Books: Full Stars, No Dark by Stephen King Review
Reviewed by Claire (Hindsy)
I don’t think I have to tell anyone who knows me that I’m a massive Stephen King fan. So it pains me to say that I found a few of his more recent offerings disappointing to say the least. Was there really any need for Blaze? And don’t get me started on Just After Sunset…
So with trepidation I sat down with Full Stars, No Dark, and was pleasantly surprised (in part) by what I found. Containing four short stories, these are tales of dark acts committed by relatively ‘normal’ people.
1922 is where we start. We are introduced to Wilf James, his wife Arlette and his 14 year old son Henry. The James’ live on a farm surrounded by land inherited from Arlette’s father. In a nut shell, she wants to sell up and move and he doesn’t. What follows is a rather creepy tale told from Wilf’s point of view, chronicling events starting when he kills his wife, and ending with his own tortured recollection of the years that follow. This is a return to form for King. Although the story starts off slow, you immediately get the feeling that it’s building to something better. Once the idea of murder is voiced, the chill factor sets in. This is a creepy little story that may just keep you awake at night.
Next we meet Big Driver. A young novelist, Tess, attends a talk in a small town but encounters a violent rapist on her way home. A simple premise for a story, but again one which causes chills when reading. What should really be a story from a series of crime based shorts, it is the imagined voice of Tess’s Tom-Tom SatNav machine, appropriately named ‘Tom’, that offers the shift towards the horror genre. That and the hideous descriptions of the attack in this story are more evidence of a good return to form for King.
So far, so good. Two down and two to go.
And then we hit Fair Extension. For anyone who reads King, the area around Derry’s ‘Harris Extension’ should be familiar. Derry itself was the setting for IT, Dreamcatcher and Insomnia, the latter being set mainly around the Harris Extension. For me, any story which drops the reader into the familiar world of Derry has to be good. But unfortunately, this isn’t. For a story that stretches to just 25 pages, I can’t help but think why bother including it? Reading Fair Extension, I’m reminded of both Thinner and the short story The Man in the Black Suit (taken from Everything’s Eventual). But it's simply a story of a man selling his soul to the devil. A story which has been done before; and more effectively many times over if I’m honest. In my opinion, it brings nothing new to the collection.
And finally, we are told the story of Darcy Anderson, who is happily married to a man who spends a lot of time away on ‘business’. Darcy makes an unexpected discovery in her garage when she searches for batteries and what follows is a pretty predictable tale. A Good Marriage is bland, unsurprising and although readable, a disappointment.
Stephen King seemed to be back on track with some of his recent books. Cell and Lisey’s Story were both chilling novels that gave me nightmares. Unfortunately, I can’t bring myself to say the same for Full Dark, No Stars. This is a shame as the first half makes for good reading. But it’s the second half that lets it down.
For anyone heading away on holiday who has a few hours on a plane to kill, then I’d say buy this. Just ensure it’s purchased from the bargain bin at the airport rather than paying full price for what I feel amounts to a half hearted attempt at a complete collection.
Next we meet Big Driver. A young novelist, Tess, attends a talk in a small town but encounters a violent rapist on her way home. A simple premise for a story, but again one which causes chills when reading. What should really be a story from a series of crime based shorts, it is the imagined voice of Tess’s Tom-Tom SatNav machine, appropriately named ‘Tom’, that offers the shift towards the horror genre. That and the hideous descriptions of the attack in this story are more evidence of a good return to form for King.
So far, so good. Two down and two to go.
And then we hit Fair Extension. For anyone who reads King, the area around Derry’s ‘Harris Extension’ should be familiar. Derry itself was the setting for IT, Dreamcatcher and Insomnia, the latter being set mainly around the Harris Extension. For me, any story which drops the reader into the familiar world of Derry has to be good. But unfortunately, this isn’t. For a story that stretches to just 25 pages, I can’t help but think why bother including it? Reading Fair Extension, I’m reminded of both Thinner and the short story The Man in the Black Suit (taken from Everything’s Eventual). But it's simply a story of a man selling his soul to the devil. A story which has been done before; and more effectively many times over if I’m honest. In my opinion, it brings nothing new to the collection.
And finally, we are told the story of Darcy Anderson, who is happily married to a man who spends a lot of time away on ‘business’. Darcy makes an unexpected discovery in her garage when she searches for batteries and what follows is a pretty predictable tale. A Good Marriage is bland, unsurprising and although readable, a disappointment.
Stephen King seemed to be back on track with some of his recent books. Cell and Lisey’s Story were both chilling novels that gave me nightmares. Unfortunately, I can’t bring myself to say the same for Full Dark, No Stars. This is a shame as the first half makes for good reading. But it’s the second half that lets it down.
For anyone heading away on holiday who has a few hours on a plane to kill, then I’d say buy this. Just ensure it’s purchased from the bargain bin at the airport rather than paying full price for what I feel amounts to a half hearted attempt at a complete collection.
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