Reviews

This book is undeniably horrific and bleak in all the best ways. I think it would’ve been 5 stars had the ending been a bit more fleshed out. I was honestly disappointed to see how few pages I had left in it because I wanted much more! There was some weird sexual stuff that was kind of uncomfortable to read in 2021 but overall this was a great book.

trin's review against another edition

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3.0

Good pulpy fun. I wish the alternate history had been a little more developed and that the ending hadn’t been, in typical Stephen King fashion, a rushed lame letdown, but this was still suspenseful and psychologically fascinating from start to (almost) finish. I read it in one sitting, which makes me totally as hardcore as the characters in this book who all walk themselves to death, right?

vacanthungarian's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad 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? Yes

3.75

One of Stephen king's early writings, this is a relatively short story of a group of young guys entering in some sort of a national event that is basically just a ceaseless walk across.... You guessed it! Maine!
So it isn't immediately apparent what exactly happens when one isn't able to walk any longer, but it soon becomes pretty clear what the stakes are. It has a bit of a "Hunger games" vibe to it, but a lot less hopeful and a lot more dark.
Incredible writing (in my opinion) and very engaging in painting a very clear picture of the emotional struggles and how the general public celebrate this event despite the price paid by those who don't make it. It does however drag on a bit. I think it could have been a lot more concise and I really wish it hadn't been obvious who was going to win in the end. Still, it was a good read.

bella_is_here's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

anniebru's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Very dark, but definitely engaging!

findingtimeforreading's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I love King’s mind. The ideas and stories that he invents are fascinating and intriguing. I think had this been a novella, it would be 4+ stars but with the length of the book, it was just too long for the story in my opinion.

marloesduijzings's review against another edition

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challenging dark slow-paced

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

2.5

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