You Like It Darker by Stephen King – Book Review

You Like It Darker by Stephen King – Book Cover

When it comes to short story collections, it’s always best to kick things off with the strongest story. Naturally, Stephen King does exactly that. You Like It Darker opens with Two Talented Bastids, a tale that hooks you almost instantly with its air of mystery and that trademark King melancholy, the kind that lingers with you long after you’ve finished the story.

And the rest? Well, it’s the usual grab bag of everything we’ve come to expect from the prolific American master: monsters, monstrous humans, the unfathomable secrets of the universe, and, of course, those everyday American heroes who often don’t even realize they’re heroes.

Oh, and don’t forget the usual dose of darkness. Whether you like it or not.

Two Talented Bastids

What is talent? Stephen King poses the question—and then, predictably, doesn’t give a straight answer. Or at least, he leaves you wondering. There’s definitely something not quite right with the two rural buddies who suddenly start cranking out masterpieces in their forties. Could they have made a deal with the devil at a crossroads at midnight?

Two Talented Bastids is a textbook example of how to grab attention and, more importantly, keep it. As is often the case, the investigation of the mystery is far more engaging than the resolution itself.

To the ongoing tension of the introductory story and the heightened excitement of the anticipation, there is also the contrast that pits the successful father, Laird Carmody, and the even more successful Uncle Butch, against the narrator, the utterly unsuccessful son in every respect.

Two Talented Bastids also, unfortunately, unmistakably convinces you, the reader, that no matter how hard you hustle, without some extra help, you’ll never even come close to achieving the kind of feats that these two fine gentlemen—three, if you count Stephen King among them—have put on the table… (Damn it!)

The Fifth Step (& Willie the Weirdo)

I’ve never been particularly fond of reading short stories. And I wouldn’t have picked up Stephen King’s You Like It Darker collection now either, if I hadn’t decided that, since I have this blog, it might be worth slowly re-reading the (extensive) body of work of the American master and writing reviews of ALL his books. (Everyone needs a grand, important goal in life, right?)

Well, The Fifth Step (& Willie the Weirdo) is a prime example of why short stories can feel like a waste of time. Just as you’re getting into them, they’re over. There’s no room for significant character development or for building any deeper situations. Usually, they wrap up with a twist ending that either lands or doesn’t.

In the case of The Fifth Step (& Willie the Weirdo), it doesn’t quite work. I’d bet good money I’ve read this exact same twist somewhere else before. But even if that’s not the case, I’m sure at least five other writers have used it somewhere, more or less in the same way.

Willie the Weirdo is a bit of a different case, though. The absurdity of the premise is undeniably intriguing—because Willie is, in fact, pretty damn dopey. An odd choice for a protagonist. As for the twist, which you can see coming from a mile away, you dismiss it right off the bat because it seems so improbable. And yet, King still pulls it off… But hey, that’s how it’s done.

Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream

I would have said that the best story in You Like It Darker is Two Talented Bastids, wouldn’t I? Maybe so, but it’s a close tie. Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream is right up there with it. Where it edges ahead, though, is in sheer suspense.

Danny Coughlin isn’t your typical King protagonist. He’s not an intellectual; at first glance, he even seems a little too simple. But when faced with his first-ever supernatural experience—a dream leading him to a buried corpse—he has to muster all his wits.

Call the cops to report a murder but hide your identity? And then still get caught because you’re so clumsy? YOU’RE SCREWED!

If you think your fumbling might work in your favor, you’re wrong. If you think the cops will care about your inexplicable dreams, you’re wrong again. All they care about is nailing a suspect.

Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream is so nerve-wracking that your blood pressure will skyrocket while reading it. No matter what Danny tries, no one believes him. And if that weren’t enough, Detective Jalbert—who’s already pretty obsessive—starts losing his mind even more…

Finn

With Finn, we encounter the very issues mentioned in the introduction. Finn is unlucky. Well, okay, it happens. Not to an extreme degree, but enough to matter. Finn finds himself in deep trouble but gets out of it relatively easily. As for what Stephen King is trying to say with all this, it’s not entirely clear. Maybe it’s that unchecked intelligence activities can pose serious dangers? Maybe. But who knows.

Finn starts off, but then it suddenly ends before anything truly serious can develop.

On Slide Inn Road

As you read the short story collection You Like It Darker, you might notice that King, a master at crafting great child protagonists, has dialed up the age range. Most of the main characters in You Like It Darker are aging boomers. They’re in their 70s, just like the author himself, Stephen King.

But among them all, the most unbearable is Grandpop Brown. A real obnoxious, politically incorrect, restless, foul-mouthed old geezer. (Luckily, the grandkids love him.)

King pulls out all the stops to make you despise Grandpop. But it turns out that sometimes, when real action is required, it’s good to have a grumpy old boomer around!

On Slide Inn Road, alongside the four longer pieces in You Like It Darker, stands out as the collection’s most spot-on short story. It’s also the exception that proves the rule. It shows that sometimes 20 pages are more than enough for everything: excellent characters, quick yet vivid character sketches, complication after complication, ruthless villains—and an accidental (and rather annoying) hero.

Red Screen (& The Turbulence Expert)

Boring.

Boring.

Laurie

When I started writing this review, I was sure that On Slide Inn Road was my favorite among the shorter stories in You Like It Darker. But I might have been wrong! On Slide Inn Road is tricky and clever, but Laurie is genuinely heartwarming.

What’s that saying again? Pet sells?

No question about it. The recently widowed boomer, Lloyd Sunderland, knows this as well as we do. So, in Laurie, the focus isn’t really on whether Lloyd will accept the eponymous pet, but how quickly he does so. In about 10 minutes—or maybe he lets himself be persuaded for a couple of hours first. (It’s worth noting: Laurie is a border collie and mudi mix.)

Lloyd’s slow recovery from grief and a lovable little puppy is wonderful, but barely enough material for a short story. So something else is also needed here. Preferably something big, green, hungry, with lots of teeth. Still, Laurie is the kind of story where you might feel that the monster’s presence is unnecessary. But, if it didn’t show up, the story’s ending would somehow be missing… So…

Rattlesnakes

Cujo is the only Stephen King book I own but have never read. I got it as a gift about 35 years ago, it’s been sitting on my shelf ever since. (A big, bloodthirsty pet snarls on the cover!)

Rattlesnakes not only successfully spoils Cujo for me (though King really could have waited until I finally got around to reading it) but also reveals what happened to the characters 40 years later. That alone makes it worth picking up. (At least for those who didn’t skip the original. Cujo! Bad dog! Bad dog!) And also because, as mentioned earlier, all the longer pieces in You Like It Darker, including Rattlesnakes, are excellent works.

Another boomer protagonist steps into the spotlight. Vic Trenton, Donna’s ex-husband from Cujo, plans to spend the summer on Florida’s Rattlesnake Key. He doesn’t have to worry about rattlesnakes anymore—they’re all long gone. But Vic is about to face an even deadlier foe…

Rattlesnakes is a true, classic Stephen King ghost story. (The Trenton family can’t catch a break, no doubt about it.) Like the other frail protagonists in You Like It Darker, Vic Trenton also has to pull himself together, both physically and, well, spiritually.

Plus, like poor Danny Coughlin, Vic also has suspicious cops on his tail, adding more excitement for the reader.

And perhaps this is what gives most of the stories in You Like It Darker their main appeal: the spine-tingling suspense and protagonists constantly under pressure. Which, as one would expect from people approaching the end of their lives, is complemented by a melancholy, reflective look back: What went wrong? What could have been done better? Was this really all that could be made of this human life?

(For the Trentons, though, it’s really just this. That damn dog took care of that.)

The Dreamers

You don’t want to keep repeating yourself, but in the case of The Dreamers, it’s clear what it suffers from: its own brevity. The protagonist, William Davies, is excellent. (An emotionally drained but good-hearted Vietnam vet, always a great character.) The setting is Castle Rock. This works too, since Castle Rock is pretty much like the Hellmouth in Buffy.

Elgin, the mad scientist, doesn’t get much spotlight. The dangerous forces he wants to unleash are hard to take seriously, since all that’s needed to bring them about is some patience and a little Flurazepam. (Okay, but they’re still a bit creepy.)

Of course, King makes the most of the material within such a short space, but by the end of the story, the reader is left with a definite sense of unfulfilled potential. You want to know something you probably shouldn’t.

The Answer Man

Who would want to know how their life will turn out? Anyone? Clearly, it’s a terrible idea. (If you need a strong example, just think of the Atreides family: see Dune.)

In Phil Parker’s case, we’re inclined to make an exception, because he’s facing a life-changing decision where a little foresight wouldn’t hurt. And sometimes, just a tiny glimpse into the future is enough.

But sometimes, it’s definetely not enough, damn it!

So, like I said, it’s better not to know anything at all!

The Answer Man is pure nonsense. A guy on the side of the road selling you glimpses of the future for a few bucks, when he should have invested all his money in Apple stocks ages ago? That doesn’t happen!

What, then, is The Answer Man? A brief manifestation of the universe’s inexplicable whispers? Maybe, but why would the universe care about Phil Parker? Phil Parker is just an average guy.

Take the universe out of the equation, and what’s left? Phil Parker, all on his own.

An average man’s life. It’s like reading through a hefty (and emotional) John Irving novel, just shortened, but with almost the same satisfying (or, more accurately, melancholy-inducing) ending.

“That’s pretty much it,” probably says 77-year-old Stephen King. “Whether you know it ahead of time or not doesn’t matter.”

You Like It Darker?

Then you’re mostly in luck. The underlying tone of Stephen King’s short story and novella collection is dark. But isn’t that the case with every one of his books? If You Like It Darker is different in any way, it might be the prominent presence of elderly protagonists. A whole bunch of old boomers. (Of course, Stephen King is one of them now, too.) But age doesn’t stop any of them from facing off against evil forces when needed.

The four longer pieces included in the collection have all turned out great! Together, they definitely add up to a full-fledged King novel. And one of the better kinds, too.

Rating: 8.5/10

You Like It Darker by Stephen King
502 pages, Hardcover
Published in 2024 by Scribner

Other books by the author:
Holly
Fairy Tale

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