A review by sofiazee
Revival by Stephen King
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Writing was good, though there may be a tad too many slangs for me, a non-American, to understand. (For example, "carny".) Build-up was so slow I almost wanted to give up - the reviews on GR encouraged me to push forward. "This was scary," they say.
Sad to report that climax was thoroughly, utterly underwhelming. Overly cliche. Was it because I wasn't reading this at night? That I don't believe in a wonderful, happy afterlife? I guess our preconceived notion of afterlife differs culture to culture, and even person to person, and thus this book may only work on people with strong religiosity? Honestly speaking, the ending I had in mind is probably even more exciting than this.
If we were to look past the less-than-mediocre ending and slow story building, I do like Stephen King's writing. Description was vivid and realistic. I like how he drops little cliffhangers or clues at almost every section to tease you, to keep you hooked to the story. I felt attached to Jamie and his family as they went through ups and downs in life. Charles/Charlie/Danny Jacobs wasn't as scary as the author wanted him to be, perhaps because Jamie hadn't perceived him as horrifying until very late.
Instead of an ending that is so epic and so easily flopped, perhaps a simple haunted house adventure with Jamie and their siblings (another <i>It</i>, maybe?) may be good enough, lol.
Sad to report that climax was thoroughly, utterly underwhelming. Overly cliche. Was it because I wasn't reading this at night? That I don't believe in a wonderful, happy afterlife? I guess our preconceived notion of afterlife differs culture to culture, and even person to person, and thus this book may only work on people with strong religiosity? Honestly speaking, the ending I had in mind is probably even more exciting than this.
If we were to look past the less-than-mediocre ending and slow story building, I do like Stephen King's writing. Description was vivid and realistic. I like how he drops little cliffhangers or clues at almost every section to tease you, to keep you hooked to the story. I felt attached to Jamie and his family as they went through ups and downs in life. Charles/Charlie/Danny Jacobs wasn't as scary as the author wanted him to be, perhaps because Jamie hadn't perceived him as horrifying until very late.
Instead of an ending that is so epic and so easily flopped
Spoiler
such as finding out what the afterlife is like
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Drug abuse, Suicide, Body horror, Addiction, Blood, Child death, Death, Drug use, Terminal illness, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Murder and Gun violence
Minor: Domestic abuse, Vomit, and Alcohol