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joshkiba13's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"She didn't like seeing that look in his face, but she wanted to see it there. She did. He was a man, wasn't he? And sometimes men had to learn what is was to be afraid of a woman, didn't they? Sometimes it was a woman's only protection."
Man this was just so different from any Stephen King book I've ever read (in a good way). Dolores Claiborne also dealt with a woman living under an abusive husband, but this was an entirely distinct experience. Dolores was a hardened bitch (her own description) who took matters into her own hands to protect her children. Rosie on the other hand, someone who in no way considered herself a strong woman, took courage in the spur of the moment to flee her horrific situation. What follows is hundreds of pages of pure terror as her maniac ex-husband goes after her.
I absolutely loved Rosie as a protagonist. Stephen King must know some women who have been abused, because the passages of Rosie remembering those 14 years of hell with Norman were just so dense with emotion and despair. Seeing her battle to believe in herself and struggle to heal and trust others was both heartening and heartbreaking. Seeing people come to love her were the passages that made me tear up. At one point someone she meets in the story grabs her by the shoulders and unintentionally frightens her:
"Her eyes flew wide, and he saw the beginning of a cringe. It was a look that hurt his heart in a new, strange way. He suddenly remembered a story he had heard . . . Something about how, back in the days of the prophets, people had sometimes been stoned to death. At the time he had thought it the most fabulously cruel form of punishment ever invented, much worse than the firing squad or the electric chair, a form of execution which could never be justified. Now, seeing what Norman Daniels had done to this lovely woman with her fragile, vulnerable face, he wondered."
I think a lot of people outside of abusive situations might wonder why battered women don't leave their husbands. Someone reading Rose Madder may ask why it took Rosie 14 years to leave Norman. I think Stephen King answers those questions well with passages like these:
"Rosie felt a bleak certainty steal over her. Now he would ask why she had stayed with Norman, and . . . it was a question she couldn't answer. She didn't know why she had stayed with him, anymore than she knew why, in the end, it had taken just a single drop of blood to transform her entire life. She only knew that the shower had been the best place in the house, dark and wet and full of steam, and that sometimes half an hour in Pooh's Chair felt like five minutes, and that why wasn't a question that had any meaning when you were living in hell. Hell was motiveless. The women in Therapy Circle had understood that; no one had asked her why she stayed. They knew. From their own experiences they knew. She had an idea that some of them might even know about . . . things even worse . . ."
We're in no place to judge anyone in a situation like that; we're only to love them, support however we can, and root for them, as we root for Rosie from start to finish in this book.
Norman was a maniac; without a doubt the most despicable, disgusting villain of any book I've ever read. Because of him, this book is the single most violent one I've ever read, either. King describes evil SO well; I think it's one or his stronger suits. Passages like these just make Norman, an already terrifying man, all the more scary:
"The smile did not just slip from his face this time . . . it fell off so suddenly that [she] almost heard it shatter like an icicle on the steel toes of his boots."
". . . a sound so jagged it made Norman feel as if someone were rolling his brain in broken glass the way a baker would roll a doughnut in sugar."
"His shadow swells and bobs on the wall and then he's standing in the archway, looking at her out of his flushed and handsome face. The eyes in that face are as expressionless as shards of glass twinkling beside a country road."
I think the book's main weakness is in the supernatural elements that show up about halfway through the story and then again during the climax. That plot line was certainly interesting, but it felt kind of like an excuse to make tiny references to his Dark Tower books. I think I would have enjoyed the story all the same (or even a little more) if Rosie and her story were entirely told in a realistic, regular world.
My other little gripe is thatwe endured through hundreds of pages of Norman killing people in the most brutal ways in order to find Rosie, and in the end he dies in like half a page (at the hands of someone else entirely) . I found that to be a small letdown, but it didn't ruin the story.
I found the epilogue to be really human and realistic. Rosie,even years later, is struggling to move entirely on from her trauma and even struggles with her own violently angry thoughts . I don't think anyone ever has a sunshine and roses happy ending; lives are complex and able to be corrupted if we don't check ourselves.
This book made me cry, wince, cringe, smile, and cheer throughout the rollercoaster ride. Despite the little references to The Dark Tower, I do believe that pretty much anyone could pick it up and enjoy it. Just know the book would be extremely triggering to anyone who has experienced spouse abuse, miscarriage, stalking, or violence. It's an intense story.
Man this was just so different from any Stephen King book I've ever read (in a good way). Dolores Claiborne also dealt with a woman living under an abusive husband, but this was an entirely distinct experience. Dolores was a hardened bitch (her own description) who took matters into her own hands to protect her children. Rosie on the other hand, someone who in no way considered herself a strong woman, took courage in the spur of the moment to flee her horrific situation. What follows is hundreds of pages of pure terror as her maniac ex-husband goes after her.
I absolutely loved Rosie as a protagonist. Stephen King must know some women who have been abused, because the passages of Rosie remembering those 14 years of hell with Norman were just so dense with emotion and despair. Seeing her battle to believe in herself and struggle to heal and trust others was both heartening and heartbreaking. Seeing people come to love her were the passages that made me tear up. At one point someone she meets in the story grabs her by the shoulders and unintentionally frightens her:
"Her eyes flew wide, and he saw the beginning of a cringe. It was a look that hurt his heart in a new, strange way. He suddenly remembered a story he had heard . . . Something about how, back in the days of the prophets, people had sometimes been stoned to death. At the time he had thought it the most fabulously cruel form of punishment ever invented, much worse than the firing squad or the electric chair, a form of execution which could never be justified. Now, seeing what Norman Daniels had done to this lovely woman with her fragile, vulnerable face, he wondered."
I think a lot of people outside of abusive situations might wonder why battered women don't leave their husbands. Someone reading Rose Madder may ask why it took Rosie 14 years to leave Norman. I think Stephen King answers those questions well with passages like these:
"Rosie felt a bleak certainty steal over her. Now he would ask why she had stayed with Norman, and . . . it was a question she couldn't answer. She didn't know why she had stayed with him, anymore than she knew why, in the end, it had taken just a single drop of blood to transform her entire life. She only knew that the shower had been the best place in the house, dark and wet and full of steam, and that sometimes half an hour in Pooh's Chair felt like five minutes, and that why wasn't a question that had any meaning when you were living in hell. Hell was motiveless. The women in Therapy Circle had understood that; no one had asked her why she stayed. They knew. From their own experiences they knew. She had an idea that some of them might even know about . . . things even worse . . ."
We're in no place to judge anyone in a situation like that; we're only to love them, support however we can, and root for them, as we root for Rosie from start to finish in this book.
Norman was a maniac; without a doubt the most despicable, disgusting villain of any book I've ever read. Because of him, this book is the single most violent one I've ever read, either. King describes evil SO well; I think it's one or his stronger suits. Passages like these just make Norman, an already terrifying man, all the more scary:
"The smile did not just slip from his face this time . . . it fell off so suddenly that [she] almost heard it shatter like an icicle on the steel toes of his boots."
". . . a sound so jagged it made Norman feel as if someone were rolling his brain in broken glass the way a baker would roll a doughnut in sugar."
"His shadow swells and bobs on the wall and then he's standing in the archway, looking at her out of his flushed and handsome face. The eyes in that face are as expressionless as shards of glass twinkling beside a country road."
I think the book's main weakness is in the supernatural elements that show up about halfway through the story and then again during the climax. That plot line was certainly interesting, but it felt kind of like an excuse to make tiny references to his Dark Tower books. I think I would have enjoyed the story all the same (or even a little more) if Rosie and her story were entirely told in a realistic, regular world.
My other little gripe is that
I found the epilogue to be really human and realistic. Rosie,
This book made me cry, wince, cringe, smile, and cheer throughout the rollercoaster ride. Despite the little references to The Dark Tower, I do believe that pretty much anyone could pick it up and enjoy it. Just know the book would be extremely triggering to anyone who has experienced spouse abuse, miscarriage, stalking, or violence. It's an intense story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Rape and Cannibalism
Minor: Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Racism
ro_lux's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Abortion, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism
pkc's review against another edition
3.0
This is a tough one to try and review. On one hand, it had most of the traits, tropes and archetypes I’ve come to expect from a King novel, but on the other…it had most of the traits, tropes and archetypes I’ve come to expect from a King novel. This just wasn’t the place for them and as such, I’d be hard pressed to recommend this in good conscience to anyone. However, overall, this was an engaging novel with more than a little air punching from me by the end.
The plot concerns Rose Daniels, nee McLendon as she is impelled by a drop of blood in her bed to flee her abusive marriage, and she does so, armed with her husband’s bank card. However, her husband, a policeman, doesn’t take this well at all and pursues her across hundreds of miles and the boundaries of reality and unreality. It’s the unreality part where my feelers started to go off. The descriptions of the abuse that Rose suffers are gratuitous at best, and as ever, King pulls no punches. I just felt that with the subject matter, it really didn’t sit right with me as I read. I also felt that as the story started to explore more of the fantastical elements (yes you read that right) the abuse was almost a conduit to an expansion of his other mythology and the main story just managed to resolve and make sense by the end. Kind of. I’m not convinced though.
Norman, her husband, as a character was so brashly written and there was no nuance. It seemed like there were attempts at giving his behaviour over to some unspoken mental illness or neurological problem. I’m pretty sure if you can think of any pejorative word against a marginalised person, Norman used it at some stage. He read as a pathetic chauvinistic bigot, which he was in so many ways, but his brute strength and apparent ability to evade consequence gave him an otherworldly slant that felt like too much credit.
Rosie as a character was probably the best realised character in the book and while she made some odd choices in the way she spoke to people (her tone was indecipherable at points) she was ultimately successful as the complex heroine and the fantastical elements worked best as they pertained to the founding of her new life. Special credit also to Bill Steiner who was a gorgeous romantic core, a calm port in really choppy seas.
All in all, to try and sum this up, I enjoyed this book, but I don’t think I’d recommend it to anyone. It’ll be 30 years old next year and I’d say it’s showing its age quite a bit. It feels like the last bastion of a certain era of King’s oeuvre. I adore his work, and I know that he has distanced himself from this book in the intervening years - it’s easy to see why. The three stars come purely from the hopefulness I experienced for Rosie and how the unreality and reality married together in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
ripxreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia, Miscarriage, and Rape
emmiemopho's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
What my husband hears when I read Stephen King: “Stephen, why do you have to say it like that” and “I just don’t have the ability to put up with your nonsense tonight, Stephen.”
It’s true. I don’t like reading most SK stories but there are a few that I really like. And with a silly little goal to read the rest of his books, I hope I can add some more faves to that list. But sometimes, I’m just fed up and at this point, on a first name basis with Stephen when complaints arise.
Rose Madder is horrific and there should be so many trigger warnings on it. The first chapter jumps in with detailed abuse, rape, and lots of blood. I think I was nauseous for about 80% of the read. Would I recommend? Definitely not. But if you do, just know the detailed abuse is on the same level as the parts they had to take out of 13 Reasons Why on Netflix.
It’s true. I don’t like reading most SK stories but there are a few that I really like. And with a silly little goal to read the rest of his books, I hope I can add some more faves to that list. But sometimes, I’m just fed up and at this point, on a first name basis with Stephen when complaints arise.
Rose Madder is horrific and there should be so many trigger warnings on it. The first chapter jumps in with detailed abuse, rape, and lots of blood. I think I was nauseous for about 80% of the read. Would I recommend? Definitely not. But if you do, just know the detailed abuse is on the same level as the parts they had to take out of 13 Reasons Why on Netflix.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Cannibalism, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
library_dreamer's review against another edition
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, and Racism
cryptidcorvid's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, and Stalking
jennalerm's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Stalking, and Murder
Moderate: Homophobia, Police brutality, and Lesbophobia
cvrios's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
5.0
they had this in my middle school library! i first read it when i was like 13! this is not for a 13 yr old to read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Blood, Police brutality, and Murder
illtakethenightshiftx's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Rose Madder has been on my “King need to read” list for a long time and I’m glad I finally read it! It’s a brutal look at domestic abuse, the dangers survivors face, and their journey to escaping. There are also some magical elements because it isn’t a Stephen King book without them!
This novel isn’t so much horror like ghosts and killer clowns, it’s much more real. If I had read this in a different point in my life, it probably would’ve become my favorite book. It’s full of tension, creeping dread, and truly lovable characters who you’re rooting for all the way until the end (except Norman. He’s the embodiment of evil.) This time period of King novels (late 80s-early 90s) shows a marked change in his writing, specifically the subjects that he’s writing about which coincides with his sobriety. The Losers’ Club has talked about this shift in King’s writing in great detail on their podcast, so you should probably listen to their conversations because they’re fantastic.
There are also several Dark Tower connections mentioned throughout this novel, if you’re a Dark Tower fan!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Gore, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, and Violence