Reviews with content warning for Violence - Skeleton Crew

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Skeleton Crew by Stephen King

8 reviews

kaylenhendrix's review against another edition

3.25

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: N/A

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

The Mist
- spooky, I liked the monster in this one.
- felt like the cheating side romance thing was a bit unnecessary, they could’ve taken Amanda just because; they didn’t have to both commit adultery.
- i much prefer the book ending being ambiguous. i’m choosing to believe they got to safety.
- RIP Ollie
- 4/5 ⭐️ i liked it.
Here There Be Tygers
- since when has going to the bathroom been embarrassing lol all those kids also have to pee sometimes.
- felt more goose bumpy than adult horror. was there supposed to be a metaphor there?
- 2/5⭐️ kinda boring.
The Monkey
- “a goose ran over his grave"
- used the n word 👎
- I feel bad for Dennis, he’s 12. why is Hal always hating.
- sometimes the things he puts in parentheses is too long and i lose track of the sentence.
- 3/5⭐️ it was ok
Cain Rose Up
- truly horrific
- the scariest thing ever to exist is a man.
- 3.75⭐️/5 short, quick, to the point.
Mrs Todd’s Shortcut
- reminds me of Homer’s Odyssey 👍
- 4/5⭐️
The Jaunt
- twilight zone-y
- i liked it
- 4/5⭐️
The Wedding Gig
- listened to the audiobook for this one and it felt like being told a story by a mob boss
- really rude description of the bride
- 2.75/5⭐️
Paranoid: A Chant
- wished this was longer.
- I like psychological horror & descriptions of someone slowly going mad.
- 4/5⭐️ left me wanting much more
The Raft
- 3/5⭐️ the monster was interesting. didn’t care for the rest.
Word Processor of the Gods
- ok ink heart.
- like this one.
- twilight zoney again. 👍
- 3.5/5 ⭐️
The Man who would not shake hands
- did he never wash his own hands?
- what’s the deal with Stevens? would like a story on him too.
- i have a lot of questions but i did enjoy the story.
- 4/5⭐️
Beachworld
- “Grimes” and “Shapiro” being the characters names is a bit of a trip. lol that’s exactly who i’m picturing.
- 4/5⭐️ the end made me nervous for them to get off the planet.
The reaper’s image
- 🪞
- i like it. ominous, mysterious.
- 3.75/5⭐️
Nona
- might be my favorite.
- ghost?! figment of his imagination?!
- a twist!
- 4/5⭐️
For Owen
- huh?
- 🍉
- no rating.
Survivor type
- i love an epistolary
- cannibalism!
- 3.5/5 ⭐️
Uncle Otto’s Truck
- 3/5 ⭐️ it’s ok
Morning Deliveries: Milkman 1
- weird. what’s going on here
- tell me more
- 3.5/5⭐️
Big Wheels A tale of the laundry game: milkman 2
- well alright then.
- liked the first part more i think.
- 3/5⭐️
Gramma
- 🧙‍♀️
- ok themes of generational trauma.
- you’re a wizard, george
- 3/5 ⭐️
The Ballad of the flexible bullet
- this was super interesting.
- as you know I’m a fan of horrors regarding people going mad.
- a little typewriter elf whose kryptonite is electricity is a fun concept.
- 3.75/5⭐️
The Reach
- 👻
- “do you love” call back from Nona.
- a sad one
- 3/5⭐️

Content Warnings

katuoo7's review against another edition

4.0

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: N/A

Strong character development: N/A

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: N/A

"The Mist", "The Monkey", "Mrs. Todd's Shortcut", "The Raft", "Beachworld", "Survivor Type", and "The Reach" were great, exactly the mind-bending nonsense or world-tilting spookiness I like from Stephen King.

"The Jaunt", "Word Processor of the Gods", "Uncle Otto's Truck", "Gramma", and "The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet" were intriguing but missed the mark for me in one way or the other. Jaunt, Uncle Otto's Truck, and the Flexible Bullet were all a titch too long, whereas Gramma and Word Processor of the God's weren't quite detailed enough.

Overall, if I don't walk away from a Stephen King book wondering if he's okay -and by extension if I'm okay for enjoying the read- did I really read a Stephen King book?

Content Warnings

kreglow's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I absolutely love this collection. Some of the stories run a bit slow, but the payoff is well worth the wait. Some stories are better than others, but none feel like a waste of time. Surprisingly for a horror collection, King chooses to end all of it on a beautiful story that actually made me choked up by the end.

Content Warnings

she_ena's review against another edition

2.25

challenging dark 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: Complicated

This collection of stories felt very redundant in regards to theme. Many were some jerk dude, drinking and making bad choices. It is a product of its time culturally and very probably a result of King having substance abuse problems. The Reach was nice. I also have a soft spot for The Monkey.

Content Warnings

seanml's review against another edition

3.75

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Skeleton Crew is another fun collection by Stephen King in the classic era. But this time the stories are either VERY long and very short, and there's little inbetween.

The Mist - This one kicks off the collection for good reason: it's the longest by far. King does a great job at thrusting normal people with normal thoughts into this impossible situation. 8/10.

Here There Be Tygers - Alright. 4/10.

The Monkey - A nice take on the classic haunted doll story. 7/10.

Cain Rose Up - Unsettling in the idea that such an idea was so fantastical back then. A grim precursor to King's Rage. 7.5/10.

Mrs. Todd's Shortcut - King always surprises me with the less scary stuff. This one was sweet with the perfect touch of magic. 8.5/10.

The Jaunt - Yeah. Very nice. 9/10.

The Wedding Gig - A fun setting, but a rather straightforward plot keeps it from sticking out in memory. 6.5/10.

Paranoid: A Chant - Well done poem. 6.5/10.

The Raft - Disgusting, awful, excruciatingly detailed in the worst ways. 8.5/10.

Word Processor of the Gods - I think King mentioned this one was the earliest that he wrote, and you can tell. But it's a fun idea treated like nothing more. 7.5/10.

The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands - I liked this one! I wasn't exactly sure what was going on until the end. 8/10.

Beachworld - Love love love when King does the weird-space-horror. The vibes of this one are so strange yet serene. Madcap yet cozy. 9.5/10.

The Reaper's Image - Classic concept and well done, but fairly short. 7/10.

Nona - I couldn't place the meaning of a certain furry element of the story, but otherwise enjoyed it. 7.5/10.

For Owen - A cute message to his son, preceding a story about cannibalism. 7/10.

Survivor Type - Disgusting. 7.5/10.

Uncle Otto's Truck - King loves his murderous vehicles, and for some reason so do I. 8/10.

Morning Deliveries - bad milk man. 6.5/10.

Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game - They did my car guy dirty, but that's all I remember. 7.5/10.

Gramma - An unexpected surprise, considering I'd never heard of it. 8.5/10.

The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet - ANOTHER surprise. This one takes its time, but I found myself very invested in this paranoia-driven recounting that uneasily mirrors some modern day fears. 9.5/10.

The Reach - Very nice. 8.5/10.

Overall, a few more misses than Night Shift, but the stories that are good are still great. 7.5/10.

Content Warnings

bookbelle5_17's review against another edition

2.5

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Review of Skeleton Crew

By: Stephen King

This is one of King’s collections of short stories, though some of them aren’t that short, starting with The Mist. Like most collections I liked some stories more than others and the collection had a mixture of creepy as well as fun concepts, but some were meh. It does demonstrate that King isn’t just a horror writer, but good character writer and is able to write in other genres. I enjoyed The Jaunt, a science fiction story, about a machine that’s like the Transporters in Star Trek, but instead of looking at as a cool advancement it shows the risks involved. Another favorite is “The Monkey” where a toy monkey decides people’s fates. I love the idea of a toy being a threat and how possibly our protagonist might be crazy. The “Word Processor of the Gods” is about a man being given a whole made word processor from his nephew, which can delete and return people. This begs the question of what you would you do this situation. “Gramma” is about a boy who fears being alone his dying his grandmother. It is relatable with the discomfort of having to taking care of your grandparents as the grow old and become cranky and irritable. Some of the stories left me confused or unsatisfied like “Here There be Tygers”, “The Wedding Gig”, and “Big Wheels: A Tale of the Laundry Game”. I must admit I had to look up other’s reviews just to see what happened in “Morning Deliveries”. “The Raft”, “Nona”, and “Uncle Otto’s Truck” were unsettling and creepy while “Beachworld” and “The Reach” were boring for me. “The Ballad of the Flexible Bullet” deals with a favorite theme of mine, which is a character losing their mind. Even with the boring stories he writes authentic characters that feel real. With his shorter works King is blunt in a more instantaneous with the horror because the length of the stories is shorter, so he doesn’t take as much time to get to know the characters and build towards the horror when it’s there, though not all the stories have horror elements, or the horror is subtle. Of course, he has characters that are alcoholics, cocaine addicts, and writers. Each of these stories have something of King’s usual uncomfortable content like villains, or unlikable characters, being described as fat in a grotesque way and men with vulgar minds. And of course, the females are overly sexy, mean, or too passive, which is a downside of some of his work. This collection was just okay, but I did like some of the stories, so I’m content with my reading experience.

Content Warnings