Readers adore Stephen Kingu0092s novels, and his novellas are their own dark treat, briefer but just as impactful and enduring as his longer fiction. Many of his novellas have been made into iconic films, including u0093The Bodyu0094 (Stand by Me) and u0093Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemptionu0094 (Shawshank Redemption).nnThe four brilliant tales in If It Bleeds prove as iconic as their predecessors. In the title story, reader favorite Holly Gibney (from the Mr. Mercedes trilogy and The Outsider) must face her fears, and possibly another outsideru0097this time on her own. In u0093Mr. Harriganu0092s Phoneu0094 an intergenerational friendship has a disturbing afterlife. u0093The Life of Chucku0094 explores, beautifully, how each of us contains multitudes. And in u0093Rat,u0094 a struggling writer must contend with the darker side of ambition.nnIf these novellas show Kingu0092s range, they also prove that certain themes endure. One of Kingu0092s great concerns is evil, and in If It Bleeds, thereu0092s plenty of it. There is also evilu0092s opposite, which in Kingu0092s fiction often manifests as friendship. Holly is reminded that friendship is not only life-affirming but can be life-saving. Young Craig befriends Mr. Harrigan, and the sweetness of this late-in-life connection is its own reward.
