Reviews

Bag of Bones by Stephen King

sarahetcetera's review against another edition

3.0

King writes a book about writer's block while having writer's block...

tricapra's review against another edition

4.0

Now that I know this book isn't 46 hours long, I like it way more. Way to lie to me, audiobook player.


Also, wow, what a gut wrenching story. This isn't "usual" King, but this is King at the top of his game. Never particularly scary, just horribly upsetting.

faijt227's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.0

telemanusjellybeanco's review against another edition

3.0

I read this book years ago when I was really young and LOVED it. However, reading it at 20, it wasn't as good until the whole thing was over. I was satisifed at the end, even a little choked up, but I felt as though I had to drag myself through it. I guess I remember why I stopped reading Stephen King, or maybe I have just grown out of him.

However, it was a very spooky ghost story and did give me one or two nightmares, so if that's what you are looking for, go for it! The ending will make you happy that you did.

sofiesreadingworld's review against another edition

If I give a book 253 pages to grasp/interest me and it doesn't? That's a DNF for me. 253 pages of lifeless bonedust, sorry King, but my expectations were probably high after liking Mystery and Fairy Tale. 

billymac1962's review against another edition

5.0

Man, when this guy is good, he is really good. Bag of Bones exemplifies what I love about Stephen King. Characters you care about, and marvelously poignant observances, be they on human nature or a simple description or simile.
This isn't much of a horror novel. Although there is one particular passage that caused me a little lost sleep, this is a story of grief, love, and revenge. It's a ghost story (this is the horror and revenge part) that concerns a writer facing writer's block following the sudden death of his wife.
I loved reading this, King made me laugh, almost made me cry, and several times had me nodding in agreement whenever he hit upon one of those poignant observances.
This book also made me regret any bad things I've written about his other works. This was like coming home again, and it's been a while since I've read a book that I couldn't wait to pick up again.

ashpanda88's review against another edition

4.0

The book started out slowly, but by the end I couldn't put it down. It starts out with a death that appears to be accidental, a custody battle with a greedy grandfather, and nosy small-town folk, but ends in another realm entirely. My only complaint was that I felt the beginning started off too slowly. However, I feel that the resolution makes up for this. If you like psychological thrillers and classic ghost stories, I'd recommend this book for you.

venti's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

3.75

a very introspective king 

beillumined's review against another edition

4.0

At over 700 pages this is not a fast King read, but it is a fairly decent one. At times I admit things do get a little slow and verbose, but it does pick up at the end and things turn out a little unexpectedly. Visual and well written, I did enjoy this descriptive ghost story.

sasha_reads_books's review against another edition

5.0

Wow, this was one heavy book (both in the physical and metaphorical sense). It left my reading arm cramped each of the three evenings it took to read and it was always a struggle to put it down so that I may sleep.