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A review by alexampersand
Everything's Eventual by Stephen King
5.0
It took a little while for me to really settle into this, but I'm not sure if that was more to do with not having a good environment to read in. But regardless, most of the stories were good at best, with some being absolutely AMAZING. Every story had its own characters, its own story and message, and the Stephen King style that I absolutely adore.
So let's go through one by one...
Autopsy Room Four - 4/5
A good story, nicely told.
The Man in the Black Suit - 5/5
Really, pretty damn creepy.
All That You Love Will Be Carried Away - 3/5
This was one of the stories where I'm not sure if it was stronger or weaker for being a short story. Maybe the whole point was to not have the extra detail, or maybe with more words I would have actually felt something from the story. It was interesting enough, but I just... didn't really care.
The Death of Jack Hamilton - 3/5
I just don't really care about outlaws. I respect Stephen King trying a variety of styles, but I wish he would stick to examining human horror and terror and maximising the creep factor.
In The Deathroom - 3/5
And again... a Mexican gangster story just didn't really do it for me. I could deal with it in a short story, but it didn't add anything to my life.
The Little Sisters of Eluria - 4/5
I've never read any of the Dark Tower, so I wasn't looking forward to this because, even though it says it's accessible for people unfamiliar with the series, I still worried that I wouldn't get it at all. To my delight, it was indeed entirely accessible (probably largely because it takes place before the series begins). I found myself totally caught up in the characters and the world, and now I'm actually really excited to read The Dark Tower.
Everything's Eventual - 5/5
It's what I love about fiction - concepts that are expanded to reveal a hidden world that we know nothing about. And a short story provides just enough detail to become acquainted and discover the secrets, without getting bogged down in the logistics.
L.T.'s Theory of Pets - 4/5
I wasn't entirely sold on the pets concept, but I really enjoyed the dynamic and how the tone changed part way through.
The Road Virus Heads North - 5/5
Like a mini version of Rose Madder, and I found myself actually creeped out reading it.
Lunch at the Gotham Café - 4/5
It was good, but I didn't find it quite as fascinating as Stephen King appeared to in the introduction.
That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is In French - 4/5
I liked it, but this one where I felt it suffered from only being a short story. I don't feel like it fully got a resolution, and I didn't feel completely connected. But I loved the concept.
1408 - 5/5
Brilliant, and found myself actually a bit terrified reading it on a beach.
Riding The Bullet - 5/5
Wow. This is one of my favourite things from Stephen King. Not supernatural, but dealing with human terror and emotion. It sent chills down my spine in the Spanish sunshine.
Luckey Quarter - 3/5
It just seemed a bit... something of nothing. It was an okay ending to the book, feeling more like an afterthought or epilogue rather than an actual story up to the calibre of the previous two.
So let's go through one by one...
Autopsy Room Four - 4/5
A good story, nicely told.
The Man in the Black Suit - 5/5
Really, pretty damn creepy.
All That You Love Will Be Carried Away - 3/5
This was one of the stories where I'm not sure if it was stronger or weaker for being a short story. Maybe the whole point was to not have the extra detail, or maybe with more words I would have actually felt something from the story. It was interesting enough, but I just... didn't really care.
The Death of Jack Hamilton - 3/5
I just don't really care about outlaws. I respect Stephen King trying a variety of styles, but I wish he would stick to examining human horror and terror and maximising the creep factor.
In The Deathroom - 3/5
And again... a Mexican gangster story just didn't really do it for me. I could deal with it in a short story, but it didn't add anything to my life.
The Little Sisters of Eluria - 4/5
I've never read any of the Dark Tower, so I wasn't looking forward to this because, even though it says it's accessible for people unfamiliar with the series, I still worried that I wouldn't get it at all. To my delight, it was indeed entirely accessible (probably largely because it takes place before the series begins). I found myself totally caught up in the characters and the world, and now I'm actually really excited to read The Dark Tower.
Everything's Eventual - 5/5
It's what I love about fiction - concepts that are expanded to reveal a hidden world that we know nothing about. And a short story provides just enough detail to become acquainted and discover the secrets, without getting bogged down in the logistics.
L.T.'s Theory of Pets - 4/5
I wasn't entirely sold on the pets concept, but I really enjoyed the dynamic and how the tone changed part way through.
The Road Virus Heads North - 5/5
Like a mini version of Rose Madder, and I found myself actually creeped out reading it.
Lunch at the Gotham Café - 4/5
It was good, but I didn't find it quite as fascinating as Stephen King appeared to in the introduction.
That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is In French - 4/5
I liked it, but this one where I felt it suffered from only being a short story. I don't feel like it fully got a resolution, and I didn't feel completely connected. But I loved the concept.
1408 - 5/5
Brilliant, and found myself actually a bit terrified reading it on a beach.
Riding The Bullet - 5/5
Wow. This is one of my favourite things from Stephen King. Not supernatural, but dealing with human terror and emotion. It sent chills down my spine in the Spanish sunshine.
Luckey Quarter - 3/5
It just seemed a bit... something of nothing. It was an okay ending to the book, feeling more like an afterthought or epilogue rather than an actual story up to the calibre of the previous two.