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An original short story anthology based on master storyteller Stephen King’s #1 New York Times bestselling classic The Stand!

Since its initial publication in 1978, The Stand has been considered Stephen King’s seminal masterpiece of apocalyptic fiction, with millions of copies sold and adapted twice for television. Although there are other extraordinary works exploring the unraveling of human society, none have been as influential as this iconic novel—generations of writers have been impacted by its dark yet ultimately hopeful vision of the end and new beginning of civilization, and its stunning array of characters.

Now for the first time, Stephen King has fully authorized a return to the harrowing world of The Stand through this original short story anthology as presented by award-winning authors and editors Christopher Golden and Brian Keene. Bringing together some of today’s greatest and most visionary writers, The End of the World As We Know It features unforgettable, all-new stories set during and after (and some perhaps long after) the events of The Stand—brilliant, terrifying, and painfully human tales that will resonate with readers everywhere as an essential companion to the classic, bestselling novel.

Featuring an introduction by Stephen King, a foreword by Christopher Golden, and an afterword by Brian Keene. Contributors include Wayne Brady and Maurice Broaddus, Poppy Z. Brite, Somer Canon, C. Robert Cargill, Nat Cassidy, V. Castro, Richard Chizmar, S. A. Cosby, Tananarive Due and Steven Barnes, Meg Gardiner, Gabino Iglesias, Jonathan Janz, Alma Katsu, Caroline Kepnes, Michael Koryta, Sarah Langan, Joe R. Lansdale, Tim Lebbon, Josh Malerman, Ronald Malfi, Usman T. Malik, Premee Mohamed, Cynthia Pelayo, Hailey Piper, David J. Schow, Alex Segura, Bryan Smith, Paul Tremblay, Catherynne M. Valente, Bev Vincent, Catriona Ward, Chuck Wendig, Wrath James White, and Rio Youers.

Intro - Christopher Golden

I loved his intro! Can you imagine emailing Stephen King the idea to do this anthology and he says YES! OMG the fear of failure would haunt me! lol

Intro - Stephen King

I'm a little bummed that Stephen King didn't read his intro but I did love his intro - his behind the scenes on The Stand and how he got to the end, the changes he wanted to make. all were so so good!

and now I need to go find Franny in the Well (I need to check my copy! Do I have that story?!?!!)

Wow, and 34 stories in here!! 😊😊😊😊

PART ONE: DOWN WITH THE SICKNESS


Room 24 by Caroline Kepnes - 3/5

(view spoiler)[ what an odd, gross story! lol
Very in line with her You series - the whole "I see you want me" kind of thing - reading too much into small movements. but of course gross men would survive for far too long through a deadly virus (hide spoiler)]

I'll be interested to see what you think of this one. I might have to add it to my TBR. I'm finally getting to Never Flinch in about a week.

Kristie wrote: "I'll be interested to see what you think of this one. I might have to add it to my TBR. I'm finally getting to Never Flinch in about a week."

Do you want to buddy read it?

Never Flinch? We can. Trisha and Theresa have a thread already from when they read it. I don't know that I'll be a great buddy reader because we're going to listen to about half of it in one day while traveling, then probably finish a couple days later. I'd be happy to discuss with you though and we can check out their comment too. :) We'll be starting the 28th.

ooh Never Flinch was so good! I hope you guys love it!

so this one, I started with the hard cover and instantly bought the audio! lol so I'm doing both. It's so fun and creepy being in the world of The Stand again!!

The Tripps - Wrath James White - 4/5

I did not know this author before this short story but wow, his horror looks dark and gory but this one was mainly just unsettling and so good at capturing the world as it is getting sick

(view spoiler)[
yes, this one was perfect! so creepy - everyone shooting and killing each other in the street and their mom calling them!

I love that the kids could see Abigail. We knew there were others that never made it. here are 2 more (hide spoiler)]

Bright Light City - Meg Gardiner - 3/5
I'd read the Unsub series by this author and loved it!

Omg I didn't even THINK about the airports while tripps spread
(view spoiler)[
terrifying! as they worked their way around, this one lost me a bit and got a bit. . .I don't know, meandering. the area was still terrifying
(hide spoiler)]

Every dog has its day - Bryan Smith - 4/5

another author I'd never heard of

(view spoiler)[
awe, I was really worried that he wouldn't make it through. glad that the dog kind of saved him. I didn't even think about dogs getting the tripps, I figured people would kill them.

and wow, his siter leaving! wild! (hide spoiler)]

Lockdown - Bev Vincent - 5/5

I wasn't sure who this was so I looked him up he wrote: Bev Vincent is the author of Stephen King: A Complete Exploration of His Work, Life and Influences and a companion for The Dark Tower.
love that he got included in this!

(view spoiler)[
loved this look at a small island - and the fight of how they'd survive and try to keep people out.

loved the little jabs at the president too (lol) - and loved the history here, of a previous disease that wiped out like this (and that a few were old enough to be alive for both!)

also loved the "baby can you dig your man" - I totally remember that from the book!

this one was so compelling - their fight to survive as an island. this one was so good I actually searched The Stand to see if Wally became a side character I didn't remember! The name didn't pop up but I still wonder. . .so good (hide spoiler)]

In a Pig's Eye - Joe R. Lansdale - 4/5

wow, another author with a bunch of books that I've never read or heard of!

(view spoiler)[
love that this one started in a video store! aww, the memories! but ugh, the people coming in sick and everyone going down around hiim.

loved that he was on a bike. Didn't the ones we read about travel for a while by bike? such a good idea!

the hunter's spot was a good call too - staying up high and seeing anything coming at him. but wow, once he saved the girl and they banded together. Their fight to survive was brutal but good.

loved this one (hide spoiler)]

Lenora - Jonathan Janz - 4.5/5

another new to me author

(view spoiler)[
I did not know what a Dik-Dik was so I had to look it up. Awe, it's so cute

and then as the story went on I was so sad that I'd looked it up. I was so sad when he finally warmed up to her, decided to help her and then she died anyway. . .

I was glad he survived but still sad
(hide spoiler)]

The Hope Boat - Gabino Iglesias - 4/5

this author I know and like!

(view spoiler)[
I like that this one built with hope - the loss of her family was tough but this Hope Boat sounded like it could save her

but then. . .she killed a man.

makes you wonder if it would have been there if she hadn't. . .and does that mean it was kind of like the farm and some kind of divine intervention
(hide spoiler)]

Wrong Fucking Place, Wrong Fucking Time - C. Robert Cargill - 4/5

another new author for me!

(view spoiler)[
awe, I loved that these boys were so nice but you had to wonder about one of them having dreams about Randall. Once they were beaten up, it was easy to see why - although not why the dad with the chainsaw had been dreaming about the fields and farmhouse.

I love that they watched movies every night and included the guy in their watching (hide spoiler)]

Prey Instinct - Hailey Piper - 2/5

another new author

(view spoiler)[
meh. I feel like this one got weird with the face painting and adding in animals (hide spoiler)]

Grace - Tim Lebbon - 4/5

new author to me

(view spoiler)[
at first, I thought - Space?
but then to learn they had atom bombs. . .oooooh.

This one was good - the way the tension built with the girl who was losing it and Randall getting to her

(hide spoiler)]

Moving Day - Richard Chizmar - 3/5

definitely not a new author!

(view spoiler)[
I can't imagine being younger and needing to care for the house and see those things he saw
Loved that he had the journal

loved, again, all the references to baby can you dig your man! lol (hide spoiler)]

Thru Part 1. (view spoiler)[ So many stories of the "others" that were not part of the original group. I love hearing about the various people that are trying to survive thru "Captain Trips". I loved the space one as well as the view from some of the zoo animals. (hide spoiler)]

La Mala Hora - Alex Segura - 4/5
ooh this is Alter Ego & Secret Identity author!

and a super short one!
(view spoiler)[
I don't quite think I understand why she's so happy in the end? that it wasn't her husband but was the bad guy?

but I did find myself hooked the story - well told (hide spoiler)]

The African Painted Dog - Catriona Ward - 5/5
I find this author is a mixed bag for me but I do love giving her stories a whirl

(view spoiler)[
ha! I loved this one! what an interesting way to tell it.
and it was a great on audio - the narrator sped up or down depending on it if it thoughts or under stress. a little graphic but I loved the unique POV (hide spoiler)]

Till Human Voices Wake Us, And We Drown - Poppy Z Brite - 2/5
new to me author

(view spoiler)[
this was weird and I wasn't sure what the point was. it could have happened during any time - not necessarily during the time of The Stand. . . (hide spoiler)]

Kovach's Last Case - Michael Koryta - 5/5
loved this one!

(view spoiler)[
I love that he thought it was a serial killer and then, sure, it was. but she was doing good research. Her sleep study then gathering the blood. just really interesting and really added a little hope. one of the few stories to do that! lol (hide spoiler)]

Make Your Own Way - Alma Katsu - 3/5
def an author I know!

(view spoiler)[
I was so surprised when she trusted him. I felt like he had been dreaming. what a scary man he ended up being - and gross.
glad she was able to overpower him. (hide spoiler)]

Part 2 : THE LONG WALK

Definitely find that I judge people on who they are dreaming of!

I love the Dead - Josh Malerman - 4/5
def not a new author! one I love (view spoiler)[
oooh man, carrying around that finger
and just how he acted like he was owed stuff
Loved this one and loved that the old guy got to whack him on the head (hide spoiler)]

Milagros - Cynthia Pelayo - 3/5
(view spoiler)[ another view on island life but of someone so far away - trying to get to the US to Nebraska - to Abigail

I love that she loved her chicken so much. (hide spoiler)]

The Legion of the Swine - S.A. Cosby - 4/5
(love this author) (view spoiler)[ beware of wild pigs - lol
great that they ate them - I wasn't so sure they would fight and i thought the bad guys would win

I was glad when they didn't (hide spoiler)]

Keep the Devil Down - Rio Youers - 3/5
(view spoiler)[ this was by far the longest one. I liked how it felt like they were guided. I was glad when she managed to shoot them but not kill them. I liked how they used the songs they heard to feel comfort but i don't know if the longer one was my favorite (hide spoiler)]

Across The Pond - V. Castro -
awe, I've read a few others by this author. TW: SA (view spoiler)[ it completely makes sense how dark this one was. this author is a little dark - but wow, Randall's people are not good. . . flipping the script on rape and assault (hide spoiler)]

The Boat Man - Tananarive Due & Steven Barnes - 3/5 (view spoiler)[ interesting. I liked that the 2 siblings were together but I definitely found myself not fully sucked into the story . the matching smile at the end was good, though (hide spoiler)]

The Story I Tell is The Story of Some of Us by Paul Tremblay - 4/5 (view spoiler)[ I liked the story within the story - I loved how this one started! so good, pulled me right in. but the story, of course, was sad (hide spoiler)]

The Mosque at the End of the World - Usman T. Malik - 3/5 (view spoiler)[ for some reason, this one felt a little more fantasy and could have taken place at any time and less tied to the time of The Stand (hide spoiler)]

Abagail's Gethsemane - Wayne Brady & Maurice Broaddus - 3/5 (view spoiler)[wow, this one about the woman herself. I was sad by how tired she was, how much she didn't want to do this and yet, she was pushed into it for being the best person to do it. (hide spoiler)]

PART 3: LIFE WAS SUCH A WHEEL

He's A Righteous Man - Ronald Malfi - 4/5
(great author!) (view spoiler)[ wow, I didn't even think that those that were pregnant wouldn't pass on the antibodies. right, that's what was happening? the babies they were having were still dying?
can you imagine how creepy that would be if you'd predicted the pandemic like that? (hide spoiler)]

Awaiting Orders in Flaggstone by Somer Canon - 4/5 (view spoiler)[wow, brutal and ugly side of people. again, with the babies that weren't thriving but what a scary man they elevated. all to find the bad guys. yikes (hide spoiler)]

Grand Junction - Chuck Wendig 4/5 (view spoiler)[wow, it's like his father had a feeling about how that was going to turn out. i never thought she'd betray them. did I get that right? these are happening AFTER the big battle and good won? wow, so much evil still rising (hide spoiler)]

Hunted to Extinction - Premee Mohamed - 3/5 (view spoiler)[the little girl was freaky and the dreams were terrible but this one didn't feel very different than the other "evil rises" stories so far (hide spoiler)]

Came the Last Night of Sadness - Catherynne M. Valente - 3/5

The Devil's Children - Sarah Langan - 3/5 (view spoiler)[I'm not sure how I feel about rewriting how it all worked after the book. that those immune actually killed others because they spread it? and that the children weren't born immune but died from failure to thrive.
and now this couple if finally having kids that ARE immune? hmmm. . . (hide spoiler)]

PART FOUR: OTHER WORLDS THAN THESE

The Unfortunate Convalescence of the Superlawyer - Nat Cassidy - 5/5
one of my favorite stories (view spoiler)[ ha! I loved the mumbling older men looking for a door and how silly it was, this side world that wasn't our own. I loved the key chain and the initials and the note at the end!! 😲😲😲 and OMG The mention of a tower?!?! I gasped! Loved it, all the little nods to Stephen King! (hide spoiler)]

Walk on Gilded Splinters - 4/5

I'm done! this was so stinking good! so many good stories, just a few really weird ones - I will definitely listen to this one again in a few years after I re-visit the stand again!