Reviews

The Dark Tower by Stephen King

djohan's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

42thursday's review against another edition

5.0

It took me a year and a half to read all seven books, but just as I turned the last page, I realized I'd happily dedicate another two years to The Dark Tower to only make the journey last longer. The ending is perfect, and leaves the reader wanting more: stories of the Mid-World, our world, todash space, the roses, the line of Eld, king Arthur, the Beams, ka-tet, the robots, nineteen, Crimson King, the Dark Tower itself.. And some about Roland of Gilead, the gunslinger with piercing blue eyes.. I'm going to miss this book, and most surely will read it over and over again, may it do me fine.

a_writer_guy's review against another edition

5.0

The completion of one of the most epic adventures of all time. It's bittersweet to say the least. So many things happened in this book it's hard to even comprehend them all. King has created such an amazing story in this series. It's unforgettable. Many people were angry at the ending. I won't give it away for those of you that haven't read it, but it is absolutely perfect. There is no better way I could think for King to have ended this book. It's probably my favorite of the series, but the whole series is just perfect. Must read!!!

devindevindevin's review against another edition

5.0

I first picked up DT1 in 2004, as a freshman in high school. I never even got to the mutants in that book; something always made me put it down. I finally picked it back up in 2013, and then, now, here we are, three years later, and the series is done. And I will go back, and pick up DT1 again, now, because Ka is a wheel.

angie_spumoni's review against another edition

adventurous reflective sad medium-paced

3.0

jhrnr99's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

Wow, this series was a really great journey and I miss feeling like I was a part of that world already. Such amazing characters and overall by far the best fantasy series I've ever read. This final book in the series definitely has its flaws, and honestly I've been reading them all for so long I'm kind of blurring where this one even started, but overall I'm a huge fan and will probably re-read the whole series someday. 

topdragon's review against another edition

5.0

Many readers of the Dark Tower series have been following along as each book came out, suffering through years waiting for the next installment to be published. They lived the series, almost literally as it took over 20 years from book one to book seven. And, of course, when Mr. King was nearly killed by that accident with the van, many wondered if the saga would ever be complete. I feel Mr. King, himself, wondered the same thing.

But as for me, I was a late comer to the show. I have been reading Stephen King for many years now but it was only 2 years ago that I began this series. I knew it was “complete” before I began and would therefore be “safe” for me to plunge into what has been described as King’s masterwork, his magnum opus. As I worked my way through the novels I recognized two major things. First, these novels would not be my favorite of Mr. King’s work. For me they weren’t always enjoyable reading nor make me feel good, but they would definitely make me “feel”. Second, I would be as humbled as I could possibly be to see how an author can create something so amazingly complex, and vast in scope and yet keep my attention focused on the tiny aspects of what really matters.

This seventh novel in the series was not perfect. At times it seemed to need editing and at times I got a little lost as the complexity threatened to overwhelm me. Many readers were disappointed in the ending but I felt it was just right for this epic series. Few novels have moved me so much as this one nor had me thinking about it so much when I wasn’t even actively reading it.

Five stars and “I cry your pardon.”

iikaptain's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

5.0

toebean5's review against another edition

3.0

*SOB* Well, I can say I finished the series now. *Sniff* I'm a little devastated, but all good things must end. And... in the case of this series, it also got kind of weird and out there and was sort of not what I was expecting and kind of beat me up with favorite characters dying, etc- but it was still a series that I loved and I'm glad to have finally seen through to its conclusion. Excellent voice acting.

hubbardrbjr's review against another edition

3.0

King’s insistence on following his impulses and allowing the characters to make their own decisions has led to an almost dreamlike quality, where everything nearly stubbornly runs against the grain of expectation, and the many pieces of the puzzle are haphazardly glued together in an extremely unsatisfying way. You can call it realistic, but you can’t call it the poetic grand narrative that King was originally after. Forget the more blatant example of this in Walter, the man in black, and consider Jake dying to saving Stephen King from his car wreck. Why? To punish himself for disappointing fans? Wouldn’t it be more narratively satisfying to have Jake and Oy, Roland’s telepathic adopted son and his animal sprite, sacrifice themselves in a fight with Roland’s telepathic biological son, and his spider animal sprite? In a land of twins, this seems like a no-brainer. Things are just happening at this point in this long and winding tale, but this kind of epic meta fantasy just doesn’t jive with King’s “enter a trance and sing the song,” style. The man can’t write strategy, cant write a cunning plan, because he hasn’t decided what he’s going to do until the characters do it. The ending adds a star for me, though. I always got the impression that King was more pleased with that opening line from the Gunslinger more than he was with all the rest of the story, and for good reason.