Full Dark, No Stars

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Craig Wasson, Jessica Hecht

Length: 14 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

"I believe there is another man inside every man, a stranger...." writes Wilfred Leland James in the early pages of the riveting confession that makes up "1922", the first in this pitch-black quartet of mesmerizing tales from Stephen King. For James, that stranger is awakened when his wife, Arlette, proposes selling off the family homestead and moving to Omaha, setting in motion a gruesome train of murder and madness.

In "Big Driver", a cozy-mystery writer named Tess encounters the stranger along a back road in Massachusetts when she takes a shortcut home after a book-club engagement. Violated and left for dead, Tess plots a revenge that will bring her face-to-face with another stranger: the one inside herself.

"Fair Extension", the shortest of these tales, is perhaps the nastiest and certainly the funniest. Making a deal with the devil not only saves Dave Streeter from a fatal cancer but provides rich recompense for a lifetime of resentment.

When her husband of more than 20 years is away on one of his business trips, Darcy Anderson looks for batteries in the garage. Her toe knocks up against a box under a worktable and she discovers the stranger inside her husband. It's a horrifying discovery, rendered with bristling intensity, and it definitively ends a good marriage.

Like Different Seasons and Four Past Midnight, which generated such enduring films as The Shawshank Redemption and Stand by Me, Full Dark, No Stars proves Stephen King a master of the long story form.

©2010 Stephen King. All rights reserved. (P)2010 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved

Critic reviews

"[T]hese tales show how a skilled storyteller with a good tale to tell can make unsettling fiction compulsively readable." ( Publishers Weekly)

"King has gone on record saying he believes that American readers should pay more attention to the virtues of short fiction... if anyone can get reluctant short-story and novella readers into the swing, he certainly can with this book." ( Booklist)

Male narrator was great--the female not so much

I had read this book previously, but like listening to King's books on audio. The male nattator does a great job, and I've heard him read other things. The female narrator--It sounded like she was smiling during the telling of Big Driver, which is a pretty horrific tale of rape and revenge. Her tone was all wrong during it, and she is unable to really do different voices. With 1922, I was swept into the story by the narrator--With Big Driver, I was so distracted by her voice, I wanted to turn it off. She has that accent of a rich lady that looks down on you at the department store--slightly patronizing and snooty.

Stephen King stands the test of time

It’s been many, many years since I’ve read anything by Stephen King. At the time that I stopped reading his work, I’d read almost everything he’d written except I never got around to Rose Madder.

This re-introduction to the favorite author of my adolescence and young adulthood.

Great story, mediocre performance

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Stephen King always writes strong, capable women. This is something I really appreciate about King. However, the female narrator portrays the women in these stories as weak, high voiced ninnies. It is disconcerting and draws away from the intended characters.

Loved the Narration

Craig Wasson is the reason I bought this book. He was so good in 11-22-63 I wanted more! I was not disappointed with his performance in 2 of these Novellas. The other Narrator, Jessica Hecht was different for sure but the stories were perfect for her. I was thrilled with both "Big Driver" and "A Good Marriage". It was appropriate since the lead character was female, and compelling with her distinctive style and character development. I find myself missing her now that I am on to "From a Buick 8" and the female voice is someone else.

A page turner (virtually)

It's nice to see the master back in full form. This collection of novellas doesn't have a dud in the bunch. I found myself eagerly awaiting to see what happened next, which is odd considering they were short and simple stories. The characters are incredibly strong and placed in real situations so vivid that I found myself caring about them. The narration is excellent.

Dark! Riveting! Writing at its absolute finest!!!

This collection of 4 novellas are so thoroughly enjoyable. I could not stop listening. They are all like the greatest candy you've ever eaten, you know you may get sick, your stomach might turn, but you keep sticking it into your mouth.
The stories are dark and ferocious. You can see where it's starting to go, but instead of looking away (in this case closing the audible app) you grip the arms of the chair and forge ahead.

The performances by these two actors are great. I was trying to find a better word to describe their perfection, but "Great" will have to do.

The musical accompaniment between stories sets the mood beautifully.
Thank you Stephen King. You've created a book that I will be reading/ listening to at least once a year. Because it's so much like a favorite movie that you can watch again and again.

Last thought, I know it's not fair to compare, but this book is up there with the amazing book "Different Seasons".

dark....

This one is dark! ...and I have to say...I really enjoyed it.
I think this is some of King's best writing - I'm a long time King fan, but not always a content one...lately his books have been so over worded - as though his editor is on permanent vacation, but these stories are well written and concise all the way through. A master craftsman is at work here. Even with the stories that are ideas well trod there is a great deal of surprise and originality. King's humor and humanity are very evident. Often, I find King's story endings very very silly - you know what I mean if you've ever read 'The Stand' - and I don't want to give anything away - but it is truly silly....but these stories end with very satisfying outcomes that did not leave me rolling my eyes even one tiny bit. I thought the narration was spot on - great story tellers that created full bodied characterizations. Highly recommend this one.

ps - don't let me put you off - The Stand is an excellent read...just skip the last chapter - ;)

Four Good Stories, Two Lousy Listens

These stories are Goldilocks Stephen King; not his best, not his worst.

Craig Wasson's narration of two of the four selections is excellent.

Jessica Hecht's whiny, little girl simpering of the other two is dreadful. Her wimpy rendition of the female protagonist is extremely irritating, especially in the final story, "Fair Extension", but her vocal-fry portrayal of the sheriff is so glottally awful that it's almost funny. Almost. Mostly it's just awful.

Great weekend book

I wanted to take a break from some of the more literary books I had been enjoying lately and chose King's Full Dark for a weekends companion. I wasn't disappointed and thoroughly enjoyed his well engineered storytelling. King has always been a good choice for me when I find myself wanting some light reading. Certainly worth the credit.

Stories were interesting but lady voice was 😬

stories were interesting. this was my first Stephen King experience. I liked that there were several stories as opposed to just one. the woman's voice narrating was incredibly annoying. every depicted female character sounded like a 12- yr old girl.