If It Bleeds by Stephen King

This four novella collection focuses largely on death and circumstances surrounding it. Not in the same gruesome, horrific way that many of his other horror novels do such as Carrie, It, and Pet Samatary. More so in a contemplative way which allows reflection on mistakes, vengeance, and success. 

The title story is the longest work of the collection and, unfortunately, the weakest one. On top of it being a sequel to a trilogy and a stand alone book, there are connections to a fifth book he wrote. I am no avid King reader, so I have read none of the handful within the same universe as this one. Maybe that is why I did not like it. Largely, it seemed to drag on with the main character’s personal life taking up so much of the novella, I began to skim past those parts that did not directly relate to intriguing character development or plot advancement. When I got to the end, I felt like I had just read the second book in a trilogy. It was then that I learned from someone else that indeed this novella was part of The Outsider universe. It seems odd to include a piece belonging to a series in a seemingly stand alone collection of novellas, especially because it is four books that come before this novella in order for the reader to truly understand it. It left me confused until my friends who had read the other books explained what the ending meant in connection to the whole universe lore. 

Overall, the book end stories were the strongest. They were briefer, but packed interesting characters and conflict driven tales that left me wondering what decisions they would make. 

Individually: 

Mr. Harrigan’s Phone: ★★★★½

This one was my personal favorite. It follows a child paid by an affluent old retired businessman to read to him. Ultimately, the story discusses technology and our use (or abuse) of it. At the core, it asks “what holds us captive?” and the answer can be many things: vengeance, regret, technology and loneliness are some of the answers seen in this story. The characters really drive this story with their decisions on resolving inner and outer conflicts. 

The Life of Chuck: ★★★

To summarize this story is difficult so I will say it is a story told backwards beginning at the end. It plays off of the popular quote “I contain multitudes” from Walt Whitman by taking it extremely literally. While it was cute at times with fun characters, there is very little conflict to propel them forward. It is more snapshots, glimpses into a life of a stranger that I never felt we really got to know. The beginning promises drama, but never delivers. 

If It Bleeds: ★★★½

Holly Gibney, a recurring character in a few of King’s prior works, returns here to hunt another skinwalker-esque criminal. With all the drama of a crime thriller, this felt like a black sheep among the other three stories which could have been episodes of The Twilight Zone (original of course). This takes a genre jump that he has tackled before. This work would have done better in it’s own independent novella with an obvious indication that this was part of a pre-established universe so readers like me do not read this entire work, only to come to the end and wonder what half of it was about. 

Rat: ★★★★½

A troubled writer absconds to a cabin in the middle of the northern woods in hopes of having enough peace of mind to finish his current work in progress, but odd happenings follow a strange sickness he comes down with. At the beginning, I was sure I would not like this. I am so over writers writing about troubled writers, especially when they go into detail about the book the character is working on. However, at about ¾ of the way through the story, I did change my mind. It sold me on liking it, not necessarily because of the character because I have seen this character dozens of times, but because of the subtle toeing between insanity and reality. The questioning of the narrator’s reliability is something I always appreciate and King really made us ask ourselves if what the character thinks is happening is actually happening, or if we are just peeking through distorted lenses. By the end, there is no satisfactory answer, but that makes it all the more satisfying. 

Overall Rating: ★★★★