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raidingkvatch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Suicide, Violence, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, and Sexual content
kelsjargon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
tcgarback's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Critical Score: B
Personal Score: B+
Reading Experience: 📘📘📘📘(4/5)
This was refreshingly classic King, and that’s just what the doctor ordered. I loved the huge cast, small town vibes, and gradually increasing dread.
At times the satire is in full command, and other times it feels like the joke is more on King than anyone else. There’s some implausibility with the general function of the book.
So anyway, if you get over the silly stuff like that (and I found this relatively easy to do) this is deviously fun and cozily nostalgic.
But of course, because this is classic King, there is some problematic stuff to shift through: fatphobia, casual racism, and homophobia are the most obvious ones here. I also hate that the protagonist is a cop.
This one also lacks scariness, but honestly, there are very few King books that scare me.
I loved the unexpected twist on the meaning of the title at the start of Part Three. I loved the colorful assortment of merchandise and their respective human flaws (addiction, chronic pain, grief, materialism, loneliness, lust, etc).
To wrap things up, I loved that this was a nice and long deep dive into another small town falling apart, complete with a balanced ensemble cast and an increasingly complex web of subplots.
Not in my Stephen King God-tier, but not far below it either.
Minor: Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Racism
smithreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Excrement, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
btrz7's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail
wvrambler's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Child death, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: Fatphobia
cyanide_latte's review against another edition
- 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
Word of caution, as I don't have the energy right now to be able to list <i>all</i> the content and trigger warnings this book contains, I do NOT recommend this as someone's first Stephen King novel. This is extremely heavy and dark, and arguably too much to start with if you want to get into his works. If you've already read a few of his other books, especially any of the others set in the town of Castle Rock, then you should be okay.
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Minor: Pedophilia