Legendary author Stephen King is going back to the short story format with You Like It Darker. The master of horror’s new short story collection arrives in 2024, and features a sequel of sorts to Cujo.
After decades as a writer, Stephen King keeps giving us amazing stories. Recently, he’s penned some hot takes on Twitter/X that have everyone cheering him on. Most people, however, know him as a master of horror. Many of his novels have gone on to inspire some of the most well-known horror movies of all time, like The Shining.
As a longtime fan of King, I’m partial to his short story collections. Just one book of stories spawned three films; The Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, and Stand by Me all came from Different Seasons. The Breathing Method is the only story from that book that hasn’t been turned into a movie. Maybe one day it will. That story haunts my thoughts more than anything else King has written. So it’s very exciting that his next book will be another collection of short stories.
Here’s everything we know about You Like It Darker.
Does You Like It Darker have a release date?
You Like It Darker is set to hit shelves on May 21, 2024. It’s a little bit of a wait, but that just gives you time to revisit his past short story collections.
How many stories does You Like It Darker have?
You Like It Darker lists 12 new stories that will be included in the book. Here is the complete list of titles:
“Two Talented Bastids”
“The Fifth Step”
“Willie the Weirdo”
“Danny Coughlin’s Bad Dream”
“Finn”
“On Slide Inn Road”
“Red Screen”
“The Turbulence Expert”
“Laurie”
“Rattlesnakes”
“The Dreamers”
“The Answer Man”
Is You Like It Darker a sequel to Cujo?
Cujo is a Stephen King novel that was originally published in 1981 and inspired a movie of the same name, released in 1983. Everyone knows Cujo as the scary movie about a family dog who contracts rabies and goes on a killing rampage. It’s actually one of King’s sadder stories, as the sweet dog slowly falls into madness caused by the terrible disease. In You Like It Darker, one of the stories is a follow-up to the events of Cujo. If you are interested in what happened after Cujo, be sure to read “Rattlesnakes.”
(featured image: Scribner)
