Later by Stephen King

I’ve read a few of Stephen King's books – It, Pet Sematary, Salem’s Lot, and The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger. Out of these, It and Pet Sematary really grabbed my attention. I’m not a huge fan of horror, but there’s something about King's writing that pulls you in, even if you’re not into scary stuff.

My friend and I recently decided to read Later, one of King’s shorter horror novels. I had no big expectations—I just wanted to see what the book was about. Later turned out to be a really easy and enjoyable read.

The story is narrated by a young boy who can see and talk to dead people. For some reason, he keeps reminding the reader that it’s a horror story. As I read, I thought, "Okay, but I don’t feel the horror yet." It was only towards the end that I felt the horror kick in. I was expecting something, not sure what, but other than whatever was in the book, to happen. But I realized that what I was waiting for or thought was supposed to happen would happen later. I felt kind of played. But the book title is Later, so it makes sense, yeah?

Also, reading this book got me thinking about how different it is to experience horror through books versus movies. Movies often rely on jump scares and creepy visuals to scare you, but books can create a more psychological fear that builds over time.

Even though horror isn’t usually my thing, my journey with Stephen King’s books has been fun. But honestly, this is the type of book I’ll read while taking a break from other genres that I really, really enjoy. 

Happy reading!📖