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eshurricane's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I am SO torn about this review because I had the same problem with this one that I did with the second one in which I struggled to get through it. The first one was very good, and I am so badly wanted to know where the story ended so I stuck with it, but sometimes I felt like the book just dragged.
The overall premise seemed really cool: the button box is so evil that Gwendy has to shoot it into space. Like, yes! But also, there was so much lag in the middle. I am usually 100% all in for King's meandering prose, a lot of his books that people think are slow I adore because I am so happy to bathe in the words and character development.
But this one falls short for some reason that I can't put my finger on. There were some good elements--a big one being Gwendy slowly losing her thoughts with her early onset alzheimer's. A lot of the bits were repetitive but just the overall arc of her mind betraying her was a really harrowing experience. For most people I think dealing with that kind of loss of memory is a horrifying thing to think about, so that really hit the mark for me dread-wise.
But again, just very repetitive and drawn out. The first few times Gwendy had to do the word association game was interesting narratively but it was overused in scenes where it didn't further the plot and felt like wasted space.
I liked the callbacks to Derry but if I'm being honest, the whole plotline of Ryan being murdered instead of just having been in an accident felt like shoehorning and somehow too much in a story about a magical button box that can destroy the world. Maybe imbalanced is the word I'm looking for? It all felt so imbalanced.
I feel like I'm being super negative, but I can't help but still give three stars just because the ending was balls-to-the-wall awesome. Gotta admit. The one time that Gwendy's memory loss was used in a masterful way that served the plot, Gareth's whole vibe and backstory, Adesh's plan with the bugs, and the Dark Tower tie in that I am SUCH a sucker for I can't help it, haha. And then Gwendy's final mission with the button box, man it was a beautiful tragic perfect ending.
Was it worth reading books two and three to get to all that? I honestly don't know. I did it, and enjoyed the end, so...I guess it's a moot point. If I were going to recommend these books, I'd say just read the first one. Maybe dip your toes into the second one and see if you like it but...yeah I felt like I was slogging through.
Excellent narrator, though! Marin Ireland did an amazing job with Gwendy's whole vibe, her inner monologue versus her 'Senator voice.' If you're going to take the plunge, definitely do it in audio.
The overall premise seemed really cool: the button box is so evil that Gwendy has to shoot it into space. Like, yes! But also, there was so much lag in the middle. I am usually 100% all in for King's meandering prose, a lot of his books that people think are slow I adore because I am so happy to bathe in the words and character development.
But again, just very repetitive and drawn out. The first few times Gwendy had to do the word association game was interesting narratively but it was overused in scenes where it didn't further the plot and felt like wasted space.
I liked the callbacks to Derry but if I'm being honest, the whole plotline of Ryan being murdered instead of just having been in an accident felt like shoehorning and somehow too much in a story about a magical button box that can destroy the world. Maybe imbalanced is the word I'm looking for? It all felt so imbalanced.
I feel like I'm being super negative, but I can't help but still give three stars just because the ending was balls-to-the-wall awesome. Gotta admit. The one time that Gwendy's memory loss was used in a masterful way that served the plot, Gareth's whole vibe and backstory, Adesh's plan with the bugs, and the Dark Tower tie in that I am SUCH a sucker for I can't help it, haha. And then Gwendy's final mission with the button box, man it was a beautiful tragic perfect ending.
Was it worth reading books two and three to get to all that? I honestly don't know. I did it, and enjoyed the end, so...I guess it's a moot point. If I were going to recommend these books, I'd say just read the first one. Maybe dip your toes into the second one and see if you like it but...yeah I felt like I was slogging through.
Excellent narrator, though! Marin Ireland did an amazing job with Gwendy's whole vibe, her inner monologue versus her 'Senator voice.' If you're going to take the plunge, definitely do it in audio.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic
j_emerson18's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Not my favorite in the series. The ending felt rushed while the middle felt so drawn out. I wish it had developed different although I do like how things ended. The main conflict of the book was quite more mudane that what I first assumed from minor details dropped throughout the series. Overall, the first book in the series is my favorite where the two following fall flat by trying to do or say too much at once. Wish I had gotten more context on the button box and the world origins/species origins than what I was given in the final book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Murder, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Death, Racism, Blood, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
clarebear2218's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Loved the end to this series! Gwendy is such an incredible, well-written character that was a joy to see at three stages of her life. I saw the ending coming, but that didn't stop me from crying lol.
My heart burst with joy when I realized this book was a part of the Dark Tower universe and leveraged one of my favorite lines by Jake from the main series "Go then, there are other worlds than these" I'm still processing what this means in the larger Dark Tower universe and any book related to it is my kryptonite
My heart burst with joy when I realized
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia and Car accident
Minor: Confinement and Death of parent
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