frosted_croissant's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Loved it! I wish Stephen King would write more fantasy. The pacing was fantastic. I never wanted to put it down.
carolynf's review
1.0
I've read several Stephen King books, and liked about 20% of them. This was not one. It did not have the gore of some of his other books, but the characters just seem really flat and uninteresting. The book is set in the present day, and the main character and narrator (Charlie) was born in 1996. But for some reason he talks like an old man throughout. He is continuously saying "My God" about things that surprise him - very weird for a 17 year old - and doesn't reference modern pop culture at all. Instead he quotes Spinal Tap and Nietzsche. He doesn't have much of an inner life. He doesn't hang out with friends, listen to shitty music, play video games, or watch online videos - except how to videos so that he can learn how to do household maintenance. He just goes around saying "Yes, sir" to everybody, being extremely responsible and considerate and boring.
King is not interested in describing the appearance of any characters unless they are either disgustingly ugly or extremely hot. Girls have "amazing breasts," or "generous breasts," or a "tantalizing backside." One of the girls, again supposedly a high schooler from the modern day, says "Oh Poo!" when Charlie won't come over to her house for a supposed study session, and when he suggests another day she gives him some sexy puns: "I'll quiz you on Polonius and you can check out my Fortinbras." At one point the narrator defends this my saying something along the lines of "what HEALTHY young man wouldn't want to be the hero of the story, the one that saves the beautiful girl" Which again sounds more like something an old man would say.
The main goal of the book did not interest me either. For the first 150 pages, you just hear about Charlie getting to know the neighborhood recluse and learning his secrets. That was the most interesting part of the book. After that, Charlie's goal is to find some magic that will make the man's old and suffering dog young again. The book acts like Charlie's only choices are to watch the dog suffer a lingering death or to force it to go on a hard journey that may or may not have the fountain of youth at the end. The journey is held up as the obvious decision, on the grounds that Charlie loves the dog, and his feelings for the dog matter more than the dog's pain and exhaustion. When a dog can't walk or eat, is moaning in pain, and starts snapping at its own body, it is time to put your own feelings aside and call the vet. This dog had never been registered with the city so they couldn't just stroll in to the vet's office, but if they could get her black market heart meds they could have figured out something.
In conclusion, yes there is a weird world down the well, but I was distracted by Charlie's lack of grounding in the present day and his dying dog.
King is not interested in describing the appearance of any characters unless they are either disgustingly ugly or extremely hot. Girls have "amazing breasts," or "generous breasts," or a "tantalizing backside." One of the girls, again supposedly a high schooler from the modern day, says "Oh Poo!" when Charlie won't come over to her house for a supposed study session, and when he suggests another day she gives him some sexy puns: "I'll quiz you on Polonius and you can check out my Fortinbras." At one point the narrator defends this my saying something along the lines of "what HEALTHY young man wouldn't want to be the hero of the story, the one that saves the beautiful girl" Which again sounds more like something an old man would say.
The main goal of the book did not interest me either. For the first 150 pages, you just hear about Charlie getting to know the neighborhood recluse and learning his secrets. That was the most interesting part of the book. After that, Charlie's goal is to find some magic that will make the man's old and suffering dog young again. The book acts like Charlie's only choices are to watch the dog suffer a lingering death or to force it to go on a hard journey that may or may not have the fountain of youth at the end. The journey is held up as the obvious decision, on the grounds that Charlie loves the dog, and his feelings for the dog matter more than the dog's pain and exhaustion. When a dog can't walk or eat, is moaning in pain, and starts snapping at its own body, it is time to put your own feelings aside and call the vet. This dog had never been registered with the city so they couldn't just stroll in to the vet's office, but if they could get her black market heart meds they could have figured out something.
In conclusion, yes there is a weird world down the well, but I was distracted by Charlie's lack of grounding in the present day and his dying dog.
happinessbeginswithabook's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
4.0
bookishmel's review
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
ingunrn's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sydhoben's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Spoiler
I loved this book. It’s as much SK as I can take and definitely gets crazy. But the happy ending?! It was everything I needed. I miss Charlie and Radar already ♥️
eruanna317's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Violence
ryan_mitchell's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
demi_binnema's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
slow-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
3.5