Summary
You Like It Darkerhas an interesting selection ofStephen Kingstories, but there’s one that is too absurd to be scary. Stephen King has rightfully earned the title of “King of Horror” thanks to his novels and short stories, through which he has allowed generations of readers to explore a variety of fears, places, and meet some terrifying and memorable characters. King continues sharing his world of fantasy and horror inYou Like It Darker, a collection of seven short stories and five novellas, including an excerpt ofCujo’s sequel,Rattlesnakes.
You Like It Darkerhas King’s signature narrative and horror style with intriguing stories, of which many end up leaving more questions than answers.You Like It Darkerhas a bit of everything – from mad scientists to snakes –, with each story appealing to different fears, thus some are scarier than others. However, there’s one story in this collection that, despite having a horror basis and the premise being enough to scare readers, ended up being too absurd (and at times confusing) to be scary: “Finn”.
One Of Stephen King’s Scariest Stories From You Like It Darker Really Needs A Follow-Up
One of the scariest stories from You Like It Darker left so many questions that it would greatly benefit from a follow-up or expansion.
Stephen King’s “Finn” Should Be Scary, But It’s Too Absurd
“Finn” Follows The Title Character, Who Has The Worst Luck
Among theshort stories inYou Like It Darkeris “Finn”. It takes readers to Ireland to meetFinn Murrie, a young man who has had very bad luck since he was born– quite literally, as he slipped from the midwife’s hand and cried when he hit the floor. Bad luck had followed Finn his whole life, but his grandmother tried to cheer him up by telling him God gives two bits of good luck for every bit of bad luck, except he never got those two bits. Just when Finn thought his luck couldn’t get worse, it absolutely did.
“Finn” was first published on Scribd in ebook and audiobook format.
Finn was tortured and things just got more bizarre and absurd from then.
One day, when he was 19, Finn was running home and collided with a young man dressed similarly to him, but he got up faster and fled before Finn could get back on his feet. Not long after,Finn was abducted and drugged by some men who threw him into a van. Finn woke up in a cell where he was tortured through loud music playing every time he fell asleep. As much as he insisted to his captors that he wasn’t the guy they were looking for, he was tortured and things just got more bizarre and absurd from then.
The setting of “Finn” is enough to cause fear and anxiety, but instead of seizing that to be a scary story, “Finn” becomes increasingly absurd and less scary.After the waterboarding scene, “Finn” leans more on the ridiculous circumstancesFinn is in and how the actions and attitude of his captors, particularly Mr. Ludlum, make less and less sense.“Finn” is more intriguing than scary, as it never answers what the blueprints they wanted were for and why Bobby Feeney had them, and it’s not even clear if Finn was actually free at the end or was imagining it.
The Scariest Story In Stephen King’s You Like It Darker (& Why It’s So Terrifying)
Stephen King’s stories in You Like It Darker explore a wide range of fears, but one of them stands out as the most terrifying and disturbing.
Why This Story From You Like It Darker Doesn’t Land Like It Should
Finn Didn’t Quite Find Its Right Tone
Knowing from the start that Finn has had bad luck his whole life makes the story predictable from the moment he collides with the guy.
“Finn” has the right setting and situation to be a terrifying story, butfocusing on Finn’s bad luck from the beginning decreases its horror potential greatly.Knowing from the start that Finn has had bad luck his whole life makes the story predictable from the moment he collides with a guy who happens to be dressed similarly to him.Mr. Ludlum tries to be threatening but doesn’t get past the stereotypical crime bosswho tortures people for information. Ludlum’s henchmen aren’t any better, and how easily they abandon him and take Finn away to save him is also ridiculous.
“Finn” works better without being marketed as a horror story, even though it had the potential to be. Its scare factor is completely left aside by Finn’s bad luck, the predictable problem he unintentionally gets into, and the absurd behavior of his captors. That’s not to say, however, that “Finn” is a bad story or the worst inYou Like It Darker, but it doesn’t exactly work as a horror story.
