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    You Like It Darker: Stories
    You Like It Darker: Stories
    You Like It Darker: Stories
    Audiobook20 hours

    You Like It Darker: Stories

    Written by Stephen King

    Narrated by Stephen King and Will Patton

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    From legendary storyteller and master of short fiction Stephen King comes an extraordinary new collection of twelve short stories, many never-before-published, and some of his best EVER.

    “You like it darker? Fine, so do I,” writes Stephen King in the afterword to this magnificent new collection of twelve stories that delve into the darker part of life—both metaphorical and literal. King has, for half a century, been a master of the form, and these stories, about fate, mortality, luck, and the folds in reality where anything can happen, are as rich and riveting as his novels, both weighty in theme and a huge pleasure to read. King writes to feel “the exhilaration of leaving ordinary day-to-day life behind,” and in You Like It Darker, readers will feel that exhilaration too, again and again.

    “Two Talented Bastids” explores the long-hidden secret of how the eponymous gentlemen got their skills. In “Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream,” a brief and unprecedented psychic flash upends dozens of lives, Danny’s most catastrophically. In “Rattlesnakes,” a sequel to Cujo, a grieving widower travels to Florida for respite and instead receives an unexpected inheritance—with major strings attached. In “The Dreamers,” a taciturn Vietnam vet answers a job ad and learns that there are some corners of the universe best left unexplored. “The Answer Man” asks if prescience is good luck or bad and reminds us that a life marked by unbearable tragedy can still be meaningful.

    King’s ability to surprise, amaze, and bring us both terror and solace remains unsurpassed. Each of these stories holds its own thrills, joys, and mysteries; each feels iconic. You like it darker? You got it.

    Editor's Note

    Delight in the disturbing…

    The King of Horror — the prolific author of bestsellers like “It” and “The Dark Tower,” along with the Everand Original “Finn” — pens all-new short stories tailored to readers who delight in the disturbing. From supernatural terrors to real-world woes, each tale gives us something to fear, certainly, but also to connect with as they mine the intricacies of human nature.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateMay 21, 2024
    ISBN9781797174631
    Author

    Stephen King

    Stephen King is the author of more than sixty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes Never Flinch, the short story collection You Like It Darker, Holly (a New York Times Notable Book of 2023), Fairy Tale, Billy Summers, If It Bleeds, The Institute, Elevation, The Outsider, Sleeping Beauties (cowritten with his son Owen King), and the Bill Hodges trilogy: End of Watch, Finders Keepers, and Mr. Mercedes (an Edgar Award winner for Best Novel and a television series streaming on Peacock). His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller. His epic works The Dark Tower, It, Pet Sematary, Doctor Sleep, and Firestarter are the basis for major motion pictures, with It now the highest-grossing horror film of all time. He is the recipient of the 2020 Audio Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2018 PEN America Literary Service Award, the 2014 National Medal of Arts, and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King. 

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    Reviews for You Like It Darker

    4.5/5

    313 ratings21 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Loved each and every story
      Hope you enjoy it too!!!
    • 5/5
      One of the best collection of not-so-short King stories. All are top notch, mature, well crafted, and still gripping as all hell.
    • 5/5
      Enjoyable set of tales, showing different aspects of the condition known as life.
    • 5/5
      Loved it! Stories that make you think and entertain ideas of the supernatural.
    • 5/5
      I will say with 100% of my being I love his books. This, albeit short stories, is the best.
    • 5/5
      Steven King always delivers. The stories build on other novels or just drop you into "day in the life" scenarios that are mysterious & dripping with dark wisdom.
    • 5/5
      I am a huge Stephen King fan so perhaps I am biased. But I admit when his stories fall short. This collection rocked. I enjoyed it all the way through!
    • 5/5
      Very Funny anda brigth, no misse it!
      King in hre Best
    • 5/5
      This was King at his very best. Think Night Shift, but with more polish. Think Skeleton Crew, but with even more creativity. Think Just After Sunset, but with even more shocks. I’ll end with something trite: You simply HAVE to read it.
    • 5/5
      Great stories! All unique & varied which kept me interested till the very end!
    • 5/5
      I get a feeling that nothing else can compare to when cracking an SK book.

      My fave was the Answer Man, but there’s not a junker in the whole book!

      This one doesn’t disappoint!

      The worst part of this book was the end- only because there is no more of it!

      Thank You Mr King
    • 5/5
      Excellent as always. Great new stories. He's done it again
    • 5/5
      Loved it. The involvement of past characters from other books was unexpected.
    • 5/5
      Another great collection of short stories from the horror King!
    • 5/5
      Sooooo Gooood! Mr. King never disappoints. I will never think of rattlesnakes the same way.
    • 5/5
      Despite Stephen King’s own admission that he struggles with writing short stories, I’ve always been a huge fan of his short story collections. YLID is no exception. I loved this book, and as always, Will Patton is an extraordinary narrator. I hope he continues to narrate more of King’s work in the future because I find myself going back to re-listen to all of the books he’s read thus far over and over again. His narration just sucks me into the story and doesn’t let go. Absolutely phenomenal.
    • 5/5
      This was a great read! I loved the new and old short stories!!!
    • 5/5
      King may have a hard time writing short stories, but boy does he excel at it!
    • 5/5
      Excellent as always. Some stories have that classic King style, but all of them were great.
    • 5/5
      Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream is exceptional even for King. It may be my favorite piece by him I’ve ever read.
      We listened to the audiobook on a road trip and could hardly bear to pull over for pit stops because that novella was so enthralling. We were immediately brain storming for who we’d cast as the characters if it ever went into film production and somehow that task was left to us.
      And there are several other very excellent short stories in this collection. On Slide Inn Road, The Answer Man, Laurie, Willie the Weirdo, and The Dreamers all spring to mind.
    • 5/5
      Amazing, as always. Mr King has the ability to: put you on the edge of your seat, make your skin crawl, bring a warm thoughtful smile to your face. I’ll be able to listen to this over and over.

      1 person found this helpful