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What are readers saying about Just After Sunset: Stories?
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-19 07:02:00.
(Language: English)
   
King should be commended for still being committed to the art of the short story. For those who are frustrated with King's sometimes epic tomes, this collection could be a suitable antidote.However, that's not to say that this is the best collection that King has produced. Here, the quality is much more variable than, say, Everything's Eventual or Different Seasons. There are a few gems though, including 'N', which combines haunting Cthulhu mythos with OCD to chilling effect. King also includes a couple of sombre pieces that were influenced by the September 11th attacks. These aren't sensationalistic or overly played, but sensitive and obviously the outpouring of someone trying to make sense of a situation that even now is difficult to accept. There's much to enjoy here, despite some reservations. Here's hoping that King keeps producing these anthologies, as he's truly a master of the form. 
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-06 01:37:02.
(Language: English)
Absolutely brilliant and typical King fodder. Many different genres, but all intriguing in their own ways. Altogether, a great read and one for the fanatics to get a hold of. Am close to finishing this book. Very interesting variety of stories included. I'm actually interested to know how he gets his ideas. It seems his imagination is a bottomless bucket. As Mr King gets older, his writing seems to be getting better. Get this one if you haven't already. It's definitely worth a read
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-07-27 01:27:15.
(Language: English)
For Stephen King I found this book to be a bit hit or miss. I'm usually quite fond of everything the man writes, so that was kind of a let down for me, however; none of the stories were horrible, and some like "N." were just flat out amazing. If you are looking for an overall good collection of shorts, look no further!
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-05-09 08:16:47.
(Language: English)
A collection of short stories and also Stephen King at his finest. I have to admit while reading "N" I got up to shut my closet door, I'm sure something was in there. Really. Gingerbread girl and The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates not only creeped my out, but were my personal favourites.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-02-17 06:50:19.
(Language: English)
After haven't read a book of short stories, particularly by Stephen King, in quite some time, it took a bit of getting used to reading something that wasn't a novel. However, after getting adjusted, I found it a little refreshing to read something straight forward and to the point. The abrupt endings which leave your mind yearning for more actually are very thought provoking and are quite a treat. The twisted mind of the legendary Mr. King comes out in this collection of short stories which is reminiscent of some of his old works. Many of his short stories, i.e., The Shawshank Redemption, Stand By Me and ,in a sense, the Green Mile, aren't your typical "horror" stories, however, in Just After Sunset, Stephen King enters many realms of disturbing situations and does it quite well and the brand "horror" is apropos. I am enjoying it, though almost done, completely.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-02-19 11:28:29.
(Language: English)
Excellent collection of short stories! I thought I'd escaped any major traumas until I got to the last story. Wow, I needed a shower afterwards and didn't eat again until the next day. He really hit in many places I didn't know I was vulnerable with this one. I may never read it again, but it will stay with me for a very, very long time.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-10 05:29:11.
(Language: English)
A welcome return to form for the arguably the greatest (and certainly most prolific) horror writer of all time. A great deal of variety in the nature of this stories here, from adorable tales of ghosts that don't quite realise they've expired, to the complex psychological haunting of a man who should have been 'there' on 9/11. Enough to keep you entertained with plenty contemporary pop culture references to chuckle at also. King at his laid-back, yet unmistakeably mischievious best.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-10-18 08:46:25.
(Language: English)
nice to enjoy stephen king again after many years of not liking his books...
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Jesse posted a review at 2009-05-19 01:03:55.
(Language: English)
Stephen King's latest collection of short stories. If you are a die hard King fan, no doubt you would have tracked a majority of these short stories down before, with most of them having been published before across various magazines and journals. No real standouts for me, however I have always been more of a fan of King's actual novels, rather than his short comings.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-02-17 06:49:43.
(Language: English)
Felt there were too many stories with similar themes, and very similar content. I felt that there wasn't enough of the recent, contemporary style wherein Constant Reader was better able to relate to all that was happening in the story. I understand what drove the book, and can understand SK getting caught up in the wave of short story reviews, but this compilation as compared with previous compilations reads as, maybe, a little bit rushed or maybe forced is a better word. The book is still a good read and has all the usual SK ingredients, but I was alittle disappointed.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-07-27 08:52:23.
(Language: English)
Each short story deserves its own review. Ready? Great! Willa - nothing really outstanding or memorable from this. I liked the whole concept on how perception is your reality Gingerbread Girl - Loved it. It felt like a mini-Stephen-King adventure... and it was! Harvey's dream - meh... i'm not gonna remember this one a year from now Rest Stop - Fantastic! We've all wondered what we'd do in this type of situation. Stationary Bike - Great! The Things They Left Behind - touched on 9/11... I didn't like that, but he did a good job in the end Graduation Afternoon - I already forgot what the point of this story was... all i remember is the climax =( N - Incredible!!! 10/10! This is the best short story i ever read! My chest went cold as I read this! The Cat from Hell - Creepy! Human's are delicate! The New York Times at Special Bargain Rates - I already forgot what this was about... it probably wasn't good =( Mute - Not great, but enjoyable. We all bitch out loud every now & then ^^ Ayana - Nah... nothing special. A Very Tight Place - Gross! I loved the character development & ending... despite the disgusting story. FINAL REVIEW: There are some FANTASTIC stories in this book. Some are lousy, but it's DEFINATELY WORTH reading through the bad to get to the great! I love this book =)
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Jennifer posted a review at 2008-11-26 01:28:54.
(Language: English)
Love him or loathe him, King is clearly the Dickens of our time - churning out page after page of psyche-skewering narrative in a multiplicity of formats. Much like the incomparable Charlie, though, he has his off days, and this is one of them. As a title, Just After Sunset could just as accurately refer to the stage of King's career. The stories here bring little new to the table, though they do spark slightly under King's steady hand. "Mute" and "N." stand out, though the latter almost felt like it would benefit from being ten pages shorter...or a hundred pages longer. The majority of the collection are just so-so, including the Gingerbread Girl, which has a heartbreakingly good characterization setup which leads, sadly, directly into a run-of-the-mill femjeop scenario. To be fair, King himself admits he's been away from the short story format long enough to get rusty. Here's hoping this is a practice run for something better.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-03-13 07:34:07.
(Language: English)
Halfway through Stationary Bike, one of the stories in Just After Sunset, I had to take a break. I was sure Stephen King was recycling the story line from The Road Virus Heads North, one of the tepid offerings in Everything's Eventual, his last short story collection. But King surprised me with an imaginative and amusing twist. I think he knew what I was thinking, because the last chapter was titled Not Quite the Ending You'd Expect. So true. At least with that one. King's mixes guts and ordure suspense with quieter, character- or description-driven stories, which could be called literary, to use a specious synonym. And while his nine hundredth book doesn't offer many surprises he can still occasionally captivate and frighten the Constant Reader. Stationary Bike was genuinely clever. N. was genuinely scary (in my humble opinion, not something to read if you are working out on an elliptical with your back to the exercise room door at 12:30 am). Willa was sweet, suggesting death could be a kind of lucid dream. A Very Tight Place made me gag a bit (it was supposed to).
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-12-02 11:04:41.
(Language: English)
Not his best collection of short stories. There were quite a few stinkers. There's a couple of horror stories but also a lot of stories that are straight fiction with a few supernatural elements. These stories in particular fail miserably. The longest story in the collection is 'N' and it isn't all that good either. I'm not sure why King insists on re-writing the Cthulu or writing stories like he's H.P. Lovecraft. This story was utterly dull. Included in the collection is a sentimental story about a 9/11 survivor who starts finding the personal items of his dead co-workers in his apartment. The less said about this the better. There were a few semi-enjoyable stories in here but none too many. 'The cat from Hell' was pretty cute but it's also vintage King. Maybe that's why it worked.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-03-18 09:18:50.
(Language: English)
I will never use a port-a-potty again! This is a good book of short stories. The last one is really scary and freaky.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-07-11 02:36:04.
(Language: English)
Something is missing...but I'm not sure what. I think some of the ideas are just to vast for the shortened format. "N", for example, could easily be expanded and re-detailed for a novella. Gingerbread Girl and Stationary Bike are very well-written, but too much of the same (i.e. Road Virus Heads North, Rose Madder, etc.) But Cat From Hell is good, old school King, and quite delightful.
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A Reader posted a review at 2008-12-06 10:20:59.
(Language: English)
Short of Lisey's Story, anything by Uncle Stevie quite frankly warrants at least four stars. While middle age continues to alter his storytelling perspective, they're still distinctly Kingesque (Kingian? Kingly? Kingical?) efforts - vividly crafted, wryly humorous, richly imaginative. Much like the Florida landscape of which he increasingly makes use, however, the stories themselves have become much more florid and colorful, much less bleak and tormented. This collection of short stories continues in that vein, though I'll concede that the final tale is stunningly, deliciously revolting. Just After Sunset is no mind-blower, but still a welcome addition and another in a long, illustrious line of literary pleasures. I can't help but think anyone other than a Constant Reader will be unimpressed, but that's okay. The man's a giant; he has nothing left to prove. I'd much rather his word processing exercises end up in my lap than committed to private posterity on a hard drive somewhere.
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Karen posted a review at 2010-08-14 07:53:07.
(Language: English)
An entertaining enough set of stories, of mixed quality. Personally my favourites were 'N', which I found truly haunting, and 'The Gingerbread Girl' and 'A Very Tight Space', both of which were tautly written and suspenseful. 'The Cat From Hell' was good too. A good holiday read, but nothing special.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-04-08 10:17:19.
(Language: English)
Disapointed, I'm getting a little frustrated with King seemingly trying to find a softer way to write his stories. I have loved every short story collection he has put out but this one ranks last. C'mon Steve bring back the horror. On the bright side even a mediocre stephen king book is still pretty good. Cant wait for under the dome.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-04-02 04:57:13.
(Language: English)
Stephen King has returned to the short story genre with a bang. More happy endings in this collection that the Stephen King of old and some sweet stories that are uplifting rather than terrifying...though there's a couple of them too. The effects of his accident and 9/11, along with what I suspect is the process of aging (and how it changes one's outlook on life) all show as strong themes. I loved reading this collection and will re-read it soon. A must have addition to the Stephen King collection
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-03-09 04:35:49.
(Language: English)
Some of the stories in this were very good. "N." was my favorite and probably the most disturbing. Others left a slight creepy feeling, but others were just very lacking. "Willa" had that slight disturbed feeling at the end, and "They things they left behind" was sad, but not horrifying. This is stephen king being literary while trying to keep being horror, and it worked some of the time.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-30 09:46:07.
(Language: English)
In the foreward, King confesses that he intentionally took a position editing a short story volume to immerse himself in the genre again and to help "get his chops back" for short story writing. The stories are by no means poor, but it lacks the finesse he was striving for-- to me, the feeling is much the same as someone who has fallen out of touch with a language and tries to start speaking conversationally again.
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A Reader posted a review at 2010-04-04 08:50:06.
(Language: English)
I love this collection of short stories by Stephen King. Absolutely heart pounding ("The Gingerbread Girl") and thought provoking ("Rest Stop"). I'd recommend it for those who want to read short stories to get a feel of how to write some of your own, much like why I'm reading the book now.
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-04-09 10:09:53.
(Language: English)
I am a short story fanatic and this collection is one of my new favorites. My favorite thing about this book is that it includes story notes at the end; a note for each story in the book that tells where/when/how/why Stephen King got the idea or inspiration to write each story. These stories are not gore or really even scary. They are more about the horrors of life in general. King can take some very mundane things such as trying to work out on a stationary bike and make them seem evil or quite out of the ordinary. I think I read this book in two days. It is worth every penny spent, new or used:)
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A Reader posted a review at 2009-01-11 02:39:28.
(Language: English)
Just After Sunset is Stephen King's latest addition to the already enormous release list he's accomplished in his literary career. This is the collector's addition which came with a DVD of one of the stories "N" in the book, which is a blend of comic books imagery and movie making, from what they had said in the behind the scenes part of the DVD a new genre of movie / comic / story making. A Collection of 13 stories, some which have been published previously in magazines such as Playboy, The New Yorker, just to mention a few had my mind bended and twisted around the corner waiting, watching, and wondering what was going to happen, or in some cases not happen in this author's masterful pace and ability to make you (at least in my case) slightly scared knowing in a sense wanting to know what happens, and a bit scared to find out at the same time. My favorites in this collection - The Gingerbread Girl, Rest Stop, Stationary Bike, Mute, Ayana, and A Very Tight Place. Not that they weren't ALL good, these were just the ones I thought "Wow, I really like this one". One thing that I do have to add, in the first few stories, there was this theme or colour of red streaming through them - either the sunset or rise, the colour of clothing, etc. It struck me as I read through the pages of the stories and thought it was different. Stephen King I have to admit, is a master of his genre, even after all those books and movies that have been made throughout his career. Some good, some not so good. I can remember being a teenager and reading "Pet Semetary" and then after the movie was made and watched it and was just devastated at how messed up and mangled they managed to make out of the story. Some book to movie adaptations do that I am afraid, make it or just do in some awful way. So, thank you to Michelle @ Simon and Shuster for sending me this book. I look forward to reading more Stephen King in the future, since it's been such a long time since I have.
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