Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

The Shining by Stephen King

5 reviews

asourceoffiction's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I watched Stanley Kubrick's adaptation of The Shining 20 years ago, and I can remember struggling to understand the reasoning behind Jack's descent into madness. Now reading the book all these years later, it's so much clearer to me. King's original hugely outmatches the film in so many ways, but where it is most superior is in the quiet, creeping sense of dread and tension that builds agonisingly slowly, from the ominous beginning right to the conclusion. There are fewer iconic jump-scares (I was surprised by how much was created for the film), but what is there instead lingered, hanging over me long after I'd shut the book.

I always love that King spends time with his characters. Their histories and relationships are laid out in detail, and it makes the whole story rooted in humanity, which in turn makes it all the more scary. I didn't have a lot of sympathy for Jack from the start, but I did sympathise with Wendy's fierce desire to keep her family together and safe, and the way they all shine during their fleeting happy moments at the Overlook, before it's all taken away. It's such clever writing and confirms, as I've said many times before, that King's books are about so much more than the horror.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Gore, Racial slurs, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, and Mental illness

toastrats's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent

Moderate: Gun violence, Racial slurs, and Racism

Minor: Drug use and Infidelity

yellow_leaff's review against another edition

dark emotional sad 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

4.5

Whenever I now hear a person in real life say: 'Take your medicine', I get a bit of a shock because of this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Gun violence, Self harm, and Forced institutionalization

itsmeyseniab's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Racial slurs

Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, and Suicide

rosesofthespring's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Alcohol

Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Body shaming, Gun violence, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Vomit

As usual, Stephen King is very weird about stuttering, so watch out for that. No one (as far as I can tell) is actually psychotic, but the content heavily revolves around hallucinations and questioning reality.