critics howled as King took his seat on the throne of his genre where he graciously accepted the honor.
Fans of Kings books, myself included, hang on his every word in each of his blood-splattered creations. Here are just a few reviews I have found in my search of the web. I couldn't have said it better myself.
"The terror, which would not end for another twenty-eight years--if it ever did end--began, so far as I can tell, with a boat made from a sheet of newspaper floating down a gutter swollen with rain."
This is the first line of "It," the beginning to one of Stephen King's masterpieces, and probably the most incredible story I've ever read. Those who complain about it's length... they need patience. Those who complain about its characters... they need to look around at themselves and others. Those who complain about it being vulgar, vile, or horrific... that's part of the story, and not to embrace it means you miss out on something extraordinary.
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Stephen King again proves that he can mesmerize readers with his graphic imagination and story-spinning skills. JUST AFTER SUNSET, which plumbs an astonishing range of genres, gives fans everything they've come to anticipate from him. As the author explains in his introduction, he has been away from the short story game for a while. His last collection, EVERYTHING'S EVENTUAL, was published more than six years ago. In fact, King tells us, he feared he had lost his knack entirely. But serving as an editor for one of the annual BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES reinspired him.
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Although I have never been an advocate of the view that Stephen King was losing his touch, this collection [Just After Sunset Stories] seems to offer a version of King with so much energy and creativity that some of his more recent works pale in comparison. It is an intense and generous sampler of short fiction that truly shows King at his best, whether you consider his best to be his horror or his more mainstream work.
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First, I'm an avid Stephen King fan. I'm pretty sure I've read all of his books but I don't think I can say I've read every word he's written....but I have to be close. After reading Just After Sunset, I'm convinced that King's true talent lies in the short story/novella sphere. He is a master at developing stories and characters quickly and like a spider can spin his web with perfection. His novels, all of them, are worth reading. You won't be sorry having invested the time with any of them, but his true masterpieces are in his collections of short stories and novellas.
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Casting aside his love of elaborate character and town histories and penchant for delayed gratification, King yanks readers off their feet within the first few pages; dragging them into the fray and offering no chance catch their breath until the very last page.
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I've compiled a list of some of the remarkable gifts Stephen King has given to his fans. If you are a fan of King, let me know if I've missed any good ones. If you're a fan of horror, start reading King and let me know what you think.
'Salem's Lot
'Salem's Lot Illustrated Edition
Bag of Bones
Black House
Carrie
Cell: A Novel
Christine
Colorado Kid, The
Cujo (Signet)
Cycle of the Werewolf
Dark Half, The
Dark Tower: Song of Susannah, The
Dark Tower: The Drawing of the Three, The
Dark Tower: The Gunslinger, The
Dark Tower: The Waste Lands, The
Dark Tower: Wizard and Glass, The
Dark Tower: Wolves of the Calla, The
Dark Tower, The
Dead Zone, The
Desperation
Dolores Claiborne
Dreamcatcher
Duma Key: A Novel
The Eyes of the Dragon
Firestarter
From A Buick 8
Gerald's Game
The Gingerbread Girl
Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, The
Green Mile: Coffey on the Mile, The
Green Mile: Coffey's Hands, The
Green Mile: Night Journey, The
Green Mile: The Bad Death of Eduard Delacroix, The
Green Mile: The Complete Serial Novel, The
Green Mile: The Mouse on the Mile, The
Green Mile: The Two Dead Girls, The
Insomnia
Just After Sunset: Stories
It (Signet Books)
Lisey's Story: A Novel
The Living Dead
The Long Walk
Misery
Needful Things
Pet Sematary
Plant: Zenith Rising, The
Rose Madder
The Shining
The Stand: Expanded Edition: For the First Time Complete and Uncut (Signet)
Talisman, The
Tommyknockers, The
Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse
TRIVIA: Did you know that "Richard Bachman" is a pseudonym that Stephen King used until Bachman's true identity was discovered by fans, after which he only published one more Bachman novel.
Here's a link where you can find the full collection of Stephen King Books.
Enjoy!
