Reviews tagging 'Cursing'

The Shining by Stephen King

115 reviews

aniloma's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

vampirepages's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Violence, and Alcohol

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Blood, and Death of parent

danaburger's review

dark emotional 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

The Shining is a great book (dare I say, a masterpiece), however, one of the reasons I stay away from Stephen King books is because they simply do NOT need to be 450+ pages long… the writing is often times verbose and repetitive; as if the editor was asleep at the wheel. King’s style of storytelling and character development also meanders; there are multiple tangents that leave the reader going, ‘ok, wtf did that have to do with anything,’ not metaphorical or plot driven in any way, seemingly just a device King uses to make a character 3 dimensional for himself and himself alone in his creative process.
As a reader of color I also find it pertinent to add a trigger warning for others, especially if you opt for an audiobook enjoyment of this title: Heavy use of the N word. Completely fitting for the time period’s social climate, and puts an exclamation point on Jack’s descent into madness as well as the notion that The Overlook is an inherently evil entity which resorts to mental manipulation of it’s victims… buuuuuut also gratuitous, and it did make me cringe the 3rd, fourth and successive times reading it. I get it, but we could’ve reined it in with some more thoughtful editing.

Also:

Kubrick killed Halloran, King did not. Meaning, your boy is the hero of the tale and not just another dead black body in a horror film.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

mrgriffit'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? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It’s clear to see why this book is a staple of the horror genre. King’s writing flows easily and the pacing is nice and tense, even when the story gets stretched out in the middle and towards the end. That said, I think King is holding himself back with his own narrative.

I honestly could not find any sympathy for Jack by the end of the book like I think King wants you to; I only found pity. There was ample opportunity to center the story on the very human ways that Jack is evil and actively choosing to be so, irregardless of how he was raised or how other people treat him, instead of making the hotel actually possessing him. By doing this, it comes off that King is saying that Jack is just a victim and not at fault for his own actions.

All that to say, for all the things King does right, there’s a better version of this story out there somewhere (and it may be the movie version, which I’ve never seen, since I know that there were some bigger changes to the story in it). Still, it’s a well crafted story and is worth the read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death

Minor: Homophobia

samanthajetaime's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, and Death of parent

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, and Racism

emnime's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

5.0

I love reading Stephen King but every time he writes for women or black people it just… doesn’t work.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

carrie_garrie's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

irwinfinkle's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Misogyny, and Gaslighting

Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, Vomit, and Fire/Fire injury

autienaut's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

One of king’s finest works, a fictional delicacy ready to pounce on your every thrilling need. 
Impeccable writing and flawless execution.  🖤

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Blood, and Car accident

Minor: Cursing and Forced institutionalization

lindsaygp_reads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

4.0

***This review is going to have spoilers throughout***

Let me start by saying that The Shining is an absolutely incredible novel— I was not a fan of the Kubrick film at all and everything that it was lacking was here in King’s novel. The slow degradation of Jack’s mental state from loving father to crazed murderer feels well-paced and horrifying. By chapter 12 I felt like I had an excellent understanding of each of the characters.

What I have an issue with and why this book gets 4 stars and not 5 is largely because of parts of this book that simply did not age well. Uncle Stephen loves a magical negro trope, the racial slurs (especially frequent toward the end), and the nonchalant and frequent usage of the term “schizo”— just to name a few. I found myself having to remind myself a lot that this book was written in the 70s... One section that particularly floored me was the doctor’s office chapter where the common idea was that children can either grow out of schizophrenia or grow into it, and that it can also cause… autism…… the groan that I groaned….

The yucks aside, I do love how much we learn about Danny and his shine, that Wendy has it too, but that Jack has none— that in all of his fighting and beating and scraping to be special and unique, Jack is the only one in the family that is painfully normal.  The moment where we learn about Jack’s sick satisfaction that Wendy’s novel isn’t picked up paints such a gross picture of the man he really is beneath his curated “press perfect smile”.

The insight into who Jack and Wendy are and were before Outlook is so detailed and intimate. I haven’t read a King novel in years; I think I forgot just how good he is at his craft. The reflection on their marriage, on their parenting, on the trauma that they brought into parenthood— and how Wendy tried to break it all off just before their stay at Outlook, is devastating as it is relatable. King’s personal reflection on addiction and the pressure to remain sober is written so well that I feel like I understand the disease better— and I’m literally a child of an alcoholic.

While parts of this book aged like milk, the majority of it really shines (pun intended) and I’m glad I read it. It was so well-written, descriptive, terrifying, and well-paced. I’m looking forward to reading Doctor Sleep in 2025 and hopefully Uncle Stephen will redeem himself of some of the yuckier choices he made in the 70s.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment

Toward the end of the book there are a slough of racial slurs. Use of magical negro trope.