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    Mile 81: Includes bonus story 'The Dune'
    Mile 81: Includes bonus story 'The Dune'
    Mile 81: Includes bonus story 'The Dune'
    Audiobook2 hours

    Mile 81: Includes bonus story 'The Dune'

    Written by Stephen King

    Narrated by Thomas Sadoski and Edward Herrmann

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Mile 81 is Stand by Me meets Christine—the story of an insatiable car and a heroic kid.

    At Mile 81 on the Maine Turnpike is a boarded-up rest stop, a place where high school kids drink and get into the kind of trouble high school kids have always gotten into. It’s the place where Pete Simmons, armed only with the magnifying glass he got for his tenth birthday, finds a discarded bottle of vodka in the boarded up burger shack and drinks enough to pass out. Not much later, a mud-covered station wagon (which is strange because there hadn’t been any rain in New England for over a week) veers into the Mile 81 rest area, ignoring the sign that says “closed, no services.” The driver’s door opens but nobody gets out.
         By the time Pete Simmons wakes up from his vodka nap, there are half a dozen cars at the Mile 81 rest stop. But two kids and a horse are the only living things left...unless you maybe count the wagon. With the heart of Stand By Me and the genius horror of Christine, Mile 81 is Stephen King unleashing his imagination as he drives past one of those road signs.
         In the bonus story “The Dune,” originally published in Granta’s October 2011 horror issue, retired Florida Supreme Court Judge Harvey Beecher tells his lawyer about a mysterious sand dune on an unnamed island a short distance off the Gulf coastline of his family’s property. Harvey first visited the island at the age of ten in 1932, after his grandfather, a scoundrel and land speculator who’d created the family fortune, told him Blackbeard’s treasure might be buried there. Traveling to the island became a daily addiction for Harvey…and now his lawyer is about to discover the shocking reason why.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateJan 10, 2012
    ISBN9781442349148
    Mile 81: Includes bonus story 'The Dune'
    Author

    Stephen King

    Stephen King is the author of more than sixty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes the short story collection You Like It Darker, Holly, Fairy Tale, Billy Summers, If It Bleeds, The Institute, Elevation, The Outsider, Sleeping Beauties (cowritten with his son Owen King), and the Bill Hodges trilogy: End of Watch, Finders Keepers, and Mr. Mercedes (an Edgar Award winner for Best Novel and a television series streaming on Peacock). His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller. His epic works The Dark Tower, It, Pet Sematary, Doctor Sleep, and Firestarter are the basis for major motion pictures, with It now the highest-grossing horror film of all time. He is the recipient of the 2020 Audio Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2018 PEN America Literary Service Award, the 2014 National Medal of Arts, and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King. 

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    Reviews for Mile 81

    4/5

    231 ratings40 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Very good story. Also veryuch enjoyed the bonus book, "The Dune." Very talented and moving with each story I read.
    • 1/5
      Like I said, I'm on the fence about Stephen King. While UR was a great read, Mile 81 - a Kindle Single - felt more like a chore.

      Taking place in the shut down Mile 81 rest area, one would think it was about some grizzly murder that happened which still haunts the area. Instead, we get a muddied station wagon that eats people. One part Christine, one part Little Shop of Horrors. Three parts bad. Story revolves around several characters - most of which become a grizzly meal for the alien vehicle. There's next to none character growth. It lacks substance underneath the surface. It's almost as if Mile 81 was a write-for-hire piece, something King had to do because of some agreement he made with Amazon.

      It's hard to say if Mile 81 is a lengthy short story or a novella, but it sure has hell felt like a longer read than UR.
    • 3/5
      This totally didn't go in the direction I expected it to go. In some ways, it's a companion to King's From a Buick 8. I have to say, I quite enjoyed the entire yarn...right up until the end. The end felt a little "tacked on" if you know what I mean.

      Still worth the read, though.
    • 4/5
      Fun classic Stephen King story.
    • 4/5
      Mile 81 is a short e-book released by Stephen King in September 2011. It was released only as an e-book, so I had not read it yet, but then my kids bought me a Kindle for my birthday, and I got to read it and i loved it! Mile 81 is just like the stories King used to write, back when I was younger; hairy, fun, and fascinating. It has been a long, LONG time since I have felt this level of horror while reading a book - ANY novel, much less a Stephen King novel. And it was a very welcome feeling.... The next day. After I'd gotten over the horror. Lol.

      Normally, when it comes to Stephen King, I generally prefer his huge, chunky books, like 11/22/63, and The Stand. While I like his short stories, they just haven’t always been the easiest things for me to get into—although I think part of the problem is that I get too into them, and they are too short. But Mile 81 seemed like just the right length. It was a simple plot that wrapped up quite nicely.

      It’s too long to be a short story and too short to be a novel, so I can’t compare it to much else of King’s work that I’ve read…the only thing I can compare it to is The Mist, which I read a few years ago and enjoyed, but Mile 81 was much better, in my opinion. While I felt that The Mist could probably have been longer than it was and more fleshed out because it was a pretty complex story; Mile 81 was simple: evil car. Car eats people. Can anyone survive...?

      If you’re looking for a quick read and you do have an e-reader, or an iPhone and are willing to spend the $2.99 for a great story, you should download this one. King fans will immediately recognize (and love) his unique narrative voice and well-crafted characters.
    • 3/5
      Would give it more stars but the dune was supremely boring. Mile 81 was excellent though.
    • 3/5
      I liked this, but...
      well, the writing was fine, and in some parts, really good! And I liked the action, pace, and dialogue! But... (spoiler alert!) ... it's a car that eats people? Really? A car, that eats people? Umm... that's fairly weak. I just, well, a car? Sigh...
    • 3/5
      It sometimes made it difficult to breath while reading thanx
    • 4/5
      This kinda put me in mind of his book Christine. It starts out with Pete and his brother and their day of two brothers one old and one younger wanting to follow, but of course the older brother doesn't want him to tag along. So Pete goes off on his own and finds more than he bargains for at Mile 81 where he isn't supposed to be. While Pete is sleeping off his drunk alot happens in the parking lot with an abandonded car and good samaritans trying to stop and help, some just don't make it out of there. Good short story but it left me wanting a little more.
    • 4/5
      Another good story from King. The short story, "The Dune", included in the audio book is priceless for the last sentence cliffhanger.
    • 3/5
      A quick, enjoyable read, kinda corny, but with some of the quality of the old pulp writers. Reminded me a little of Theodore Sturgeon/Ray Bradbury, both of whom I like. A great choice to read as you decide what you want to read next.
    • 3/5
      Fun. Best 'haunted car' story since 'Christine'. Ending left me feeling unfulfilled.
    • 4/5
      Short stories are Mr. King’s forte. Mile 81 is no exception. A ten year old adventurer, a very “hungry” car, some curious passers-by and two children left to tell the tale … and that is all I am going to say about the plot.

      This story is tight. Just as you begin to suspect that something is going to happen, you are thrown, very suddenly, into the midst of the trouble. The implausible becomes plausible and there is no reprieve until the end. This was a nice “appetizer” in the King comfort zone, before delving into the 11/22/63 main course, which I understand is a little bit of a deviation from the Stephen King norm.
    • 4/5
      The good folks in Maine are once again under attack. The alien car must be the little brother of Buick 8 and gas guzzler does not apply here.

      A very quick and enjoyable read which once again has you warning the protagonists not to approach the entity at hand, but alas, to no avail.
    • 3/5
      I don't generally enjoy SK's alien tales, but this one was amusing, particularly the part about a boy chasing away an alien with the use of the magnifying glass trick.
    • 5/5
      I was completely intrigued from start to finish! Grossed out, horrified, and at times, on the edge of my seat wanting to cry out, "No!"
      Good job Steve, old friend I've never met!
    • 5/5
      As usual, King doesn't disappoint!
    • 5/5
      King is a exceptional story teller and this story is no exception to this truth. I loved the characters and settings because both worked so well together. A great and fast read!
    • 4/5
      Not to bad for a short story, definitely worth a listen!
    • 4/5
      This was a typical creepy Stephen King book. It's a short story about a car that sucks people in and eats them. I "read" the audio book because the library didn't have any hard copies. This was enjoyable to listen to. I found myself saying "don't touch the car!" as I was listening. The book is about a strange station wagon that shows up at a closed rest stop. People think someone is in trouble so they approach the car to help and that is their biggest mistake. Having this short taste of Mr. King reminds me of how much I enjoy his writing and that maybe I need to get back to reading his stories.
    • 3/5
      Mile 81 refers to a closed rest area on I-95 in Maine. And as it goes in Stephen King's world, it's a place where Very Bad Things happen. King has always done pretty well writing kids. His slang might be kind of out of date (or maybe it's just more regional), but the basic kid-ness of the character is usually spot-on. The character of Pete Simmons is one of King's better kids and his portion of the story is the best part. In fact, if the story had ended before the whole killer-car thing then I'd probably rate it much higher. I don't think I'm blowing the plot by mentioning the killer-car, but yeah. There's been some ink spilled about how this is kind of a return to King's early, grittier days - but I don't agree. The "villan" of the story seems more mystical than plain evil. Like there's some kind of unexplored method or reason for what it does. I get that this is a short story or novella, but the randomness of the evil doesn't add anything to the story, so it just felt like there needed to be more investigation into what the deal was with this car.The first section (focusing on Pete Simmons) is pretty good, but the rest is just kind of paint-by-numbers with a rushed ending. All build and no pay-off. Also - 20% of this e-book is the preview for King's upcoming novel, 11/22/63 - so the story is even shorter than it appears
    • 3/5
      The King sure loves his cars! I preferred his story "Trucks" from the Night Shift collection over Mile 81 but this is a decent Stephen King tale that fellow Constant Readers will enjoy. Mile 81 will make you think twice of station wagons with muddy-covered windows and car doors that creak open. No spoilers but the ending was underwhelming and seemed a bit rushed. The best parts for me were King's signature characterization skills (man, he's good!) and King's cleverly scattered horror humor.
    • 4/5
      This kinda put me in mind of his book Christine. It starts out with Pete and his brother and their day of two brothers one old and one younger wanting to follow, but of course the older brother doesn't want him to tag along. So Pete goes off on his own and finds more than he bargains for at Mile 81 where he isn't supposed to be. While Pete is sleeping off his drunk alot happens in the parking lot with an abandonded car and good samaritans trying to stop and help, some just don't make it out of there. Good short story but it left me wanting a little more.
    • 3/5
      Can't beat Stephen King for originality and terror. This story was good, but the end wasn't quite satisfying although maybe that was his point. A good quick read.
    • 2/5
      I don't know exactly what King was going for here. At the end, he throws out a dedication to a few people who supported his earlier work, so I'm guessing he was going on nostalgia?

      This thing reads like a really bad B-movie. Not in a good way. I could've done without the blatant and unnecessary plug for AT&T wireless internet. Also, all the mentioning of an ongoing series that he's working on (American Vampire) and a film adaptation from his previous work (Christine) was kind of distracting and pulled me out of the story.

      I don't know what I expected. I loved Blockade Billy (his short story I read last summer).. but this just bothered me way too much.

      Gah.
    • 3/5
      Stephen King is one of my favorite authors. I started this book excited to see what it was about. When I saw that it was a flesh-eating car, my heart started racing. Trucks is one of my favorite short stories of his. Christine is one of my favorite books. I am torn with this review. It would have received a 5 star rating if the characters had been better developed and the story had been finished. I was disappointed at the ending. The car turns in on itself and disappears. What happens to the kids? How does the officer right it up? What was the car? Many questions left unanswered. Such potential, Stephen, please finish it and make it a full novel.
    • 5/5
      Stephen King was one of the first established writers to have his work published in e-book format. He published UR as an Amazon Kindle novella in 2009. Mile 81 is a Kindle Single published by Amazon this year, a terror story that takes place at a defunct rest area at mile marker 81 of Interstate 95.Mr. King returns to a topic he wrote about in a 1983 full length novel, Christine, the name of a 1958 Plymouth Fury with a terrible mind of its own. This time it is an old mud slathered station wagon, vaguely defined as a Ford or Chevy. It has a different mind than Christine that several characters discover at their peril.The prolific writer shows his talent for engaging the reader in the action and causing her to care about the characters. They are a random set of people in a variety of vehicles who pull off the highway where the station wagon is parked. In his narrative, Mr. King introduces products and services current today that pull the reader into identification with the ordinary people driving on I-95 who make the bad decision to stop. For example, they eat brand name foods, drive well known vehicle models, use contemporary jargon, and talk about current events. Mr. King has the unique talent to make the reader believe in the story and care about the realistic characters no matter how bizarre the premise of the work.This is a very good, satisfying novella for the reader offered by Kindle Singles publishers. It is well worth the very affordable price. The e-book also contains a teaser for Stephen King’s new full length novel, 11/22/63.
    • 2/5
      This sort story was okay but not great., liked how it begins, Liked how he made the characters so real but did not like the end much. I love short stories and have read better ones by Stephen King, but it is not bad. 2.5
    • 5/5
      Interesting short story by Stephen King. This is a very short read in under an hours but worth the little it cost. This is only in ebook format. But it is Stephen King. Yes, it is weird. But it is Stephen King what more can I say? This ebook has a teaser of the new novel 11/23/69 that is coming out soon.
    • 3/5
      Great short story, fun listen. However, this one ended with no answers. Maybe, the kids in the story don't know anything more...but a hint would have been enchanting..