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A review by m_hates_reading
The Shining by Stephen King
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
3/5 meh.
Took me over a month to get through, which isn’t exactly the book’s fault, but it’s not a plus either.
Again with Stephen King, I think there’s a lot of stuff towards the start that could have just not been there.
Really hated the way Wendy was written, but that’s nothing new with King.
I would have liked more focus on Danny than Jack; I get that the idea is you’re following the antagonist, and your meant to watch him loose his mind piece by piece, but it just rly wasn’t doing it for me. I just wasn’t invested in Jack’s story; possibly bc I already (more or less) knew the ending, but I think a good book is one you can know the ending to and still enjoy.
It wasn’t bad, there were things I liked. I probably would have liked the book better if there was more straight-up horror from Danny and Wendy’s perspectives (217, the fire hose, the elevator…) but again, I appreciate that’s not what King was going for with the book - he was looking for reality. “Would Jack still have done it if not for the Overlook? Was he really possessed or had he finally just snapped?”. But honestly I couldn’t care less.
Not my favourite concept wise, and I know for an absolute fact King can and has written better.
Took me over a month to get through, which isn’t exactly the book’s fault, but it’s not a plus either.
Again with Stephen King, I think there’s a lot of stuff towards the start that could have just not been there.
Really hated the way Wendy was written, but that’s nothing new with King.
I would have liked more focus on Danny than Jack; I get that the idea is you’re following the antagonist, and your meant to watch him loose his mind piece by piece, but it just rly wasn’t doing it for me. I just wasn’t invested in Jack’s story; possibly bc I already (more or less) knew the ending, but I think a good book is one you can know the ending to and still enjoy.
It wasn’t bad, there were things I liked. I probably would have liked the book better if there was more straight-up horror from Danny and Wendy’s perspectives (217, the fire hose, the elevator…) but again, I appreciate that’s not what King was going for with the book - he was looking for reality. “Would Jack still have done it if not for the Overlook? Was he really possessed or had he finally just snapped?”. But honestly I couldn’t care less.
Not my favourite concept wise, and I know for an absolute fact King can and has written better.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail