Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - Gerald's Game

The more I think about this book the more my feelings shift from just disappointed to outright anger. The handling of the CSA in graphic detail yet barely a glimpse of attention to the death of the abusive men. The fact that a book centered on Jessie and her trauma and the feminist themes that were encoded in the premise alone of breaking free from her handcuffs that shackle her life by two differently awful yet still similar men, was handled poorly. The voices of these people in her life that make up her and their banter wasn't a slog when it could have been providing insight for this character. The way the ending shifts to be reassuring about the police and that the big baddie wasn't her father that molested her nor her husband that was going to commit martial rape but instead was a random ‘figure of death’ that actually turns out to be a gay, necrophiliac pedophile that likes to wear lingerie and has schizophrenia.

There was so much potential for an empowering and horrifying story but King, like always, fails miserably to the point that the only potential his stories have is the general plot premise. His work remains best as living in the a bargin bin and reading the plot on a back before being tossed back and privately mused on while alone. Otherwise his writing sucks the potential out of these premises to make you so utterly exhausted that you don't even care enough to reimagine the better story you were hoping for.

Content Warnings

meliacartin's review

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challenging 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? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

this was………. a lot. this was SO much. this book took me months to get through because it is so slow and so dense but it wasn’t a book that i found myself bored by (for the most part). yes the book took forever but the pacing of the book is very reflective of jessie’s experience of being literally chained to a bed in the middle of the woods for like 28 hours. i have several criticisms of this book but the pacing isn’t one

the scene with the broken cup i had to skip because of how intense and graphic it was, same with the eclipse scene. while i understand why the cup scene was included, but it felt odd to me that the eclipse scene went into such incredible detail of the abuse that jessie endured. i think it would have been more effective had the reader been left to connect certain dots, rather that being given a play-by-play

because of how drawn out the book was, it took forever to get to what the ACTUAL plot was. for that reason, it felt really out of left field to me. i’d spent so much of the book thinking it was just going to be an escape plan that the inclusion of That One Guy didn’t make a ton of sense to me? like it did but it didn’t, i don’t know. this is a very poorly worded review lol

the end was a little meh for me. the book felt like it just kept going, trying to explain more and more and more. it would have been fine to leave certain things more open-ended or not as black-and-white

idk. for my first stephen king novel, i think this was a good choice. but i did not expect this to go the way it did at all when i first started it. i doubt anyone will read this before reading, but if they do: PLEASE heed the content warnings

Content Warnings

reading__redhead's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.5

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antireading's review against another edition

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3.25

Was good but damn sometimes King cannot write women for shit

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19mclaste's review

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challenging dark medium-paced

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

2.5

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goldenluck's review

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challenging dark tense slow-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? It's complicated

3.0

How I described this to my partner immediately after finishing: it was fine. Jessie is not the worst "woman written by a man" I've ever read, but far from the best. The tension, gore, and horror were compelling and well written. The build up, reveal, and aftermath of her childhood trauma was, for the most part, well done.

In my opinion, this should have been a short story. Cut out the moonlight man, make the dog the big bad, when she escapes have her realize she and the dog are both victims of man trying to survive and come to peace with that. Or, if you want to include the monster, make him 1) a violator of women not men and 2) LET HER KILL HIM.

The symbology of Jessie's trauma in regards to sexual assault and misogyny was mostly well done up until the monster and all it's fall out, then it completely fell apart. If he had been able to carry it through, it would have been much better and a much more satisfying albeit dark climax. I just get the feeling that King chickened out in the end, which is so disappointing.

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sirbellows's review

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

SUCH A GOOD STEPHEN KING BOOK. This was peak King: claustrophobic terror of the mundane through a plot that is so primally horrific. There’s a depth to the MC’s backstory as well that made the story read as a bit more important, and the “supernatural” elements were just grounded and realistic enough to give me actual, real-life shivers.

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schmendez's review against another edition

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4.0

**WARNING: CONTAINS SPOILERS**

I really enjoyed the storyline of Jessie as an adult! BUT!!!!!! Hated the storyline of young Jessie. I won’t be rereading this book. I typically avoid books with child abuse/SA, but this had an extra layer of disgusting because it was written by a male author who CLEARLY doesn’t understand what this experience could be like for a young girl. The inner monologue of the young girl is sooooo inaccurate and gross!!!!!!!

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