the_pale_woman's Reviews (542)

This just wasn't for me. It's mysterious and tense and has a dreamlike quality that fits into the story. However, I didn't care much for the character work, and the twists at the end didn't feel fully explored.    This felt more like a surreal literary novel than science fiction.  As a big fan of sci-fi, I was a little disappointed in the motivations and explanations. The focus of the book was more about the fuzzy illusory flow than about the facts or events. I can see how that would appeal to other readers, but it left me disappointed. 

Cujo was a surprisingly good read. I thought I knew what it was about beforehand (crazy dog), but it really comes at the situation from an interesting angle. It also doesn't completely take place in the car as I had assumed through vague pop culture references. I've never seen the movie, so maybe that takes place mostly in the car? The book follows many characters and the events that lead up to the car and beyond. 

The setting for Cujo is Castle Rock, Maine, which was also featured in The Dead Zone. I would recommend reading The Dead Zone before this one if you're interested in spotting any connections. However, it's not necessary to read any other King before you read Cujo. 

The ending caught me by surprise. I was thinking that this book was sorta boring and average for King in story telling before it got real. It's going to be hard to forget. I would recommend the read.

In the introduction to this book King talks about writing as Richard Bachman and explains that for him it's a different voice. A rainy day voice . It's not like there was an extreme difference from the other King novels I have read. However, there was something about it that did not click with me. The biggest contributing factor was the main POV. The angry rants were not enjoyable to listen to. Maybe I would have been able to get through it if I read it physically. Unfortunately I'm not really that interested in how it turns out. 

Solid story. It's about a father and daughter on the run. You learn why they're on the run through a series of flashbacks. It took me a minute to get into it, but by the end, I was rooting for them. My only real criticism is that I found some of the characters lacking. King puts a lot of detail into the psychology of his characters. This book had a few characters that didn't feel complete, in my opinion. Plus, another key character that wasn't explored enough. The kid's pov was well done. She wasn't annoying like so many kid characters can be in more modern novels. She has an agency that I appreciate. Overall, Firestarter is worth the read if you're going through Kings work or looking for a quick low-key sci-fi thriller. 

The premise of this story is made obvious by the title. It follows the making of a big budget movie. Specifically, a superhero movie made for a streaming service. The story starts with the backstory/ source material and concludes with the audience reception of the film. 

Before I rant about the aspects that prevented me from fully enjoying this book, I'll tell you what I did like. 

Tom Hanks is a great narrator. He is a charming man, so it's no surprise that his writing is charming as well. I listened to the audio. It says full cast, but Hanks does most of the narration. I personally could have done without the other narrators. Just Hanks for me please. 

The vibe is cinematic, not just in topic but also in story beats. I could see this being a Tom Hanks movie (he would play the director). Especially if you added something to the ending to make it more satisfying. Cause I found the beginning of the story more interesting than the latter half. The characters really shined at the start but became more surface level by the end. This also made it feel more like a movie. Like these people were caricatures. I typically want more depth out of my literature.

Parts of this book give you the feeling of sharing gossip. I assume Hanks has been witness to many of these situations, the funny and problematic. I liked these tidbits. They were entertaining.

I got the sense that it was fun for Hanks to write this. I imagine this man writing fan fic about his industry and finding it cathartic.

Now on to my rant...

DOT DOT DOT (*rolling eyes*) 

While it heavily explores the personal lives and inspiration of the creaters, the story does not go into the fictional comic universe this movie comes from. The other movies of this frictional franchise are hardly mentioned. That might be a positive in your eyes, and it may seem strange, but this dismissive mentality towards this fictional adaptation grinds my gears. Like many cinimatic adaptations made today, it was made to tell its own story and to make money rather than to adapt a beloved story and character to another medium. If you want to tell your own interpretation of a story, then write it yourself. Be original. This practice of taking an others' work and making billions for a small group of people or investors (who don't even care about these stories) is depressing. This is a reality, but I still don't like it. 

Another reality that got on my nerves was how these hollywood characters viewed the "common" folk around them. It makes me depressed thinking this is how Tom Hanks views the rest of us. We either cause him problems or we solve them for him. Like every other self-proclaimed successful person views the working class around them. There are justifications consistently given for treating an individual's employment and livelihood with a flat flippant disregard. The idea that human beings don't deserve respect if they aren't completing a task to your satisfaction is extremely irritating. Compare that to the respect given and shown the toxic actor on the movie set in this story. If he was the janitor, I dont think you would be dealing with his tantrums in such a professional way. Furthermore, the mentality that people should be made to work 12 or 20 hour days to complete a movie on budget is disgusting. Do you really think you're compensating these people enough to make up for the physical and mental strain you're putting them through. I highly doubt it. Worst of all is the pats on the back they give themselves when they pull a single person out of their dead-end job to work in Hollywood. The deadend jobs most people you meet need to work to live. In my mind, this highlights social inequality and our skewed modern work sensibilities without actually exploring any of these topics. Poor form.

This book does not need a review that is this long. If you like Tom Hanks movies, you'll probably like this book. You might love it if you're really into all the extras you might find on an old school DVD.

I liked this, and at the same time, I could see how it's not for every reader. Don't make this book your first king. I would recommend reading a few of his shorter novels first to see if you even like his writing. Once you know what you're reading, you will be less shocked or prone to disappointment.

The story here starts out a little slow with an introduction to a wide array of characters. Once they start meeting up, the overarching plot becomes more interesting. I found the ending to be what I consider a semi-satisfying conclusion. It could be argued either way. Which gives it an other positive mark in my estimation. Keeps you thinking about it anyway. Especially considering I think the evil characters were more entertaining than our heroes. I hope that doesn't say anything bad about me. 

My opinion of this shlock has decreased considerably. Granted, my opinion wasn't super high to start with, but it's now affecting my reading enjoyment. My plan is to still read the last book in this series for completion sake, but after that, I'll call it quits on this universe/ author.

At first, I thought this series was kind of fun. Teenage drama, Dresden, without all the creepy misogynistic undertones. I was thinking... lots of books, so lots of information to dig into. It might have some weirdness happening. Gross forbidden love with silly twists you can see coming from miles off. As a nice surprise, I was actually enjoying reading it until this volume. I don't read fan fic, but that's what this feels like. Unfortunately, that novelty has worn out its welcome. 

There are too many plot holes, retcons, laughable fights, and basic b*** dialog. The one issue that has been bugging me the most is the story itself. I don't think much planning was done with the plot here. That is a grave error in a 6 book+ series. When I pick up a "big" series, I have expectations. I want the connecting details and planned events. I also don't want to find out right before I finish the fifth book that there is a reading order for this universe. Apparently, she wrote the prequels in between these books. That is soooo confusing. At least print that reading order in the books so I don't find out this late. Originally, when I decided to read this series, I was thinking if I liked it, I would read the other series as well. But you can't tell me this late in the game that you need to mix all these books up. How am I to know, as a reader, without a thorough Google? I would prefer not to have everything spoiled for me, thanks.

Argh. I'm simply just mad about this. There is no stamp of shlock approval from me. I would not recommend. I'd rather read Dresden talking about the tips of women's breasts, and that says something. 

I can not explain why I am still enjoying reading this shlock. This particular installment was crazy ridiculous even more so than the previous ones. And those couldn't stop talking about incest. 

In this book, besides the main drama couple, you follow the side characters more closely. Which isn't itself a bad thing, but it shortens the scenes of all these characters. Therefore, you don't care that much about what happens to them. Especially at the end here. When all the characters are just chillin, pairing off and wrapping up their side stories. It felt forced. Like the whole plot was about the couples. There wasn't a single odd man out. Each of these conversations deserved at least slightly more depth and nuance. Worst of all , the biggest negative of the ending is the ultimate "bad guy" who seemed to come out of nowhere. 

In simple truth, I didn't like this book that much. However, I still liked reading it. It can't be explained. I know I wouldn't recommend this to anyone because I do believe it's terrible. And I also know I'm going to continue reading it anyway. It's a contradiction. 

I've only recently been getting into stephen King. After reading a couple of his more popular works, I decided to go back and start reading his books in publication order or close to it. I'm not a big fan of short fiction, so I'll just work with the novels for now. The dead zone was one I hadn't heard of previously. I was surprised to find James Franco was the narrator of the audio. He did a fine job. No big complaints. Still, I found that a little strange , but when it comes to King, strange is not completely unexpected. Franco made a little more sense in Part 3 of this book. Not to give anything away, I'll just say that it might tie in with 11-22-63 and Franco was in that adaptation. Now I haven't read 11-22-63 yet, but I know the gist. I can see how there may be connections. While it's neat to see this connection as well as connections to other books King has written, I didn't actually enjoy this story that much. 

Part one was just boring. It was hard to get into the story and characters when I didn't really know where it was going. The plot kinda wondered. It pulls together in Part 3 with a surprise ending, but I wouldn't say I enjoyed the ride up until that point. This would be my least favorite King so far, but it wasn't what I would call bad. King's writing style appeals to me, so it wasn't a complete waste. 

Overall, this was a compelling story with solid characters. I wish Carrie herself had more depth besides just her upbringing, but I really liked the nuance added to the side characters. Especially the bullies of the story. 

There are snips of interviews dispersed throughout the book that give you bits of information from other POVs. I liked these more in the beginning of the book, but towards the end, they felt irratic. I can see how that works with the flow of the story, but I felt it took some of the climax away from the ending. 

I had seen the movie before, so I was surprised to find that Carrie was described as fat. That she eats for comfort. In the movie, she's played by an actress that is bone thin. Which I think takes a critical part of her character away. It puts a different lens on what type of bullying she was dealing with. 

Great read. It's highly recommendable like all the King I've read so far. It's always I treat to find an author you can vibe with.