This is a great short story! Or novelette... or whatever you call this, it's good. I am becoming a big fan of King's shorter work; something I previously avoided. I am startled by just how strong King's writing is when developing a shorter work. See, I think I would be tempted to save my really good prose for the big novels. But King never holds out on the reader!
.More than simply a good read, Morality has two facets that are worth mentioning.
.First, it is tense -- really tense. I'm listening to it, and find that I sit in the car alone listening because I just have to know what's next. This story tightens with suspense that would make Hitchcock grin with approval.
.The story is also theologically engaging. King deals with subjects here that I thought only preachers really thought about. The idea of double sin -- the worst kind of sin -- is solid Bible. That is: The worst kind of sin is the kind that says: I know this is wrong, but I'll simply ask God to forgive me.
.King explores a subject that has become a common thread in his work -- the impact of sin on the individual. In that sense, Morality is very much like 1922. The real strength of the story is what Nora is asked to do in order to collect a very considerable payment. No, I won't tell you what it is. But, it's really not a big thing. Not murder. Not adultery. Not even on the list of the seven deadlies. It's just one small act. But that one small act changes Nora.
.The story is not about getting caught, it is about living with yourself after you've deliberately brought harm on another human. A justice system might not catch up, but a persons own happiness, pleasure, relationships and sanity are at stake just the same.
.There is a weakness in the story. The evil priest. Old men don't suddenly turn wicked, do they? In fact, men who have strived all their lives to please God tend to run harder that direction as they approach the judgement seat. Men who have run from God often continue in that direction; but the sudden turn toward evil seemed pressed to me. It was necessary to advancing the story.
.I found the story theologically deep. Like many of King's stories, I did not know at any point what was going to happen next. I made my drives to work extra long in order to listen to a little more of the story.
