Synopsis:
If it Bleeds is a collection of four new novellas —Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, The Life of Chuck, Rat, and the title story If It Bleeds— each pulling readers into intriguing and frightening places.
A collection of four uniquely wonderful long stories, including a stand-alone sequel to The Outsider.
News people have a saying: 'If it bleeds, it leads'. And a bomb at Albert Macready Middle School is guaranteed to lead any bulletin.
Holly Gibney of the Finders Keepers detective agency is working on the case of a missing dog - and on her own need to be more assertive - when she sees the footage on TV. But when she tunes in again, to the late-night report, she realizes there is something not quite right about the correspondent who was first on the scene. So begins 'If It Bleeds' , a stand-alone sequel to The Outsider featuring the incomparable Holly on her first solo case.
Dancing alongside are three more long stories - 'Mr Harrigan's Phone', 'The Life of Chuck' and 'Rat' .
The novella is a form King has returned to over and over again in the course of his amazing career, and many have been made into iconic films, If It Bleeds is a uniquely satisfying collection of longer short fiction by an incomparably gifted writer. (goodreads)
Another Stephen King, you say.
Yes, please, I say.
Of course King hasn't produced novels of the same caliber that IT, The Stand or The Dark Tower, he's still one of my favourite authors.
These were novellas and since I'm prone to dislike such stories because mostly they are too short to get invested in, my lack of time surprisingly give these a little advantage. I think I can state I've read much of KIng's oeuvre and most of his titles adorn my book case here at home, even his multiple short story collections.
It still isn't what I most like about his writing. I love what he explores in these stories, but lack the depth any good story really needs and King, in my opinion, shines best in a very thick novel. Writing short stories is a skill very little authors really master ( think Ray Bradbury when seeking such a master ) and I mostly read King's attempts out of curtesy. Of course there is the rare gem in between the masses, with a writer of such volume as King it's to be expected, but I lacked that kind of power story in this bundle of novellas. While they are entertaining, they didn't leave any mark.
