The Langoliers
A novella.
Stephen King’s unforgettable novella — first included in his 1990, award-winning collection Four Past Midnight and made into a highly acclaimed miniseries — about a terrifying plane ride into a most unfriendly sky.
On a cross-country, redeye flight from Los Angeles to Boston, ten passengers awaken in Bangor, Maine, to find that the crew and most of their fellow passengers have disappeared. The airport shows no signs of life. Yet they hear “radio static” in the distance. Craig Toomey, an irritable investment banker on the verge of a breakdown, believes it is “The Langoliers,” monsters he was afraid of as a child who attack those who waste time. It’s mystery author Bob Jenkins who first theorizes that they have flown through a time rip. Bob declares they have entered a place that forbids time travelers to observe or interfere with past events. It turns out that Craig is right, in a way. Two creatures, followed by hundreds more, emerge from the forest and head for the plane, consuming everything in their path. Can the survivors manage to fly the plane back to Los Angeles, back to the correct time, before The Langoliers succeed in their deadly mission to destroy the plane and the world? Dinah Bellman, the young blind girl whose aunt did not survive the time rip, has the greatest insight of all.
A spine-tingling, propulsive novella, The Langoliers is a brilliant read from the masterful Stephen King.
Stephen King
Stephen King’s name is synonymous with horror, suspense, and the kind of storytelling that lingers long after the final page is turned. Born in Portland, Maine, in 1947, his love for the macabre began early, drawing inspiration from his small-town upbringing and the creeping unease that would define much of his work. From his first short stories published in magazines to the blockbuster novels that changed the literary landscape, King's journey from aspiring writer to a cultural phenomenon is nothing short of legendary.