The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King’s The Stand officially hit the shelves August 19 and became an instant bestseller. It debuted at No. 3 on The New York Times Best Sellers list for September 7, at No. 16 on USA Today’s Best-selling Booklist for August 27, and reached No. 1 in multiple categories on Amazon.
The 800-page anthology published by Gallery Books is edited by two-time Bram Stoker Award-winning authors Christopher Golden and Brian Keene. It also features an introduction by King, who authorized the project. King, of course, is the influential author of horror novels like Carrie, The Shining, Cujo, Pet Sematary, and It.
The End of the World As We Know It includes 34 stories and is broken into five sections of tales taking place before, during, and after events in The Stand. First published in 1978, The Stand is an epic post-apocalyptic classic about good versus evil with factions of humans clashing after a deadly pandemic wipes out most of the world’s population. King revised and expanded The Stand for a complete and uncut edition released in 1990.
Through the first week of the anthology’s release, readers responded with 38 ratings on Amazon, including fifteen 5-star reviews, and 112 ratings on Goodreads. Both sites have the book’s overall rating at a solid 4.2 out of 5. Authors celebrated the launch of The End of the World As We Know It in three countries and on two continents with more than a dozen signing events across the U.S., in Canada, and in London.
The Table of Contents is stacked with some of the best speculative fiction authors in the business with Christopher Golden contributing a Foreword and Brian Keene an Afterword. Writers for the anthology include Wayne Brady & Maurice Broaddus, Poppy Z. Brite, Somer Canon, C. Robert Cargill, Nat Cassidy, V. Castro, Richard Chizmar, S. A. Cosby, Tananarive Due & 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.
Library Journal and Booklist gave the anthology starred reviews.
“A perfectly edited and consciously constructed anthology,” writes Library Journal. “Each story stands on its own, but laid out together, they effortlessly immerse readers in a connected world. … An incredible achievement that manages to expand, enrich, and improve its source material. … A must-buy … this is a spectacular tribute to the ultimate epic horror novel of the 20th century.“
Booklist writes, “Stories vary from visceral and violent to philosophical, and the breadth and diversity of the included authors add depth to King’s world. … With a star-studded list of authors, including some outside the realm of the horror genre, this highly anticipated collection will garner a wide audience. Captivating.”
The End of the World As We Know It is available to purchase in hardcover, eBook, and Audiobook at the following links:
Hardcover:
Amazon – B&N – BAM – Waterstones – Overlook – Target – Bookshop.org – Hudson
eBook:
Audiobook:
LIONEL RAY GREEN 
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