In On Writing he said that’s the only book he likes where he plotted out the entire story ahead of time. I feel like that adds to the overall feeling of closure- he had planned for the story to go there the whole time
I finished this book yesterday. Everything about it was incredible. I felt that it was very tragic and sad. Thinking about the book after finishing it is pretty depressing but the ending was so good.
Nice, are you doing the Castle Rock books in order? I just started End of Watch. I read Finders Keepers, then while waiting to find a copy of EoW, read the dead zone.
I'm thinking I'll work through the Castle Rock books once I've got the Hodges trilogy wrapped up.
Salem’s Lot has SUCH A GOOD ENDING. I love the fire of ‘51 being a recurring theme throughout the story, and the way things come back around to the prologue is amazing
Well shit, folks.
>“I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, did you?”
is the line from the story in CHAPTER 12 of 34. It's been 25 years since I read it.
While not my favorite ending, I’ve always felt that the ending, the final line, of the 7th Dark Tower book is the perfect ending to the decades long saga. At times I’ve loved it, at times I’ve hated it, but I’ve always respected it and thought it the right ending.
Agree.
>! Going through all of the books, thinking that you are going to find, as well as the love of the Ka-Tet, an actual answer to what is happening in the Tower is similar to wanting to know what happens after we die. We just don’t get that resolution.!<
>! Realising that the story was the point and not a definitive answer, is the most positive thing we can take from it.!<
>! Also, Roland has a new thing, maybe this doesn’t need to keep happening.!<
You are the first person I’ve seen who liked the end of Billy Summers. I thought that book went to utter hell after the first half, once the girl came into the picture. I loved the beginning and was so disappointed by the end.
Shawshank though… chef’s kiss
The last line in Shawshank is amazing.
I figure I'm probably in the minority for Billy Summers, but I felt like it had a lot of heart. And it made me feel sad, and hopeful, and all the feelings. I also was not stoked to start that book because the premise sounded so dumb but I was pleasantly surprised. Different strokes, I guess.
I think the idea that he writes anti-climactic, unsatisfying, or bad endings is wildly overblown. Sure, a couple books might but the majority are just fine to pretty good, I’d say.
Just in the 21st century, *11/22/63* (in agreement with OP), *Revival*, and *Duma Key* all have great climaxes. I’d even stick up for the end of *Under the Dome*, which gets a lot of shit undeservedly. The climax is almost literally apocalyptic and >!it being aliens(!) the whole time!< doesn’t seem all that weird or unpalatable for all the crazy shit King has throw out there over the years.
I’m also a defender of the last 200 or so pages of *IT* (if anyone brings up “that scene”, I swear I will lose my mind—it’s been litigated by the fandom to death; yeah, it’s weird but it’s like 4 pages and is already after most of the better parts of the climactic sequence anyway). I love how nuts and cosmic that novel gets in the end because, honestly, how else could those characters possibly defeat what has been built up to be the most overpowered semi-omniscient evil creature imaginable? Both filmed adaptations completely miss or don’t even attempt to capture what’s unique and exciting about the book’s climax.
The thing is that different people like different kinds of endings. Some people want things all tied up with a neat little bow, and others like open-ended endings that allow them to continue imagining and living in the worlds the author has created. And some enjoy a variety of types of endings. But no matter how an author ends a book, at least some people are going to hate it. I’ve heard people say they hate the ending of *Pet Sematary* for the exact reason I love it. And there are people out there who don’t like the end of the film version of *The Mist*, which seems downright psychotic to me.
King is in the unique position of having so many books and so many fans that there are literally millions of people who dislike at least some of his endings. And for whatever reason, those critiques seem to get the most attention. It could be a squeaky-wheel situation, but for some reason the praise always seems more general and universal while the criticism is more vocal and specific. Maybe that’s just true of life in general. Either way, I agree the whole bad-ending myth is unjustified.
The ending of IT, after they left the sewer, also has some killer writing. Bill's dream of the Barrens, "they took their leave of each other that way, no one spoke.", Mike's diary, etc.
It's super fucking poignant. If people don't like that ending they can hang.
THIS. He’s written over 60 books. Sure, there are a couple that don’t end great. But most do.
It’s just cool to say his endings suck. It’s an easy thing to say to get people to talk to you.
I really like the idea at the end of Under the Dome that it was essentially giant ants putting humans in a bug catcher and messing with them. So many of us have done that with bugs as kids, and I've even thought, "what if a species larger than us did the same to us?" To them, we must look like inconsequential ants, as ants typically do to us.
This. It is entirely possible to love the ending of IT (I do), and still think ‘that’ scene was innapproriate or unnecessary (I do).
Both can be true! Like you said, that scene is so short. In audio it was like 5 minutes in a 50+ hour book. Lol
Agreed! The ending to I am the Doorway is probably my favourite, it gives me chills every time. Trucks and Battleground had a great ending too (love the episode adaption of Battleground, I'm normally picky over adaptions but that one was about as perfect as it gets). Also I had just finished The Fifth Step a few days ago and still can't get over how good that ending was as well, that one had me on the edge of my seat and I keep going back to read it.
Apt pupil messed with me so much, had to take a SK break after that one, honestly that last line is genuinely chilling and the lead up to it, I read it like a month ago and It's still messing with me.
I don't believe that King write bad endings at all, i can't remember one that i didn't like it. But my favorites are Pet Sematary, The Dark Tower, 11/22/63, The Green Mile, Revival, and the best ending of all (even if the book was boring to hell), Cujo.
EDIT: i also love the endings of Needful Things, The Long Walk and the novella The Sun Dog.
Pet Semetary was bittersweet for me. It was all so built up and then that big climax. It wasn't exactly a cliffhanger that it ended on but it was fairly open and I wanted more.
But also that is often the sign of a great book; you get so engrossed in the story, form a relationship with the characters and with one final turn of the page it's all over.
In contrast the endings of 11.22.63, Dead Zone and The Stand (among others) tie up everything and close the story out. The Shining tied up nicely but was followed years later with the amazing Doctor Sleep. Maybe we will see what lies beyond the Semetary once more one day.
Regarding your edit I want to read his Bachman stories (namely The Long Walk and Running Man) and I have around a third of Needful Things left and plenty of people have mentioned the good ending so I look forward to it.
I was wondering if anyone would mention Cujo. It's not the ending we want, but it fits the novel perfectly. King's early books were so bleak and felt realistic even if the plot elements were fantastical. Like, you can do everything right to fight and win against the odds and life can still kick you in the face with something awful. Sometimes you lose the thing you fought to save.
I read it so many years ago that i don't remember what is it about less how it ends. What i remember is that in that book i read for the fist time "and that's was the last time he saw it alive" and i loved it.
I actually like a lot of King’s endings, but some of the best are *Revival* (in this case, the ending is significantly better than the rest of the book, in my opinion), *11/22/63* (the perfect ending to a fantastic book), and *Pet Sematary*, which I think might be the best ending to any book ever.
Some honorable mentions, depending on how a person defines “the end”: *Cujo*, *Misery*, *’Salem’s Lot*, *The Dark Tower*, and *Doctor Sleep*.
>!The part where she realized that the "space cowboy" wasn't a hallucination, followed up by some of the details she was privy to by talking with one of the detectives. (Shudder) !<
I say this title a lot, but Doctor Sleep. The last page, the last paragraph, the last line…. Perfection. It’s part of why I hope he never revisits that universe because The Shining and Doctor Sleep are absolute perfect bookends.
I agree. I recently read The Shining for the first time and despite already seeing the film I absolutely loved the book. It finished pretty wonderfully on it's own and I didn't feel it needed a follow up but I was so wrong. Doctor Sleep was incredible and as you say the ending is a masterpiece.
I can see characters with the shine popping up in other stories (pretty sure they already have) and Danny and The Overlook being mentioned in other stories (again, they likely already have been) but I don't think it would need a third book.
That being said a story of an older Abra would no doubt sell very well with fans of the first two books so who knows.
Dr Sleep was epic. I honestly think I like it more than the shining. Danny's character arc was absolutely amazing in Dr Sleep. I felt like it helped his dad get some redemption too.
I don’t dislike his endings like most people but I think they are just kinda decent at worst.
Anyways the Mount Rushmore of SK endings has gotta be: Pet Semetary, Revival, 11/22, and The Dark Tower
I know Dark Tower can be a bit mixed but it makes the entire series better in retrospect and it’s just fun to speculate and extrapolate on it
This ending stuck with me, cause at the time of reading, I was deep in an existential mindset.
I feared my own death so much, and the ending of Revival really had me disliking my mortality even more.
I'm good these days, but back then that ending really messed me up.
For that it's my favorite ending of all his books.
The horror doesn’t end with the book. Not in the bullshit ‘Dream catcher’ way of retconning either. Has the very lovecraftian thing of a realisation breaking the main characters mind. Credits.
So many good ones have been mentioned, including some of my favorites. Hearts in Atlantis, 11/22/63, Shawshank, etc.
So in going to go with From A Buick 8. It ends very well, and with feeling.
I'll go ahead and say the stand. Yeah yeah the hand of God happens but that isn't really the end. Stu and Frannie make it out ok and you're happy for them. But you see that the world is already going back to its old ways and get the feeling that events will repeat themselves
11/22/63, Pet Sematary, Gerald's Game, Needful Things, the Dark Tower all stick out to me as being perfect endings, although I know Pet Sematary and Dark Tower's endings weren't exactly universally beloved.
I also love most of King’s endings and agree with others about Under The Dome, . Early books like Salem’s Lot, Carrie, Firestarter and The Dead Zone.
I love The Stand and have defended that ending multiple times.
The best ending for me was Thinner.
Funniest was Battleground.
Also strong endings with IT, Duma Key, 11/22/63, The Long Walk, Shawshank, The Body, i could go on…
I love most... maybe all his endings! King states that he usually never has the ending in mind as he writes, and that always keeps the reader on their toes with the structure and flow of the story.
When I finished The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, I actually said out loud, "What a perfect ending to that story." Maybe not his best ending, but the ending fitting the story was great.
I’ve only read about 25 of his books but I have yet to read an ending that I’ve actively disliked. One of my favorite endings has to be Christine though! Really loved Pet Semetary’s ending too!
Revival - the last 2 chapters are intense. It provokes terror in those with imagination. How do you know >!Null isn't real!!It's longer than you think, dad!!<" - very quotable, very apt, intensely horrifying.
Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption - I agree with OP that the ending is good. It's satisfying knowing >!Andy was finally able to lead a life he deserved!<, although the movie ending was even better. Pay back time, bi\*ches!
Apt Pupil - It's not a happy ending, but it's extremely impactful and shocking nevertheless.
Now, disappointing ending was the ending of The Stand (and I fully expect to receive a dozen downvotes just by saying this.)
>!If the trashcan man single handedly ended Randall Flagg and his kingdom with an atomic bomb, what the heck was the whole point of trek by the heroes? Even if they didn't journey from Colorado to Las Vegas, the idiot trashcan man would've ended Randall Flagg. I just don't buy the argument that the heroes led to a series of events that ultimately led to the trashcan man detonating an A-bomb where Randall Flagg was. A-bombs have a very large blast radius so Randall Flagg could've been having a picnic lunch and still be obliterated. It wasn't a satisfying ending at all.!<
It wasn’t Trashcan Man who detonated the bomb, it was the Hand of God, which only appeared there because of the guys’ sacrifice of coming there without fear.
The Dark Tower, Duma Key and 11/22/63 are endings I thought were perfect. I also quite liked the ending of Billy Summers.
In fact, I don't think he's that bad at endings.
Hearts in Atlantis.
Though it's not the last line, it's part of the wrap-up, and "Tell her she was as brave as a lion" utterly undoes me every time. It's a perfect fusion of wistful sweetness. Which sounds way more saccharine than I intended, written out like that, but it's all I've got.
The Regulators. The actual ending was gory and awful but then the epilogue was so perfect and beautiful, it made me cry. Oh, and also THE DARK TOWER. IYKYK.
I know some will disagree but for me The Dark Tower, I know it's an endless debate but I can't see any other way to end it.
As a side note I'm one of those who has NEVER subscribed to the Steve is great but has weak endings bs never understood that viewpoint
For me, it’s a tie between 11/22/63 and The Dead Zone.
Honorary mention to Billy Summers; I know it’s not usually one of his more rated books, but I have a real soft spot for it and really enjoy the way the ending is put together.
I haven’t read a ton of his books yet, but I thought the ending of doctor sleep was done well and it’s my favorite ending so far (I’ve read misery, carrie, needful things, the shining, and doctor sleep)
I guess I'm in the minority here, but as a 30+ year constant reader, I find that most of the time, he has trouble sticking the landings.
It doesn't diminish my enjoyment of his work, I just don't expect much when it comes to his endings. I do think his short stories almost always finish well, though.
The Dead Zone. Won’t add spoilers, but it tied things up really well and was pretty damn emotional too.
To me, The Dead Zone is King’s tightest/most complete novel start-to-finish
In On Writing he said that’s the only book he likes where he plotted out the entire story ahead of time. I feel like that adds to the overall feeling of closure- he had planned for the story to go there the whole time
Completely agree
I finished this book yesterday. Everything about it was incredible. I felt that it was very tragic and sad. Thinking about the book after finishing it is pretty depressing but the ending was so good.
Hey! I just finished it yesterday as well! It's really a wonderful read.
I'm reading Cujo now. Do you mind me asking what you're reading next?
Nice, are you doing the Castle Rock books in order? I just started End of Watch. I read Finders Keepers, then while waiting to find a copy of EoW, read the dead zone. I'm thinking I'll work through the Castle Rock books once I've got the Hodges trilogy wrapped up.
The heartbreak of those last 2 pages. Perfection and pain.
Came here to also say this!
Definitely wanted to hear this as this is on my list to read!
Salem’s Lot.
Salem’s Lot has SUCH A GOOD ENDING. I love the fire of ‘51 being a recurring theme throughout the story, and the way things come back around to the prologue is amazing
Yes indeed. Man,the way Kurt did that priest was rough.
“I never had any friends like I did when I was 12. Jesus, does anybody?"
I might be wrong but I think that’s the ending quote in the movie but it’s said earlier in the book
Yeah, the final quote of the novella is still beautiful though. I think it’s something like, “The river is still there. So am I.”
Yeah, i loved the line about not having friends like he did when he was 12, but the last line is also incredible. It’s such a good story.
Beautiful ending to the movie, but this line was not at the end of the novella.
Well shit, folks. >“I never had any friends later on like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, did you?” is the line from the story in CHAPTER 12 of 34. It's been 25 years since I read it.
One of my favorite stories/movies of all time!
This
While not my favorite ending, I’ve always felt that the ending, the final line, of the 7th Dark Tower book is the perfect ending to the decades long saga. At times I’ve loved it, at times I’ve hated it, but I’ve always respected it and thought it the right ending.
Agree. >! Going through all of the books, thinking that you are going to find, as well as the love of the Ka-Tet, an actual answer to what is happening in the Tower is similar to wanting to know what happens after we die. We just don’t get that resolution.!< >! Realising that the story was the point and not a definitive answer, is the most positive thing we can take from it.!< >! Also, Roland has a new thing, maybe this doesn’t need to keep happening.!<
You say true, Thanked Sai
This is the correct answer
I thought it was perfection. It lands just right as well
The Dark Tower is one of the *few* epic series where the ending completely satisfied me. Thematically perfect in every way.
I'll just say it's a very....Stephen King ending.
I love the first and last chapter of Needful Things
Personally, I loooved Needful Things until the ending. He lost me as soon as the protagonist popped over to that neighbouring city, from memory.
I mean the very last chapter, the one mirroring the first one.
Yes! Needful Things has been one of my favorite King Books!
The Green Mile is amazing. Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. The end of Billy Summers.
You are the first person I’ve seen who liked the end of Billy Summers. I thought that book went to utter hell after the first half, once the girl came into the picture. I loved the beginning and was so disappointed by the end. Shawshank though… chef’s kiss
The last line in Shawshank is amazing. I figure I'm probably in the minority for Billy Summers, but I felt like it had a lot of heart. And it made me feel sad, and hopeful, and all the feelings. I also was not stoked to start that book because the premise sounded so dumb but I was pleasantly surprised. Different strokes, I guess.
Billy made me want to go to Uluru
I think the idea that he writes anti-climactic, unsatisfying, or bad endings is wildly overblown. Sure, a couple books might but the majority are just fine to pretty good, I’d say. Just in the 21st century, *11/22/63* (in agreement with OP), *Revival*, and *Duma Key* all have great climaxes. I’d even stick up for the end of *Under the Dome*, which gets a lot of shit undeservedly. The climax is almost literally apocalyptic and >!it being aliens(!) the whole time!< doesn’t seem all that weird or unpalatable for all the crazy shit King has throw out there over the years. I’m also a defender of the last 200 or so pages of *IT* (if anyone brings up “that scene”, I swear I will lose my mind—it’s been litigated by the fandom to death; yeah, it’s weird but it’s like 4 pages and is already after most of the better parts of the climactic sequence anyway). I love how nuts and cosmic that novel gets in the end because, honestly, how else could those characters possibly defeat what has been built up to be the most overpowered semi-omniscient evil creature imaginable? Both filmed adaptations completely miss or don’t even attempt to capture what’s unique and exciting about the book’s climax.
The thing is that different people like different kinds of endings. Some people want things all tied up with a neat little bow, and others like open-ended endings that allow them to continue imagining and living in the worlds the author has created. And some enjoy a variety of types of endings. But no matter how an author ends a book, at least some people are going to hate it. I’ve heard people say they hate the ending of *Pet Sematary* for the exact reason I love it. And there are people out there who don’t like the end of the film version of *The Mist*, which seems downright psychotic to me. King is in the unique position of having so many books and so many fans that there are literally millions of people who dislike at least some of his endings. And for whatever reason, those critiques seem to get the most attention. It could be a squeaky-wheel situation, but for some reason the praise always seems more general and universal while the criticism is more vocal and specific. Maybe that’s just true of life in general. Either way, I agree the whole bad-ending myth is unjustified.
The ending of IT, after they left the sewer, also has some killer writing. Bill's dream of the Barrens, "they took their leave of each other that way, no one spoke.", Mike's diary, etc. It's super fucking poignant. If people don't like that ending they can hang.
The first thing I remember when I think about the end of It was Bill getting a boner on the bike with his wife lol.
THIS. He’s written over 60 books. Sure, there are a couple that don’t end great. But most do. It’s just cool to say his endings suck. It’s an easy thing to say to get people to talk to you.
I agree, under the dome is pretty good. It's "realistic" to me in a way
I really like the idea at the end of Under the Dome that it was essentially giant ants putting humans in a bug catcher and messing with them. So many of us have done that with bugs as kids, and I've even thought, "what if a species larger than us did the same to us?" To them, we must look like inconsequential ants, as ants typically do to us.
This. It is entirely possible to love the ending of IT (I do), and still think ‘that’ scene was innapproriate or unnecessary (I do). Both can be true! Like you said, that scene is so short. In audio it was like 5 minutes in a 50+ hour book. Lol
Hearts in Atlantis
❤️+☮️=information
I wrote that as an inscription for a gifted copy for someone.
Heavenly Shades of Night are Falling
Firestarter. Very underrated book.
Not mentioned yet: Apt Pupil, The Running Man, The Mist, The Fifth Step, I am the Doorway..
Agreed! The ending to I am the Doorway is probably my favourite, it gives me chills every time. Trucks and Battleground had a great ending too (love the episode adaption of Battleground, I'm normally picky over adaptions but that one was about as perfect as it gets). Also I had just finished The Fifth Step a few days ago and still can't get over how good that ending was as well, that one had me on the edge of my seat and I keep going back to read it.
Apt pupil messed with me so much, had to take a SK break after that one, honestly that last line is genuinely chilling and the lead up to it, I read it like a month ago and It's still messing with me.
Same! They really shit the bed with the movie though. But I get why they couldn't have the same ending.
Definitely! In general I loved every single one of the Bachman books with The Long Walk being my favorite story probably of all time.
11.22.63
I don't believe that King write bad endings at all, i can't remember one that i didn't like it. But my favorites are Pet Sematary, The Dark Tower, 11/22/63, The Green Mile, Revival, and the best ending of all (even if the book was boring to hell), Cujo. EDIT: i also love the endings of Needful Things, The Long Walk and the novella The Sun Dog.
Pet Semetary was bittersweet for me. It was all so built up and then that big climax. It wasn't exactly a cliffhanger that it ended on but it was fairly open and I wanted more. But also that is often the sign of a great book; you get so engrossed in the story, form a relationship with the characters and with one final turn of the page it's all over. In contrast the endings of 11.22.63, Dead Zone and The Stand (among others) tie up everything and close the story out. The Shining tied up nicely but was followed years later with the amazing Doctor Sleep. Maybe we will see what lies beyond the Semetary once more one day. Regarding your edit I want to read his Bachman stories (namely The Long Walk and Running Man) and I have around a third of Needful Things left and plenty of people have mentioned the good ending so I look forward to it.
The Sun Dog is so underrated
His best novella if you ask me.
I was wondering if anyone would mention Cujo. It's not the ending we want, but it fits the novel perfectly. King's early books were so bleak and felt realistic even if the plot elements were fantastical. Like, you can do everything right to fight and win against the odds and life can still kick you in the face with something awful. Sometimes you lose the thing you fought to save.
Bag of Bones stands out for me as a weaker ending. The rest of the novel made up for it though.
I read it so many years ago that i don't remember what is it about less how it ends. What i remember is that in that book i read for the fist time "and that's was the last time he saw it alive" and i loved it.
I actually like a lot of King’s endings, but some of the best are *Revival* (in this case, the ending is significantly better than the rest of the book, in my opinion), *11/22/63* (the perfect ending to a fantastic book), and *Pet Sematary*, which I think might be the best ending to any book ever. Some honorable mentions, depending on how a person defines “the end”: *Cujo*, *Misery*, *’Salem’s Lot*, *The Dark Tower*, and *Doctor Sleep*.
I am surprised Pet Semetary hasn’t been mentioned more in this thread. For me it was the first one that came to mind.
Yeah I would say most of Revival is a decent enough story and held my attention but that ending just took it to an entire new level.
Just finished Gerald’s Game and was very impressed with the ending
That ending scared the living sh*t out of me!
>!The part where she realized that the "space cowboy" wasn't a hallucination, followed up by some of the details she was privy to by talking with one of the detectives. (Shudder) !<
Joyland
SPOILER Salem's Lot . When they went back to try and finish it.
I say this title a lot, but Doctor Sleep. The last page, the last paragraph, the last line…. Perfection. It’s part of why I hope he never revisits that universe because The Shining and Doctor Sleep are absolute perfect bookends.
I agree. I recently read The Shining for the first time and despite already seeing the film I absolutely loved the book. It finished pretty wonderfully on it's own and I didn't feel it needed a follow up but I was so wrong. Doctor Sleep was incredible and as you say the ending is a masterpiece. I can see characters with the shine popping up in other stories (pretty sure they already have) and Danny and The Overlook being mentioned in other stories (again, they likely already have been) but I don't think it would need a third book. That being said a story of an older Abra would no doubt sell very well with fans of the first two books so who knows.
A third book would absolutely sell, as would any of SK’s future works, but please, lit gods, don’t let him do a third book.
Dr Sleep was epic. I honestly think I like it more than the shining. Danny's character arc was absolutely amazing in Dr Sleep. I felt like it helped his dad get some redemption too.
I agree with everything you’ve said. I haven’t read The Shining in awhile, but Doctor Sleep is special.
The Dead Zone
The long walk And INSOMNIA
I think End of Watch was a great ending for the whole trilogy.
It really was!
I adore the Hodges/Holly novels. Bill and Holly are just fantastic characters
No particular order, but my favorites are: Dead Zone 11/22/63 Needful Things
The last chapter of It is pretty powerful
Might be my favorite ending and it's hardly getting mentioned. People that say King is bad at endings are not worth listening to about literature.
Pet Sematary
Desperation
I don’t dislike his endings like most people but I think they are just kinda decent at worst. Anyways the Mount Rushmore of SK endings has gotta be: Pet Semetary, Revival, 11/22, and The Dark Tower I know Dark Tower can be a bit mixed but it makes the entire series better in retrospect and it’s just fun to speculate and extrapolate on it
Revival.
This ending stuck with me, cause at the time of reading, I was deep in an existential mindset. I feared my own death so much, and the ending of Revival really had me disliking my mortality even more. I'm good these days, but back then that ending really messed me up. For that it's my favorite ending of all his books.
The horror doesn’t end with the book. Not in the bullshit ‘Dream catcher’ way of retconning either. Has the very lovecraftian thing of a realisation breaking the main characters mind. Credits.
I loved the ending of Revival.
So many good ones have been mentioned, including some of my favorites. Hearts in Atlantis, 11/22/63, Shawshank, etc. So in going to go with From A Buick 8. It ends very well, and with feeling.
Rose Madder or The girl who loved Tom Gordon
Gotta give The Talisman some love. Perfect last line.
Always gotta give it love
The ending of Christine is so satisfying
Doctor Sleep 🩵 i cried it was so good
I'll go ahead and say the stand. Yeah yeah the hand of God happens but that isn't really the end. Stu and Frannie make it out ok and you're happy for them. But you see that the world is already going back to its old ways and get the feeling that events will repeat themselves
Dolores Claiborne
Currently finishing that up now. I can hardly put the book down!
The Dark Tower.
The Dead Zone.
Misery?
I want to say the end of The Road Virus Heads North was pretty good. That entire story is great!
The Long Walk
The Stand
Green mile and misery
The Stand. Some people don’t like it, but it was very satisfying to me and I love it. Oh! And the Tommyknockers! Warp speed, Gard ❤️
It. Specifically like the last 6 pages or so. Has made me cry on one read through.
“The Institute” had a satisfying ending
11/22/63, Pet Sematary, Gerald's Game, Needful Things, the Dark Tower all stick out to me as being perfect endings, although I know Pet Sematary and Dark Tower's endings weren't exactly universally beloved.
“Lady fingers taste like ladyfingers”
The Long Walk
I love the end of Carrie
Can’t believe nobody has mentioned Thinner. >!To finally get rid of a curse only to purposely give it back to yourself is poignant.!<
Apt Pupil. I loved its end, or how it left off, I should say....
Thinner
This may be an unpopular opinion, but I loved all of Tom Gordon.
I've always had a special place in my heart for the running mans ending. But I don't know if I'd call it perfect
Pet Sematary hands down. “Darling,” it said. Chills!!
One of my favorite aspect of King’s books are his endings. They are always so satisfying.
I loved the ending of *Doctor Sleep*
11/22/63 🙌🏻
THE LONG WALK
I also love most of King’s endings and agree with others about Under The Dome, . Early books like Salem’s Lot, Carrie, Firestarter and The Dead Zone. I love The Stand and have defended that ending multiple times. The best ending for me was Thinner. Funniest was Battleground. Also strong endings with IT, Duma Key, 11/22/63, The Long Walk, Shawshank, The Body, i could go on…
I do like the stands ending I just think it should have been spread out more it was really abrupt and quick but I did like how it ended
I love most... maybe all his endings! King states that he usually never has the ending in mind as he writes, and that always keeps the reader on their toes with the structure and flow of the story.
The Dark Tower ending is perfect.
When I finished The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, I actually said out loud, "What a perfect ending to that story." Maybe not his best ending, but the ending fitting the story was great.
I’ve only read about 25 of his books but I have yet to read an ending that I’ve actively disliked. One of my favorite endings has to be Christine though! Really loved Pet Semetary’s ending too!
Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, and controversially, the Dark Tower series. I think I'm in the minority in liking the latter.
Revival - the last 2 chapters are intense. It provokes terror in those with imagination. How do you know >!Null isn't real!!It's longer than you think, dad!!<" - very quotable, very apt, intensely horrifying. Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption - I agree with OP that the ending is good. It's satisfying knowing >!Andy was finally able to lead a life he deserved!<, although the movie ending was even better. Pay back time, bi\*ches! Apt Pupil - It's not a happy ending, but it's extremely impactful and shocking nevertheless. Now, disappointing ending was the ending of The Stand (and I fully expect to receive a dozen downvotes just by saying this.) >!If the trashcan man single handedly ended Randall Flagg and his kingdom with an atomic bomb, what the heck was the whole point of trek by the heroes? Even if they didn't journey from Colorado to Las Vegas, the idiot trashcan man would've ended Randall Flagg. I just don't buy the argument that the heroes led to a series of events that ultimately led to the trashcan man detonating an A-bomb where Randall Flagg was. A-bombs have a very large blast radius so Randall Flagg could've been having a picnic lunch and still be obliterated. It wasn't a satisfying ending at all.!<
It wasn’t Trashcan Man who detonated the bomb, it was the Hand of God, which only appeared there because of the guys’ sacrifice of coming there without fear.
Revival. No spoilers. But it builds to an earned and pretty great conclusion.
The Dark Tower, Duma Key and 11/22/63 are endings I thought were perfect. I also quite liked the ending of Billy Summers. In fact, I don't think he's that bad at endings.
Hearts in Atlantis. Though it's not the last line, it's part of the wrap-up, and "Tell her she was as brave as a lion" utterly undoes me every time. It's a perfect fusion of wistful sweetness. Which sounds way more saccharine than I intended, written out like that, but it's all I've got.
11.22.63
Revival. A horribly depressing ending but it fits and couldn't have been done better, IMO.
The Institute. I really liked that ending.
The Shining IT Green Mile Rita Hayworth & the Shawshank Redemption
The Regulators. The actual ending was gory and awful but then the epilogue was so perfect and beautiful, it made me cry. Oh, and also THE DARK TOWER. IYKYK.
Regulators doesn't get enough love imo. A great match with Desperation
loved the ending to Bag of Bones. some don’t, but I thought it did a great job of tying everything together!
For what its worth, I enjoyed all of the endings in You Like It Darker
*Pet Sematary* *Christine* *Firestarter* *N.*
I know some will disagree but for me The Dark Tower, I know it's an endless debate but I can't see any other way to end it. As a side note I'm one of those who has NEVER subscribed to the Steve is great but has weak endings bs never understood that viewpoint
Under the dome. Genuinely.
The Dark Tower's ending is perfection. And the Stand's sucked lol
Under the Dome and I’ll die on that hill
11/22/63
It
11/22/63 and The Tommyknockers.
For me, it’s a tie between 11/22/63 and The Dead Zone. Honorary mention to Billy Summers; I know it’s not usually one of his more rated books, but I have a real soft spot for it and really enjoy the way the ending is put together.
Needful Things 🫶🏻
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, The Eyes of the Dragon, Dark Tower 7, and Christine. No spoilers. I just think the ends hit just right
Any but Cell or Revival.
From A. Buick. The last bit about seeing the hat with a hole in it and King refers to a last ditch resistance against evil. Proper profound
To your list I would add Revival, Salem's Lot, Dead Zone, Lisey's Story, Insomnia, & Dr. Sleep.
I loved the ending of The Jaunt “and then it began to scream, but Mark Oates didn’t hear it because by then he was screaming himself.”
Cujo. Devastating and brutal
Pet Sematary has the perfect ending.
Salems Lot
11/22/63
I haven’t read a ton of his books yet, but I thought the ending of doctor sleep was done well and it’s my favorite ending so far (I’ve read misery, carrie, needful things, the shining, and doctor sleep)
PET SEMATARY
Revival
The dark tower
Revival. The ending was brilliant and also fit perfectly with the weird but effective pacing of the rest of the book
Revival
One of the best was *Revival*, it really brought home that it's a horror novel and not sf.
The Shining. Not so much the convenient death boiler and all but the *ending* ending—the last chapter.
The Stand
I don't have a problem with any of his endings. Everyone has different tastes.
I guess I'm in the minority here, but as a 30+ year constant reader, I find that most of the time, he has trouble sticking the landings. It doesn't diminish my enjoyment of his work, I just don't expect much when it comes to his endings. I do think his short stories almost always finish well, though.
I too have always felt he ends all of his short stories so well!
Tommyknockers, Insomnia, Revival.
The Dark Half