Rating: 
Summary: A few gems in an otherwise bland mix
Review: Many people, I among them, have had the feeling that Stephen King has written himself out. He hasn't written a novel that really grabs you since "Needful Things", and his recent short stories for the most part show the same lack of the old spark. I wasn't crazy about "Riding the Bullet" when it came out as an e-book (maybe it was the format that turned me off; how do you curl up with an e-book?), and his serial novel "The Plant" was showing some real promise when he infuriatingly suspended it halfway through, leaving his readers hanging. "Everything Eventual" is pretty much a compilation of so-so short stories that one feels wouldn't have made the cut in "Nightmares and Dreamscapes". But there are a few real gems among all the ho-hums that make me give this book four stars. "Everything's Eventual", the book's title story, is a spooky tale of a dream job that turns into a ghastly nightmare; "Lunch at the Gotham Cafe" is a deliciously grisly shocker, and few readers will be albe to resist the screaming horror inside "1408". "The Little Sisters of Eluria", a prequel to Kings 7-volume epic "The Dark Tower", rekindled my interest in the series which stopped at volume 4 a few years back (although King assures it that volume 5, all 900 pages of it, is on the near horizon). I'm hoping that King will tie up his loose ends, namely, finish the "Tower" epic and give us the second half of "The Plant", and then leave us to appreciate him, if not at the top of his game, at least with the memory of how great a writer he can be when he is at his very best.
Rating:
Summary: Everything's Eventual , 14 not so dark tales
Review: The master story teller favors us with another collection of mini-yarns. Some are awesome, like the one in the title, and some just fall a little flat. A good read in general with a few hidden jewels. For the Dark Tower series fans, he has hidden a morsel of the gunslinger's past adventures in "The Little Sisters of Eluria", a really good one on it's own. I recommend this book to everyone, not only the die hard fans of Mr. King, but anyone who enjoys short stories.
Rating: 
Summary: Best shorts yet
Review: I have always thought that Stephen King's best work was his short stories. Everything's Eventual simply confirms this fact. Writing short stories is very different than writing a novel, or at least that's what I've been told. Story and character development have to occur pretty quickly and any twists in the plot have to happen in a very condensed manner. Stephen King has the ability to quickly involve the reader in a short story. His pacing in shorts is great. Almost never a dull moment.Then there are the types of stories he writes. In Everything's Eventual the 14 stories he gives us run the range of his talents. Ghost stories, stories filled with irony, ordinary people run amok, and twists of fate are all represented in this volume. Plus in The Little Sisters of Eluria, we see Roland in a continuation of the Gunslinger saga. Several of the stories, Riding the Bullet, 1408, Lunch at Gotham Cafe, LT's Theory of Pets and In the Deathroom have appeared previously in one form or another, but I enjoyed reading them anyway.
If it is true that Stephen King will write only 5 more books and this is one of them, then Everything's Eventual is a fitting beginning to the ending of one of the greatest American authors to come down the pike. If he isn't recognized for that now, it will happen "eventually."
Rating: 
Summary: Another boring bestseller
Review: I wish S. K.'s editors would dare do their job for once. These short stories are typical King: overlong, filled with cutesy-isms, lacking in originality, and just plain boring. He could probably produce a literate, well-written, memorable book if he wanted to, but why change the existing $$$-making formula which has endeared him to so many non-discerning readers? I was turned off after the first ridiculous story, scanned though a few more, then returned this latest tome to the library. I have renewed my vow not to bother with any more of this tripe; I only read this one on the off-chance that it might be even mildly entertaining. It was not.
Rating:
Summary: Luckey Me...
Review: I didn't even know this was coming out and my husband surprised me by bringing it home the minute he saw it. I have read every King book (except the Dark Tower series) at least once (most more!) Now I hadn't read any of these stories singularly, though I almost ordered "LT's Theory of Pets" on audio. But I think they really gain something intangible and wonderful by being put together; there's a thread here, truly. Just like any book of short stories, in my opinion, there are some you work your way through just because you want to read them all in order, and say "Well, that wasn't the best one." It's what you'd call "acceptable losses in short story collections" really. Sort of like digging for gold. Which is why I'm reluctant to tell you what the most absolutely horrifying story was; because if you skip straight through to that you're going to miss too much, especially in this book. It's one of the few collections that has such a strong common link running through all of it. If you skip straight through you might not even get the same scare you should out of my favorite... But of course I'll tell. As King himself pointed out, this story on audio scared the *hell* out of him. I smirked and nodded knowingly, "Well, we'll just see how scary it is - some silly story about a motel room, bah!"; after all I haven't been terrified of a book since 'Salem's Lot! Hah! Salem's Lot? What's that? I don't think anything will scare me after reading 1408. Well...except every shadow that I see out of the corner of my eye, every sound that I hear, every unexpected movement in my vicinity...you get the picture. I don't care what anyone says, reading a whole book of highly enjoyable, creepy, and interesting stories and finding just one that makes you SCREAM, that pumps your adrenaline like going down the 230 foot vertical drop on an extreme ride, is WORTH IT. Don't walk, get the book! Love it. Luckey, luckey you.
Rating:
Summary: Why King is "King"
Review: I've been a Stephen King fan for many years. His ability to make the most mundance events or setting terrifying, and his keen grasp of human nature and human foibles place him near the top in pure literary genius. That he happens to write horror is only incidental, and in a way unfortunate, for the mass market appeal of his novels and stories has prevented King receiving due credit as one of the great American writers of modern times. Perhaps King's legacy will begin to change with "Everything's Eventual". This is an eclectic and versatile collection of short stories, in which his talents are generously displayed. It has been a while since I've read Stephen King, and I couldn't help but notice a subtle change in style - a melancholly wisdom and maturity I've overlooked in any of King's earlier works. "All that you Love Will be Carried Away" is a beautifully sad, yet darkly humorous story that captures this theme of resigned fatalism. "The Man in the Black Suit", while as terrifying a story as King has ever writen, has a depth and moral undertone that transcends King's familiar "Good vs. Evil" story line. For shear gut-turning terror, it doesn't get much better than "Autopsy Room Four": leave it to King to have the reader not wanting to turn the page, yet unable to overcome the morbid curiosity, while at the same time finding humor in an autopsy about to be performed on a very-much-alive patient. "The Death of Jack Hamilton" tells a tale of the John Derringer gang, and "In the Deathroom" finds an American reporter caught in a brutal in a south American interrogation chamber. "The Road Virus Heads North" is told from the roughly autobiographical viewpoint that King does so well, and who but King could make even a yard sale ominous? There isn't a bad story in the lot, though I found "The Little Sisters of Eluria" playing on themes a bit too familiar. But I suspect diehard "Dark Tower" fans may find it one of the best in the collection. Other tales of divorce and marriages gone bad, a sinister conspiracy, and a haunted hotel room reflect classic King morbidness, yet also build on this deeper, philosophical undercurrent. Each story is either introduced or closed with a brief vignette by King. While typically I find editorial inserts annoying, In "Eventual" I found them interesting and instrumental to the overall success and flow of the book. In summary, a must read for Stephen King fans, and a great way for the unintiated to get introduced to him.
Rating:
Summary: An improvement on "Dreamcatcher"
Review: As I've indicated in other reviews of his work, Stephen King's books can be grouped into three categories - his best novels - "Salem's Lot", "The Shining"; his worst - "Gerald's Game", "Firestarter"; and everything in between - stuff that King wrote on an off day or that is just not as good as it could have been. "Everything's Eventual" falls into the middle category, but in this case it's because of the nature of the book; it's a compilation of short stories. Some - in fact, most - of these stories are quite good, and several ("The Man in the Black Suit", "The Road Virus Heads North", and "That Feeling, You Can Only Say What it is in French", to name a few) quite literally sent a chill down my spine. Most of the other horror tales aren't quite in the same league as those but are still 100% better than most of what's currently in the horror section of bookstores now. There's also an introductory essay about these stories, as well as a printed version of the only successful e-novel so far ("Riding the Bullet", which scared me plenty when I first downloaded it) and a printed version of one of the stories in King's audio compilation ("Blood and Smoke"), which as read by the author put me to sleep. I'm glad he put it to paper; it's a much better story this way despite what King says in his introduction to the story. King can write good stories but he certainly can't narrate them. I hope he puts the other stories in that "book" to paper so I can enjoy them. There is also a prequel of sorts to the "Dark Tower" series. I personally have found the "Dark Tower" books to be totally incomprehensible, and the fact that King made mention of the Tower in "Black House" didn't exactly endear that book to me when I read it. But "The Little Sisters of Eluria" was actually quite a good novella, and I may just go and buy the first few volumes of the series again to see if it's a little more understandable. There is one clunker in this collection, and it's the last story - "Luckey Quarter". The fact that "Lucky" is spelled incorrectly should have been a dead giveaway (no pun intended). This collection will have to serve until King's next novel, which I believe will be coming out towards the end of this year. Can't wait!
Rating:
Summary: Superb collection of chills from the master of the macabre
Review: The basis of the negative reviews written intelligently (discluding Mr."A reader from USA USA USA!!!!!!" who offers no reason why this collection is "bad bad bad") is that many of the stories arent new; that most have been published other places. Of course, one has to remember many King's stories here have been published in hard to find collections, New Yorkers and the elusive hard-to-find Six Stories. I really doubt every King fan has bought a lot of the old magazines, and this book is a blessing. Such stories, including the O Henry award winning 'Man in the Black Suit, and 'Little sisters of Eluria', the Dark Tower prequel, are hard to find and worth your reading. From the darkly humorous Autopsy Room Four, to the hauntingly sad All that you love will be carried away, this book has a lot to offer. Highly reccomended.
Rating:
Summary: Resignation to your fate
Review: That's the overwhelming feeling that comes thru in this collection of a decade's worth of shorter works. These are shorter entries but overall more satisfying than some of the author's longer works, recently published. The man can write. Enjoy it.
Rating: 
Summary: Truly not King at his best
Review: I have read the majority of the books published by Stephen King. I really looked forward to this release. I read with eagerness, and was left very unimpressed. The Sisters story was already released in a best of Science Fiction publications. The story, Everything's Eventual, in which the collection was named, was somewhat interesting, but my oh my did the story go nowhere. I know that King has many great stories ahead, but this one was not it.
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