Helpful Score: 8
I've read almost all of King's works and this is by and large, one of his darkest collections of stories. Presented here are 4 stories: 1922, Big Driver, Fair Extension, and A Good Marriage. Stephen King himself admits in the afterword that these stories are somewhat harsh. With that being said, I loved them all! If you're new to Stephen King's work, this might just be the one to start with first. All of them are very tightly written with no spare prose in sight. 1922 is about a man, Wilfred James, who settles a land dispute with his wife by killing her, with a fair amount of problems afterwards. Big Driver is about an author who takes a shortcut home with devastating and life-changing results. Fair Extension is also a grim story, but with a dark sense of humor about a man who makes a pact with Mr. Elvid to change his life and those of others he knows. And A Good Marriage is about a dark secret between a husband and wife.
This is another great from the master of horror and is not to be missed!
This is another great from the master of horror and is not to be missed!
Helpful Score: 5
Thoroughly enjoyed "Full Dark, No Stars".Stephen King does some of his best work in the form of long stories.
Helpful Score: 4
Another horror must! If you like Stephen King; you'll love this one!
Helpful Score: 3
Stephen King at his best! Four excellent short stories with a "real world" background that makes them even scarier. A little different in some ways than his other work but still classic King entertainment.
Helpful Score: 2
Each of these four stories are good in their own right. The first story "1922" about a man and his son who murders the wife/mom is probably the best of the four. The second story "Big Driver" about a woman who is brutally raped by a man who stops to assist her when her car is stranded on a deserted road, had the potential of being the most terrifying but the ending was rather anti-climatic. "Fair Extensions" about a man who sells his soul to the devil is vintage King. "A Good Marriage" is a great character study about a wife who finds her husband is leading a murderous double life. This story is very engaging and is based on the real-life BTK killer. As a whole, this is one of Kings better short-story (long-story) collections. It's worth the read.
Helpful Score: 2
My thought was 'if Edgar Allen Poe were alive now, he'd have written stories like these.' Very engaging and absorbing stories...keeps you turning the pages....so allow yourself some uninterrupted time. Psychological thrillers.
Helpful Score: 1
Not King's greatest work, but far from his worst. Worth a read. There's some really good stuff in this.
Helpful Score: 1
King is a master and I love his short stories. The reader just doesn't see it coming. His endings are deliciously twisted. King does a thorough inspection of what lies beneath the surface; what people are truly capable of doing under the right circumstances. What happens when a man kills his wife and enlists the help of his son to do it? What happens when a rapist/serial killer's victim survives and does some detective work of her own? What happens when a woman discovers her husband's terrible secret? What happens when you can give away your illness, your pain and suffering? Those are the questions answered in this short story compilation. You will enjoy this. I did.
Helpful Score: 1
Great short stories. I'm usually not into very many short stories but King tends to know how to do it right. Here's each one rated individually:
1922 (4 stars) - guy kills his wife in order to get the land her family owns. Only it's not that simple. Things always come back to haunt you.
Big Driver (3.5 stars) - women is raped and looks for revenge. Well put together and keeps you entertained. Kind of a "been there, read that" story but still held well on it's own.
Fair Extension (4 stars) - this one was hard to rate. Probably because it was hard to read. Not that it was a bad read but the premise was kind of horrid. The guy in this story is dying of cancer. He happens across a street vendor out of nowhere and finds out he can make is life better but it will be at the expense of someone else and he has to pick that person.
A Perfect Marriage (5 stars) - My favorite of the book. This is about a happily married woman with 2 kids. Her husband of 27 years is a mild mannered accountant. But her husband has a secret and when she finds it out, her whole world changes.
Lovely book full of mixed emotions. Highly recommended.
1922 (4 stars) - guy kills his wife in order to get the land her family owns. Only it's not that simple. Things always come back to haunt you.
Big Driver (3.5 stars) - women is raped and looks for revenge. Well put together and keeps you entertained. Kind of a "been there, read that" story but still held well on it's own.
Fair Extension (4 stars) - this one was hard to rate. Probably because it was hard to read. Not that it was a bad read but the premise was kind of horrid. The guy in this story is dying of cancer. He happens across a street vendor out of nowhere and finds out he can make is life better but it will be at the expense of someone else and he has to pick that person.
A Perfect Marriage (5 stars) - My favorite of the book. This is about a happily married woman with 2 kids. Her husband of 27 years is a mild mannered accountant. But her husband has a secret and when she finds it out, her whole world changes.
Lovely book full of mixed emotions. Highly recommended.
Helpful Score: 1
I just got done reading this book. Its a good book! Couldn't put it down. Stephen King did it again.
Helpful Score: 1
I've been a fan of Stephen King since I was in my early teens. After barely being able to get through Bag of Bones and Lisey's Story, I had sworn off this author forever. Then saw FD,NS at the library and just couldn't help myself. So glad I took the chance! The book is a real page turner, very dark but so interesting. I feel like I have just reunited with an old friend.
'I believe there is another man inside every man, a stranger...' so writes Wilfred Leland James in the early pages of the riveting confession that makes up '1922' - the first of five mesmerizing tales from Stephen King. All these stories have the prevailing theme of retribution. For Wilfred James, that stranger is awakened when his wife Arlette proposes selling the family homestead and moving to Omaha, setting into motion a gruesome chain of murder and madness.
In 'Big Driver', a cozy mystery writer named Tess encounters the stranger along a back road in Massachusetts when she takes a shortcut home from a book-club engagement. Violated and left for dead, Tess plots a revenge against her attacker so ruthless that it brings her face-to-face with another stranger; the one inside her soul.
'Fair Extension' involves making a deal with the devil. Dave Streeter is dying from cancer when he meets a traveling salesman by the name of George Elvid along a road in Derry, Maine. When George Elvid sells Dave a 'life extension', Dave is 'miraculously' cured from cancer and is provided a rich recompense for a lifetime lived that is full of resentment.
In 'A Good Marriage', while her husband of twenty years is away on one of his many business trips, Darcy Anderson searches for batteries in their garage. Her toe knocks into a box under her husband's worktable, suddenly revealing the horrifying stranger within his soul and utterly shocking Darcy to her core.
In 'Under the Weather', Brad's wife, Ellen isn't feeling too well one morning. So, being the good husband he is, Brad decides to let her sleep while he goes off to work. His only concern is that the people coming to check on the noxious smell that permeates the apartment building where they live will wake up Ellen when she desperately needs her rest.
I caved, I admit it! I was doing so well, reading books that had been on my bookshelf for an incredibly long time - then one trip to my local grocery store causes me to slip off the bookshelf! :) I am so glad I did, though. This book was much longer than the ones that I usually read, but I found it totally engrossing! It reached out and grabbed me from the first sentence, and wouldn't let me go until I turned the last page. I have said before that although I like Stephen King as an author, I am not always entirely sure whether I will enjoy his books all the time. However, this book is definitely a keeper for me and I give it an A+!
In 'Big Driver', a cozy mystery writer named Tess encounters the stranger along a back road in Massachusetts when she takes a shortcut home from a book-club engagement. Violated and left for dead, Tess plots a revenge against her attacker so ruthless that it brings her face-to-face with another stranger; the one inside her soul.
'Fair Extension' involves making a deal with the devil. Dave Streeter is dying from cancer when he meets a traveling salesman by the name of George Elvid along a road in Derry, Maine. When George Elvid sells Dave a 'life extension', Dave is 'miraculously' cured from cancer and is provided a rich recompense for a lifetime lived that is full of resentment.
In 'A Good Marriage', while her husband of twenty years is away on one of his many business trips, Darcy Anderson searches for batteries in their garage. Her toe knocks into a box under her husband's worktable, suddenly revealing the horrifying stranger within his soul and utterly shocking Darcy to her core.
In 'Under the Weather', Brad's wife, Ellen isn't feeling too well one morning. So, being the good husband he is, Brad decides to let her sleep while he goes off to work. His only concern is that the people coming to check on the noxious smell that permeates the apartment building where they live will wake up Ellen when she desperately needs her rest.
I caved, I admit it! I was doing so well, reading books that had been on my bookshelf for an incredibly long time - then one trip to my local grocery store causes me to slip off the bookshelf! :) I am so glad I did, though. This book was much longer than the ones that I usually read, but I found it totally engrossing! It reached out and grabbed me from the first sentence, and wouldn't let me go until I turned the last page. I have said before that although I like Stephen King as an author, I am not always entirely sure whether I will enjoy his books all the time. However, this book is definitely a keeper for me and I give it an A+!
I was a voracious reader of Stephen King when I was in college. His books were such a great escape from boring/tedious/difficult textbooks. I always marveled at his storytelling ability and his ability to give life to characters with just a few subtle sentences.
I loved "Full Dark No Stars". It contains four short stories. Three of them were brilliant in my opinion. One of them good. Yes they were signature Stephen King chilling. Somewhat macabre. And always thought provoking themes about life and morality and mortality!
It was one of those books that when I got to the last 20 pages of the very last story, I savored those pages, only allowing myself to read a few at a time. I just didn't want the book to end.
If you are a Stephen King fan, I highly recommend this book. If you aren't a Stephen King fan, read it anyway.
I loved "Full Dark No Stars". It contains four short stories. Three of them were brilliant in my opinion. One of them good. Yes they were signature Stephen King chilling. Somewhat macabre. And always thought provoking themes about life and morality and mortality!
It was one of those books that when I got to the last 20 pages of the very last story, I savored those pages, only allowing myself to read a few at a time. I just didn't want the book to end.
If you are a Stephen King fan, I highly recommend this book. If you aren't a Stephen King fan, read it anyway.
I always get so excited to see another Stephen King book come out, but I have to admit slight apprehension as well. There is always a tiny nagging voice in the back of my head that asks "could this book disappoint?" and "what if he is losing his charm?" but fear not Stephen King fans, this book shall not disappoint you. I found this to be one of my favorites that he has come out with. If you are a fan, do not pass this book up.
I'm new to reading SK. I think this is only my 4th book I have read of his. I will tell you I loved it. My favorite story was 1922. I could not put this book down read all 4 stories in 2 days. Worth buying and I believe all SK fans will enjoy it as much as I have.
I enjoyed this book. I liked that there was a bunch of stories all in one book. All the stories were great reads. Stephen King never fails to deliver, even with short stories.
In his afterword to this collection of four very harrowing novellas, King states "the stories in this book are harsh. You may have found them hard to read in places. If so, be assured that I found them equally hard to write in places." Well, this collection was very dark indeed as the title implies. All four novellas really dug into the darkness of the human experience and left the reader questioning the basic goodness of mankind.
"1922" - This story takes place on a farm in Nebraska where a man decides that he must murder his wife to save the farm. He coerces his son to help him in this endeavor and this act leads to rather dire consequences for the man and his son.
"Big Driver" - The tale of a woman writer of "cozy" mysteries who after giving a presentation at a gathering at a not too distant town's library, is directed to take a short cut back home using her GPS. But by taking this short cut, she ends up with a flat tire and is brutalized and raped by what she thought was a good Samaritan who said he could change her tire.
"Fair Extension" - This is the shortest story of the group but it also packs a punch. A man is dying of cancer and happens onto a vendor named Elvid (scramble of devil) who convinces him he can extend his life for a price. The worst of the price is that he has to pass on his bad fate to someone else, preferably someone he hates. But are these consequences he can live with?
"A Good Marriage" - A woman is married for 27 years to a man who she discovers is actually a serial killer. Can this be true and if so what should she do about it?
I think this is probably the best collection of King's shorter fiction that I have read since DIFFERENT SEASONS which contained some of my favorites of his including "The Body," the basis for the movie "Stand By Me" and "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" also the basis for the wonderful movie. FULL DARK, NO STARS was very DARK and compelling reading that I would highly recommend.
"1922" - This story takes place on a farm in Nebraska where a man decides that he must murder his wife to save the farm. He coerces his son to help him in this endeavor and this act leads to rather dire consequences for the man and his son.
"Big Driver" - The tale of a woman writer of "cozy" mysteries who after giving a presentation at a gathering at a not too distant town's library, is directed to take a short cut back home using her GPS. But by taking this short cut, she ends up with a flat tire and is brutalized and raped by what she thought was a good Samaritan who said he could change her tire.
"Fair Extension" - This is the shortest story of the group but it also packs a punch. A man is dying of cancer and happens onto a vendor named Elvid (scramble of devil) who convinces him he can extend his life for a price. The worst of the price is that he has to pass on his bad fate to someone else, preferably someone he hates. But are these consequences he can live with?
"A Good Marriage" - A woman is married for 27 years to a man who she discovers is actually a serial killer. Can this be true and if so what should she do about it?
I think this is probably the best collection of King's shorter fiction that I have read since DIFFERENT SEASONS which contained some of my favorites of his including "The Body," the basis for the movie "Stand By Me" and "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption" also the basis for the wonderful movie. FULL DARK, NO STARS was very DARK and compelling reading that I would highly recommend.
There were 4 stories in this book and each one was a real page turner. Only King can take the "every-day" actions and behaviors, and turn them into something dark. The book was entertaining and fast paced. Once I started it, it was hard to put down.
I was excited to have another new King read available. Goodness knows I have poured over all his books. The book has four newly published novellas. All of which are typical SK. 1922, Big Driver, Fair Extension, A Good Marriage. All with a theme of retribution. I was not overly fond of the first three stories but A Good Marriage is one I hope to see on the Silver Screen!
Now this is the Stephen King writing I used to enjoy so much. Stories with real characters. I loved this book.
This is very good stephen king! He is back to his old self in these stories about real and not so real monsters! My favorite story has to be A Good Marriage. All four stories are winners!
I often prefer King's short story collections to his novels (though many of those are quite good too) and this collection is no exception. He really is a masterful story teller and these four stories (2 with female narrators) are amazing. They are all dark, one is a bit funny, some are creepy, and one made me cry. I am impressed by how well he wrote two stories from female perspectives and how truly they rang even when tackling issues like marriage and sexual violence from the female perspective. I got my copy from the library and back it goes tomorrow to pass onto the next lucky reader. I wish he wrote more short story collections as I always enjoy them immensely.
Wonderfully dark, creepy, and to quote Mr. King, each story features "everyday people in extraordinary situations." The things these characters experience, whether or not by choice, will make the hair at the back of your neck stand on end and make you wonder what you would do in similar circumstances, because it could happen to you. My favorites were Big Driver and A Good Marriage. This book is a humdinger--hands down--and includes some of King's best writing. 4.5 stars.
Stephen King at his best. Loved every one of these stories - Big Driver was my favorite.
I think Stephen King is at his best with short stories. These four are particularly good . Creepy and satisfying.
I think King's best format is short story. And this collection was incredible. He writes in an unpretentious way but the "plainness" of it brings the characters and their circumstances to life. There are times when you'll feel queasy during these stories. Fantastic collection of short stories.
i have read all of Stephen King's other short story collections so I was excited to start reading this one. Tried to read 1st story about the husband, wife, and son,and found it very disturbing and eventually just had to stop reading it. Then I tried reading the second story about the author who promotes her book then finds herself stranded... ended up not finishing this story either. I am not excited to continue. These stories, as another reviewer mentioned, are very dark and disturbing. They are not what I was expecting from King's short story collection.
1922 is written in confession format. Wilfred killed his wife with the help of his son because she wanted to move off the farm and into the city. What happens to them next could either be considered fate or a guilty mans punishment. With a mix of an Edgar Allen Poe and Bonnie and Clyde mixed together, King delivers an eerie tale of the Conniving Man inside.
Big Driver dives into the mind of a woman named Tess who after being led to a shortcut is raped by a demented man. She comes to find out that the mother of this man is the one who sent her that way and has sent many others into his clutches. They never returned but she climbs out of the pit and makes her way home. Knowing that her career could end if it got out the Courageous Woman inside her is going to get her revenge.
Fair Extension Im sure will resonated with a lot of people. To grab onto that last chance to extend your life at the cost of ruining someone you have been jealous of your entire life. Would you do it? King places Dave Streeter with this proposal. Streeter whose life has been shortened by cancer just has to pick someone else to transfer his dirty onto someone else and make a generous contribution each year of his extended life. Now he must watch his friends life crumble as his flourishes just because of a jealousy that has been building since they were young.
My favorite tale is A Good Marriage. Darcy stumbles upon her husbands deep dark secret and must decide if she wants to ruin her life and her childrens life or should she pretend and exact her own kind of revenge. She becomes the Darker Wife.
Stephen King delivers again and smashes it out of the ballpark. I love each story in this collection, especially A Good Marriage. Nobody can deliver a short story like King. There is a beginning, middle and end that never leaves you feeling like anything was missing. How he comes up with his ideas is also told in his Afterword which sheds some light on certain aspects of why he wrote each story the way he did. Right away when I started reading A Good Marriage I thought of the BTK killer and sure enough that is what gave him the idea for that story.
Big Driver dives into the mind of a woman named Tess who after being led to a shortcut is raped by a demented man. She comes to find out that the mother of this man is the one who sent her that way and has sent many others into his clutches. They never returned but she climbs out of the pit and makes her way home. Knowing that her career could end if it got out the Courageous Woman inside her is going to get her revenge.
Fair Extension Im sure will resonated with a lot of people. To grab onto that last chance to extend your life at the cost of ruining someone you have been jealous of your entire life. Would you do it? King places Dave Streeter with this proposal. Streeter whose life has been shortened by cancer just has to pick someone else to transfer his dirty onto someone else and make a generous contribution each year of his extended life. Now he must watch his friends life crumble as his flourishes just because of a jealousy that has been building since they were young.
My favorite tale is A Good Marriage. Darcy stumbles upon her husbands deep dark secret and must decide if she wants to ruin her life and her childrens life or should she pretend and exact her own kind of revenge. She becomes the Darker Wife.
Stephen King delivers again and smashes it out of the ballpark. I love each story in this collection, especially A Good Marriage. Nobody can deliver a short story like King. There is a beginning, middle and end that never leaves you feeling like anything was missing. How he comes up with his ideas is also told in his Afterword which sheds some light on certain aspects of why he wrote each story the way he did. Right away when I started reading A Good Marriage I thought of the BTK killer and sure enough that is what gave him the idea for that story.
Very good stories!
Here is Stephen King at his best. I am a great fan of his short stories and novellas, and these rank right up there with my favorites. I wouldn't be surprised if one or two of them are optioned into movies.
* * *. Short story collection. King gives us 4 short novellas regarding people in unforseen settings. This is not Horror King, it is Dark Character-Study King. And it's good. NOT great, but good.
Excellent collection of short stories - I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
Dark, twisted, and shocking. Stephen King at his best! There are four short stories in this book and I couldn't pick a favorite because they are all so good. Although at times, parts made me cringe it was worth the read. Definitely a page turner!
Three tales of Stephen King coming on FULL STEAM with writing that some will call "Dark". Well it is, so why are you going there in the first place? Because King brings light upon subjects with clarity like no other writer. These three shorts explore the mind of individuals and actions that are scary yet intensely drawing by their very nature.A read that literally turns it's own pages and brings you along.A very,very good read - but not for the timid. You have been warned !
Always like Stephen Kings books.
