Summary

In his modish book of short storey , You Like It Darker , Stephen Kingrevealed he forget to admit one tale – but there ’s still a way to record it for those curious . You Like It Darkerwas released in May 2024 , and it’sthe twelfth scant story and novelette collection King has released . King has a special love of short stories . In fact , in the introduction ofYou Like It Darker , King explains the challenge of write poor stories : " I ’m majestic of my forgetful fable , likely because they have always been hard for me . "

Of course , King clear it look well-fixed even when it ’s hard , including pen short stories . You Like It Darker ’s storieshave , like so many of his other stories , callbacks and railroad tie to old works , and one short story,“Rattlesnakes , " even serve as a sequel toCujo . While some stories are wholly standalone , as with many Stephen King collections , it ’s clear he had a few theme on his thinker when writing it , such as the Florida Keys , the COVID-19 pandemic , and grieving after loss . One overlook Stephen King short story , however , is " The Music Room " – but there are still direction to find it online for those singular enough to read .

You Like It Darker features a range of compelling stories from Stephen King , but some of these narrative are more memorable than others .

The cover of You Like It Darker by Stephen King with a snake and snake eyes as the backgrouund

“The Music Room” Is Missing From You Like It Darker (But It’s Still Worth A Read)

It Plays To One Of King’s Greatest Strengths As A Writer

" The Music Room " short news report first appeared in the November 16 , 2016 version ofPlayboy;it ’s long been a plebeian practice for Stephen King to release individual brusque stories in various publication first before combine them later on into a collection . While some old boxershorts and novellas have been reworked over the years to become full - length novel , such asThe Gunslinger , most have later appeared in collection . Unfortunately , " The Music Room " is not one of those collect short stories , which is a shame as it ’s a cracking , creepy-crawly little read .

Set in 1930s New York City , " The Music Room " be Mr. and Mrs. Enderby , a respected , upper - class couple relaxing in their titulary music room when they hear a strange haphazardness issue forth from the W.C. . The level quickly expose that the strange racket is a man named George Timmons , whom the Enderbys have kidnapped and extort for money . He ’s not the first person the twain has snatch for money and good , as it turns out ; the rest are buried in the remote Jersey Pine Barrens . It ’s a nimble but effective story utilizing Stephen King ’s superlative strength , albeit in a different setting : the atrocious concealment just underneath a seemingly idyllic , normal setting .

Stephen King ’s You Like It Darker feature a story that riff on an iconic piece of American Gothic , offer a more cathartic and satisfying ending .

A crocodile shaped island on Stephen King’s You Like It Darker book cover (cropped)

Why Stephen King’s 2016 Story Doesn’t Appear In His New Short Story Collection

Sometimes, Things Fall Through The Cracks

The understanding that " The Music Room " does n’t come out in Stephen King ’s belated ingathering , You Like It Darker , is simple and more than a little funny : he candidly just completely forget about it . Speaking to theTalking Scaredpodcast ( ep . 201 ) , King revealed there ’s no great ground for it not appear other than himself : " There ’s one story call ' The Music Room ' that I bury entirely . It ’s not even in the Christian Bible . But I think it ’ll be in the softback book as a hidden course , if you will . "

Turns out when you are a written material simple machine who still roil out novel and short stories because you have too many ideas to contain , you might draw a blank a report here and there over the decades . Such is the case with Stephen King , who is known for turn out a few short stories every year . It ’s understandable that one published years ago may descend through the quip . Such is the case for " The Music Room . " As he said , though , it may be included in an coming paperback variant ofYou Like It Darker , but that ’s not the only situation to detect it for those curious .

Where You Can Find Stephen King’s Story “The Music Room”

It’s Available In One More Anthology

If " The Music Room " is n’t included in an approaching separate , and you do n’t happen to still have a copy of the November 16 , 2016 edition ofPlayboy , it can be get hold in one place yet . It ’s also let in in the 2016 anthology bookIn Sunlight or in Shadow : Stories revolutionise by the Paintings of Edward Hopper(viaStephen King ) , which is available through various online booksellers .

he book includes stories from writers fromStephen Kingto Joyce Carol Oates and a spread of genre . The only throughline is that they ’re barrack by the great American painter . " The Music Room " is included as it was inspire by Hopper ’s paintingRoom in New York . For those unwilling to hold off for a potential update ofYou Like It Darker , the best bet to take " The Music Room " might be that anthology .

Penn Badgley as Joe Goldberg pounding his fist on a glass cage in You

Book cover of Stephen King’s You Like It Darker

Custom image by Yeider Chacon

The cover of Stephen King’s You Like It Darker against a blue and green background

Custom Image by Yeider Chacon

You Like It Darker By Stephen King (1)

Cropped cover of In Sunlight Or In Shadow: Stories Inspired By The Paintings Of Edward Hopper