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4.32 AVERAGE
4.32 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I had to remind myself several times that this book wasn't written in 2025. It was hard to read so many racist slurs. It plays in the 60s but it still made me uncomfortable
The 1000 pages flew by like they were nothing. It never felt boring to me
The 1000 pages flew by like they were nothing. It never felt boring to me
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Phenomenal book. You can feel the care and the research dripping off the pages.
adventurous
informative
mysterious
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
For ONCE I'd love to finish a SK book without sobbing my heart out. I'm in awe of this book from beginning to end, and I've no idea how in 2011 a man of King's profile managed to pull off this incredibly rich and detailed novel that sits along his other two greats (The Stand and It, of course). Truly a modern classic.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is the best book I’ve ever read. Ever.
I started this book the summer before I started law school (Summer 2020) and didn’t pick this book back up until June 2025. So this go around I read a little more than 500 pages.
Where to begin with this book. You don’t feel its length at all. There’s always something or someone to focus on and the story moves so smoothly that it really does feel like you’re listening to someone tell you the story off the top of their head. I became engrossed with everything: the time period, the characters, the plot, EVERYTHING. I damn near cried at the end and I’ve never come close to crying over a book in my life. I legit did not want this to be over; I need this book injected into my veins. I’ve read some really really good books but I’m confident that I’ve never had a book pull so deeply into its story in this way before. You could give me the best multiple-part anthology and I’m sure it wouldn’t take me on the journey that this book did. I’m still thinking about the ending.
I started this book the summer before I started law school (Summer 2020) and didn’t pick this book back up until June 2025. So this go around I read a little more than 500 pages.
Where to begin with this book. You don’t feel its length at all. There’s always something or someone to focus on and the story moves so smoothly that it really does feel like you’re listening to someone tell you the story off the top of their head. I became engrossed with everything: the time period, the characters, the plot, EVERYTHING. I damn near cried at the end and I’ve never come close to crying over a book in my life. I legit did not want this to be over; I need this book injected into my veins. I’ve read some really really good books but I’m confident that I’ve never had a book pull so deeply into its story in this way before. You could give me the best multiple-part anthology and I’m sure it wouldn’t take me on the journey that this book did. I’m still thinking about the ending.
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I was never a great student of history. If people ask me about timelines and the years of great historic events, I usually draw a blank. Then I discovered that I actually learn and retain a lot more about history through reading! Wonderful. Let's learn about the Kennedy assassination through this book. Perfect.
The time travel plot device was interesting, and the pieces of this story that focused on the historical events were great. The beginning parts of Jake's time travels as he experimented with the rabbit hole and its effects were great too.
When Jake reached Texas, the story stalled in a very big way. His personal life as a teacher in a small town in Texas, his romantic relationships, friendships and personal growth were mildly interesting at best. If the aim was to make the reader feel as "stuck" in time as Jake during these years, I'd say King achieved that.
I only recently started reading Stephen King a couple of years ago (The Outsider, The Shining) and already his writing style seems familiar and predictable. Just like Jake Epping talks about "harmonies" in the past, with patterns resonating again and again in his story, I seem to be experiencing the same "harmonies" in King's books. The characters, their backgrounds, the settings, their flaws and quirks all seem to repeat.
Still, the historical setting fascinated me enough to push me on. When I finally got to the crucial moment, it was sufficiently satisfying but the aftermath and the ending sort of petered out. King also included an afterword detailing some of the research he did for this book which I actually found worth reading.
The time travel plot device was interesting, and the pieces of this story that focused on the historical events were great. The beginning parts of Jake's time travels as he experimented with the rabbit hole and its effects were great too.
When Jake reached Texas, the story stalled in a very big way. His personal life as a teacher in a small town in Texas, his romantic relationships, friendships and personal growth were mildly interesting at best. If the aim was to make the reader feel as "stuck" in time as Jake during these years, I'd say King achieved that.
I only recently started reading Stephen King a couple of years ago (The Outsider, The Shining) and already his writing style seems familiar and predictable. Just like Jake Epping talks about "harmonies" in the past, with patterns resonating again and again in his story, I seem to be experiencing the same "harmonies" in King's books. The characters, their backgrounds, the settings, their flaws and quirks all seem to repeat.
Still, the historical setting fascinated me enough to push me on. When I finally got to the crucial moment, it was sufficiently satisfying but the aftermath and the ending sort of petered out. King also included an afterword detailing some of the research he did for this book which I actually found worth reading.