Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales (2005) - Plot & Excerpts
This being my first short story collection by Mr. King, I will score each story individually, and average them together (for those of you who aren't keen with math, that means I'll add them up and divide by the number of stories - in this case fourteen). In order:(note: asterisks ***means spoilers)Autopsy Room Four: 3I know, Four is in the title, but somehow I still give it a 3. This story was a good example of fun old horror (and I don't actually mean fun). A man is trapped in his soon-to-be-dissected body in an autopsy room. Is he dead, but still inhabiting his body? Or is he really still alive? With King, it could be either. It really created that "I'm trapped" feeling a lot of good horror stories have. My only problem with it was ***that the suspense really died out toward the end. It was going strong, building and keeping me on the edge of my seat, when... thphthhh. The explanation about the snake, after the climax, did not feel all that necessary. Endings have been better.The Man in the Black Suit: 4This won the O. Henry Award, which I knew going into it. I guess I expected a little more from it, which is why this is a 4 instead of a 5, but aside from that, it's a very well-written story. It's told by an old man on his deathbed, recounting the time as a child when he met the Devil. The voice of the piece captures the simplistic diction of the grown-farmboy perfectly, while also keeping the mystical air of it all. I could have done with a little more ***(the scene with the Devil lasts a very short amount of time), but otherwise, good.All That You Love Will Be Carried Away: 5A lot of people seemed to dislike this one, but it was one of my favorites in the collection. I'm going to put out asterisks right away, because I don't want to give away any of this story. ***It concerns a traveling salesman who, upon stopping at a hotel to commit suicide, considers a notebook he's been keeping throughout the years. It contains poignant or funny graffiti he's collected. This story really had a message to it: there's a deeper meaning in life that can be found in unexpected places. The ambiguous ending (does he do it or doesn't he?) sealed the deal for me.The Death of Jack Hamilton: 3Like Black Suit, the voice narrating this story was definitely a strong point. Unfortunately, I'm afraid it was the ONLY strong point for this one. We know what will happen from the title, and the other big events are all summed up in the exposition, before the story even gets going. Sure, how it happens makes the story worth reading, and it was an interesting take on an actual event in history, but there really wasn't any suspense, any "What will happen next?"In the Deathroom: 3I was excited about it from the get-go. Unfortunately, that excitement died out. At the mention of torture, I expected a somewhat grislier story. After the previous ones, I was ready for something gritty and painful. To be honest, it was neither. The premise was good, and it was written well, but it wasn't really what I was looking for.Little Sisters of Eluria: 5I'll be honest: I'm a Dark Tower fan, majorly. After having finished the series, a nice little Roland-refresher was delightful. I really liked the chapter setup (like each chapter was actually five or so mini-chapters, all given at the beginning of the chapter). I liked the premise. I liked that you didn't need to have read the Dark Tower books in order to read this, because that would have turned off a lot of people from reading this story. Sadly, I think it still did. Hear that, everybody? You can go ahead and read this and it will be okay, even if you haven't read the Dark Tower books. I mean, you still should read them, because they are great, but you can get along fine through this story without them.Everything's Eventual: 4The title story, I thought, was a very interesting one. ***Supernatural killer is hired by the government, for the "good of mankind." It's been done before, in some degree, but this was a very unique take on it. The isolation and week-to-week broke-ness, the strange shapes, and the use of the word "eventual" all contributed. It did feel a little vague and unresolved toward the end, but given the story I can understand.L.T.'s Theory of Pets: 3Stephen King said this was his favorite to write, but I just didn't get into it. It was an entertaining little tale, sure, but it didn't go anywhere. I guess what gets me is that this story, and L.T.'s Theory, had so much potential. He could have expanded upon it, but he didn't. It just ended. I was literally surprised when I got to the end of the story because I had expected more.The Road Virus Heads North: 5This was rock-solid horror. Moving paintings are somewhat of a trope when it comes to the horror genre, but this may be the most interesting take on it that I've read. I'll let y'alls read it for yourself, which you should. I was genuinely kept in suspense the whole way through, and I can't say the ending was disappointing. It really made me want to see this painting. *EDIT* There's actually a movie adaptation of this story, and I found a picture of the painting online. At least, it was the painting used in the movie. I don't know whether it's the same as the one King owned.Lunch at the Gotham Café: 1In my opinion, this was the worst one in the collection. You're free to argue differently (but you'd be wrong). It felt so incredibly forced that there was no point in it where A. I felt drawn in, B. I was able to suspend disbelief, or C. I was terrified by what was unfolding in that dismal restaurant. It... I don't know, I'm not even sure what it was supposed to be. Scary? Were we supposed to be terrified? Sad? Were we meant to lament over the deteriorating relationship between two people? Infuriating? Were we supposed to feel angered by literally everyone in this story for one reason or another? You're free to read it, not like I can stop you, but be warned, it will leave a bad taste in your mouth. And not the good kind of bad.That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is in French: 4A solid relief from the last one. The entire time I read it I had an inkling of what was going on and what would happen (as any reader would; the name is enough to divulge that), but I was still totally unprepared for the ending. I gave it a 4 instead of a 5 because it kind of left you floating a lot in the beginning, and I'm always wary of short stories that tease readers with exposition. If you want to be royally teased and left in the dark, read Margo Lanagan's Black Juice. You will be adrift in a sea of confusion. On second thought, don't read Black Juice. Just avoid it. Instead, read this story.1408: 5My favorite in the collection, and the only one that legitimately terrified me. I really don't want to give too much away, so for the spoiler-free version: A man soon regrets his decision to spend a night in a haunted hotel room. As for the spoilerific version: ***I loved the style here. In my opinion, some of the best horror writing makes you feel trapped, in somewhere not only unfamiliar, but strange and alien. There's no way to get out even though you're sure it's all in your head. That's what 1408 did. The colors in it somehow enhanced that further. I don't know whether it was the artificial-ness of orange-yellow light, or the fact that I'm pretty sure it was a Deadlights reference (see 'It' and related books), but it was perfect. Really, the three or so pages in the bedroom were the best for me; something about the room felt even dirtier, twisted-er, sicker than even the rest of the place. It did haunted in a way that was better than other stories do haunted. Also, the feeling that something lives behind the walls--not literally so much as in the nothingness beyond--was just perfect and, I do believe, a direct tie-in to King's other works.Riding the Bullet: 4Another good one. It wasn't great, and there was some jumping between horror and sad-book writing, not to mention the similarities to Road Virus, but it kept me interested the whole way through. I think if there was a story picked to showcase this whole collection, Riding the Bullet would be a good pick. I don't have much else to say about it.Luckey Quarter: 2A little cutesie one, and a nice way to wrap up the collection, but nothing special. It had an air of "nothing happened and then nothing happened some more," but it was an easy enough read. Also, I believe, it's the shortest one in here, and is thus a good note to end on. I do think it's worth mentioning that there was some good writing when describing the crushing feel of life on her shoulders. I can't remember the exact words King used.Average: 3.64, which I rounded to 4 for the sake of Goodread's rating system.
This was a nice read, but not what I'd call very entertaining. I know for sure that the first half was better than the second one. While I met some very favourite short stories, it was full of duds. But the thing is, even the bad books aren't so horrible. So I think I recommend this. I think I definitely do. Autopsy Room Four: This one's a five star for me. I've never been entertained by such a short story before. The Man In The Black Suit: That's more like 2.5 instead of 3 stars. It wasn't really interesting. Especially with that fire blazing eyed devil. All What You Love Will Be Carried Away: two stars, or maybe two and a half, I'm not sure about this one but the MC did sound crazy, lol. The Death of Jack Hamilton: Five stars. I loved this story so much, the friendship between the three main characters was admirable. In The Deathroom: Hmm, such a brutal short story. It would've been a four star for me if it weren't for SK's note at the end. Definitely five stars, I haven't read something as fierce for quite a while. And I liked Fletcher, very much so. The Little Sisters of Eluria: I'm sorry about not giving this even a star, not even one. Fantasy is not at all my genre and the story wasn't a bit exciting, the theme was irritating. It did warn me though, the kind of Fantasy The Dark Tower series might be, thus I won't be reading the series anytime soon. I have to embrace Fantasy more than this. Everything's Eventual: Hmm,..I'm really confused now..but I think I'll give this 3 stars. It wasn't very entertaining but it wasn't so bad. I liked the characters, though. The idea of killing people by sending e-mails or mails is pretty peculiar. LT's Theory of Pets: I'm going to give this half a star because I liked it when LT sobbed his ass off. And that's probably the only thing I like about this goddamned story. It's really pathetic. The Road Virus Hits North: BILLION stars! This was phenomenal! Ever since I started my SK-experiment I haven't been creeped out and I was only a few books away to doubt his powers but this short story definitely got me. It definitely did. I've never been so creeped out before, and it's such an exhilarating feeling. So refreshing and new. I'm really waiting for another creepy books from Stephen King and I want them to give me the heebie-jeebies this one did. Brilliant! Lunch at the Gotham Café: 3 stars. I can't say it's not entertaining, it definitely is, but only the second part. The first one felt too boring for my liking. I loved it when the blood, started, though. Very much. But I still can't understand why his wife was so pissed. That Feeling, You Can Only Say What It Is In French: 2 stars. Uhhh, what? 1408 What's the purpose of this story? No, really, what is the purpose? What am I supposed to feel? And it was incredibly short. I wanted more and more, this story can be a book of its own. Even if it's a short one, but at least more. I can't say I could commiserate with the protagonist. For all I know, I was delighted to his what-felt-like 5 minutes of torture. He brought that shit to himself. And ow burning? Nice. 2 stars. Riding the Bullet: Lucky Quarter: Zero. I still don't understand what I'm supposed to feel while reading it.
What do You think about Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales (2005)?
Autopsy Room 4: Hilarious, and really well written. But...just hilarious.The Man in the Black Suit: Really cool and well written, if anything keeps you up at night.All That You Love Will Be Carried Away: REALLY great little story, up to the climatic point and every little detail preceding it. I don't remember if he dies or not (or it doesn't say), but any of those things would still make it great.The Death of Jack Hamilton: This book just keeps on giving with this one, a short little "biography" of a gang member, from his prolific career to his death (I think).In the Deathroom: Not the best, but still interesting.The Little Sisters of Eluria: Didn't read this, wanted to wait to read the Dark Tower series, don't know if I should have or not.Everything's Eventual: A pretty good story of a life of simplism or "perfectionism" because of his special power. Not too compelling, but definitely one I thought about.L.T.'s Theory of Pets: Not exactly "thrilling" but still interesting, and a good read.The Road Virus Heads North: Pretty good, but unfortunately I'm kinda tired of concept, but really well written and probably the scariest I've read of these kinds of stories. However, I feel there's a bit room for improvement as an idea like this could go far.Lunch at the Gotham Cafe: A bit of an out of nowhere thriller, but I really enjoyed this as far as slasher novels go, and also a very surprising tale from King (usually motive or insanity is explained, but this leaves you to wonder... as does Steve).That Feeling, You Can Only Say in French: Really interesting book, King explained that Hell inspired this one, which leads me to only imagine how horrible hell might be if it even just repeated moments in your life, horrible moments, the moments that caused you to be imprisoned in hell. This one I found was more of a thinker then a scary keep you up at night story, but it did that too.1408: This one had it's ups and downs, I thought the theme was something King wouldn't do since it shared the theme of all of those lame horrors/thrillers. However, there were ups, as I mentioned. Although not a big one, just the fact that the main character didn't believe what he wrote really got me into it, since when he went into the room he knew nothing would happen. The rest of the story unfolds, and the events in the room itself are a tad disappointing, but his exit and the "epilogue" are quite good. Also, the number 1408 kinda added to the atmosphere (14th floor is 13th floor since hotels don't label the 13th floor as such, and 1+4+0+8=13).Riding the Bullet: Decent, but not amazing. No comments on this :/Lucky Quarter: Kinda interesting, a not so fortunate woman fantasizes of riches beyond her dreams (well, quite the opposite, it seems) when the gets a quarter tip. When she realizes she's just dreaming, she gives it to her son as a gift, and then reality mixes with fantasy...As a total, I really liked this book. There were only maybe 1 or 2 stories which I didn't find great, and all of the stories had their own little "twist" which I enjoyed. 4/5
—I.haveanidea
As this is a short story collection comprised of 14 individual stories, I see fit to rate each on its own, in the order in which they appear in the book.Autopsy Room Four: ****A suspenseful story about a man in an unfortunately tense situation: He is paralyzed after an accident, but presumed dead, and sent into an autopsy room while still alive. Unexpected twist ending.The Man in the Black Suit: ****An interesting tale about death.All That You Love Will Be Carried Away: **A story I personally co
—Milan
I have seriously come to wish for a book of King's that I don't like. Really now, my obsession reaches higher measures with every freaking page. Short stories - aren't they delightful? Little "kisses in the dark from a stranger", as Stephen calls them. They are the binding of the literary world; they were here first and the world will probably end in a short story. Just sayin'. I confess, I did a bit of cheating. Because I am a big fan of The Dark Tower series, I had read The Little Sisters of Eluria before I got my hands on Everything's Eventual, so I read the whole book minus that one. My favorites were Everything's Eventual, 1408 and Riding the Bullet. All horror, all human, all nasty. Beautiful writing. This is one of the times when even though I hate to get scared, I'm in truth a junkie for it, and will think about the shadows long after the sun rises. I'm faulted that way.
—Ana
