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PR Isfeld

Reading: You Like It Darker
Reading: You Like It Darker

“You like it darker? Fine, so do I.”

–Stephen King

 

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Stephen King is a polarizing writer. Although he’s sold millions, maybe billions of books, his haters are almost as vocal as his fans. Personally, while I don’t think he hits it out of the park every time–probably impossible when he produces such a large volume of work so consistently–his fiction always keeps me entertained. You Like It Darker, his latest collection of short stories, was no exception. King’s writing continues to evolve, and this latest book is not just darker, but deeper.

These are not straightforward horror stories.They focus on life and death, fate, morality, and the chinks in time and space where anything can–and does–happen. Even the shortest pieces(“The Fifth Step” and “Red Screen”) rival his novels for depth and engagement, delivering on his oft-stated commitment to help the reader leave ordinary life behind. His characters, who range from grumpy old men to beleaguered Covid-era writers and overworked police detectives, are both vividly specific yet somehow universal. “Why me?” is one of the recurring questions in the book, and who can’t relate to that?

Like many people in their seventies and beyond, King seems to be growing more and more preoccupied with mortality and aging. Many of his characters in You Like It Darker, including the no-nonsense grandpa in “On Slide Inn Road,” are strikingly decrepit. The narrator of “Two Talented Bastids” is an aging author whose father, and the father’s best friend, found unusual success through their art. (I won’t spoil the explanation behind that success, but after reading it I had to wonder if it was King’s way of poking at his own critics.)

The question of why people have the luck they do is one of King’s key themes. Another is the deep sadness of an America stricken by Covid and its aftermath, addiction, and predatory corporations. But at the end of the day, there’s always the feeling that life could be even darker, and the knowledge that some of us might just like it that way.

Captives
A psychological mystery that explores the aftermath of a brutal abduction and the secrets that haunt the survivors.

Three years ago, Samantha Gilchrist and her friends Amanda, Kaylee and Maria forged an unbreakable bond when they survived a brutal kidnapping in Kandahar. Sam wrote a best-selling memoir about their ordeal and moved on to a great new career as a journalist and a happy relationship with Dave, a handsome intelligence officer she met in Afghanistan. Still, she can’t help wondering about the reasons behind their capture.

On their way to Maria’s remote Gatineau cottage to commemorate the anniversary of their escape and rescue, Sam and Kaylee hear news reports about a missing Afghan diplomat. Then, they think they see Ali, their former interpreter and the mastermind behind the hostage-taking, who was supposed to have died during their rescue. When Amanda’s lifeless body is found the next morning, the friends’ suspicions lead them down a dangerous path that uncovers dark secrets and hidden motives.

The narrative alternates between the present day and the version of events presented in Sam’s memoir, as she and her friends struggle with their grief over the loss of Amanda and lingering trauma and jealousy over their differing fortunes in the aftermath of the kidnapping. As tensions rise and secrets are revealed, Sam starts to question everything she thought she knew about her friends, her lover, and herself, not just in the past, but in the here and now. 

Full of suspense, complex characters, and unexpected twists, Captives will cause fans of mystery and psychological thrillers to make irresponsible decisions about their sleep. 

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