Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

Fairy Tale by Stephen King

4 reviews

immovabletype's review

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Ableism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Car accident, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Excrement, Gore, Medical content, Racial slurs, Slavery, Terminal illness, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol and Torture

Minor: Sexual content and Rape

_bxllxe_'s review

adventurous dark funny hopeful 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? No

3.0

This is accessible fantasy for those who don’t gravitate towards the genre, like me! A good, solid read, no more and no less. Radar is the highlight of the whole book, of course ❤️

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Alcoholism, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Body horror

Minor: Cancer, Torture, Animal cruelty, Sexual content, and Racial slurs

nrogers_1030's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Blood, Car accident, Confinement, Cursing, Excrement, Grief, Medical content, Physical abuse, Violence, Gun violence, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Body horror

Moderate: Addiction and Torture

Minor: Infertility, Incest, and Racial slurs

billyjepma's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

As far as Stephen King goes, this is pretty mid-tier. It's advertised as the book he wrote in quarantine to bring himself some enjoyment, and it shows, in good and less-than-good ways. The positive stuff includes King's usual strengths: excellent foreshadowing, endearing characterization, enticing ideas, you get the gist. And that stuff rules! It's been a minute since I've picked up a King book, and this was a wonderful reminder of why he's the best at what he does. Watching him develop the relationship between protagonist Charlie and old-man Mr. Bowditch and his aging dog, Radar, is a treat, especially once he begins teasing the dark, fantastical mysteries that are coming. Those first 150+ pages are all about that relationship, and it's the anchor that keeps the rest of the story from unmooring (although there are some close calls).

Bowditch is the book's highlight, arguably, and viewing him as King's self-insert character (as I did) gives the story some potentially meta-commentary elements that I liked. I doubt this is intentional, as the book doesn't explore those elements, so take my assessment with a grain of salt. King isn't interested in interrogating or subverting the fairy tale ideas he's using, opting instead to enjoy them as toys for a relatively by-the-numbers tale that's content to be a soft remix of the greatest hits. On those terms, Fairy Tale is an easy, enjoyable read, even though I kept waiting for it to become something more.

Ironically, the most effective parts of this book take place outside of the fantasy world, as it's there that King's writing is most touching and memorable. After the fantasy starts, things regrettably grow a little dull. King's characterization and pacing falter, as does his plotting. We're introduced to some wonderful supporting characters and big, exciting ideas; they just don't go anywhere. Charlie becomes a less interesting protagonist, too, as his role in the traditional fantasy adventure is as by-the-numbers as they come. King's attempts at giving it some teeth are more monotonous than anything, too, and eventually, my earlier investment in Charlie took a nosedive.

Still, despite its shortcoming, I love a good fairy tale and getting to read one of the best storytellers of a generation tell one was a ride I'm glad I took. The ending wraps things up on the kind of nostalgia-tinged note I'm always a sucker for and nails the balance between bitter and sweet like all fantasies should. I won't be running back to this one, but the vibes and visuals will happily linger in my head for a while. The book gets a 3.5/5 from me, but Radar the Very Good Dog™️ gets a 12/5.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Alcoholism, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Chronic illness, Medical content, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Cursing, Death, Gore, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Abandonment, Bullying, Cancer, Racial slurs, and Torture