Reviews tagging 'Mass/school shootings'

Desperation by Stephen King

4 reviews

daisymaytwizell's review against another edition

4.0

I actually enjoyed this one so much more than I expected to! 

Tak is a fascinating creature - I'm not sure what King's drawing from here, so I'm not sure if there's a cultural insensivity I'm unaware of, but on its own I think it's a really interesting mythology. I think Desperation had a much better portrayal of its depravity and the way it incorporates parts of its host than The Regulators, because it jumps between several hosts here rather than attaching itself to one. 

I think reading The Regulators first and then this was the right call for me personally - knowing what Tak is capable of made the tension so much stronger when he's masquerading as a policeman, and I think the characters learn what's going on much faster here, so if you're going to spend one of them trying to work out what the hell Tak is, The Regulators is the best one, and then Desperation will fill in the gaps.

It was also so interesting seeing which characters play what role in each - getting attached to certain characters in The Regulators and then seeing their fates here is devastating and also so exciting.

Another massive point in this book's favour is actually it's ideas about God. God is explicitly using David and co as tools to fight Tak - and while he is protecting David, and David himself continues worshipping and keeps his face, a recurrent phrase in the novel is "God is cruel". And God here is cruel, backed up by several Bible quotes. It's one of the most nuanced portrayals of God I've ever seen in popular media, and honestly, I really respect the fact that King has chosen this way to tackle it. God is cruel and kind in equal measure here, sometimes one to create the other,  and King doesn't shy away from the fact that it is both horrifying and wonderful to be an instrument of the Lord.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, Police brutality, and Murder

Moderate: Child death and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Cancer

starfiadh's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The first Stephen king book I ever read and, despite reading it every year since, I never remember the ending. The relationship with god/religion is very strange and intriguing to me, and even the bad or slightly more boring characters get me interested in them at some point. Weird book. I liked it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, and Death of parent

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Racial slurs, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Drug use, Sexism, Mass/school shootings, and Sexual harassment

yodamordecai's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Blood, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual content

Minor: Xenophobia

marleens's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book was a wild ride. Lots of gore and violence, but also a great setting with a lonely highway and a creepy desert town. As usual with King I loved getting all the different POVs. There were a few character interactions that I didn’t like, but most of it was great, and of course it’s always a good time when a group of strangers has to band together to defeat the forces of evil. The weird language that is often used by the evil in the book did confuse me sometimes, I wonder if I was supposed to understand it, maybe it’s references to other King books I haven’t read yet? Something else that should have bothered me was the major theme of religion. Lots of God and prayers in this book, and I would normally have stayed far away from it, but weirdly it worked well in the story and with the characters, and didn’t bother me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cancer, Xenophobia, and Grief

Minor: Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Slavery, and Suicide attempt