“I have tried my best in Full Dark, No Stars to record what people might do, and how they might behave, under certain dire circumstances,” writes Stephen King on pages 529-530 of his “AFTERWORD.” Full Dark, No Stars, a collection of psychological suspense stories from 2010, has been sitting on my stack of Read Real Soon books for years.
“1922” features a greedy farmer who decides to murder his wife. But, after the killing, events unravel his Life. “Big Driver” shows what can happen if you take that “short cut” into the TWILIGHT ZONE. “Fair Extension” asked the question: “If you could rid yourself of all your problems, would you put them on a friend?” “A Good Marriage” centers around a wife discovering her husband’s Secret Life. Stephen King talks about how these stories came about in his “AFTERWORD.” And a bonus short story, “Under the Weather,” is frosting on the cake. Although Full Dark, No Stars is a 560-page book, the pages turned quickly. Perfect Summer reading! GRADE: B+
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1922 1
Big driver 193
Fair extension 357
A good marriage 405
AFTERWORD 527
Under the Weather 535
Never read these and not sure why . I have found King to often be at his best in novellas. The Body, Shawshank, Apt Pupil, The Mist. Both Good Marriage and 1922 are movies and available on Netflix.
Steve, “1922” and “Good Marriage” demonstrate some of Stephen King’s excellent writing. I’ll check these out on NETFLIX. Thanks for the heads up!
I agree with you. Good one. I’ve read all of King’s collection of novellas and shorter stories now, and as a rule, he is probably better as the shorter than longer length.
Jeff, I just find most Stephen King novels too long. These novellas have just the right length.
Boy, I missed this collection entirely.
Patti, I forgot all about FULL DARK, NO STARS. It was sitting in my Read Real Soon pile for years before I finally got around to reading it this Summer.
I had no idea either of these movies existed. 1922 seems to have gotten a lot better reviews than the other.
Jeff, I think “1922” is my favorite story in FULL DARK, NO STARS. But “Good Marriage” is very good, too.
“This Summer” is right. It’s been in the 90s for days and will hit 101 today, with more 100s and high 90s coming. I HATE THIS HEAT even if the humidity is under 20%.
As for the book, I’m not a King fan.
Rick, we’re bracing for another 90 degree day tomorrow (it’s 86 degrees right now…and humid). I hate heat and humidity, too. And bugs. The stories in FULL DARK, NO STARS center around psychological suspense rather than horror.