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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I loved this book. I dabble in Stephen King and have read quite a few of his books. Not all of his books but I feel enough of them to say I'm a fan. This book seems to have mixed reviews but honestly I loved it and I think it was one of my favourites that he's written (that I've read so far.) I liked how the story grew and how it seemed to have the theme of fairy tales weaved through it. I really loved the world of Empis and it's people. But most of all I loved the relationship between Charlie and Radar. I think if you like King's writing style and are a dog lover or ever had a family dog then this book is for you. I have a Labrador and he's such a big part of our family and the way Charlie will do anything to save Radar really hit me in the feels. It was the first King book I've picked up in a while, but I think I'll be reading more of his soon. He really is a master storyteller.
I like the story enough to continue, but this suffers from the same thing that I’ve found King’s books tend to: overly verbose and some of the content feels forced.
3.5 ⭐ actual rating.
This book was totally fine. It was good. But it definitely was nowhere near Kings best work. I am glad that I had the privilege to buddy read this with Celeste and you should go check out her review as she is a way better reviewer than I am!
Fairy Tale was a strange book for me and I realized a couple things about King while reading it, that I'm going to share. First: King is a masterclass in characterization. When he is able to focus on characters interacting with each other and how they face certain problems together the story comes alive in the background and you just want more, more, MORE of that from him. This is why the first third of the book was so good! Meeting Charlie and his dad and Mr. Bowditch was so much fun! Charlie's bond with Bowditch and even more so with Radar is stuff that I could have read all day. Now, I'm a fantasy guy at heart so I couldn't wait to get to the fantasy part of this story! Hurry up and portal to the other world so we can get to that! which leads me to...
Second: King is not very good at world building. Sure there was another world and there were weird anomalies and unique characters, but it just felt bland. After finishing [b:Worm|18713259|Worm (Parahumans, #1)|Wildbow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519662877l/18713259._SX50_.jpg|26574170] or and Sanderson book or any other number of great fantasy authors where every time you grab the book and start reading you feel transported into a real living world; I just don't get that from this book, or any King novels when I think about it.
So with that being said the world of Empis still could have felt amazing and fun as long as King kept doing what he does best with characters and interacting with each other. But once we get to Empis there is a lot less of that going on. We meet some really interesting characters with tragic stories surrounding them, but it seems that once we get to know them we move on to the next character.
But all that doesn't mean this is a bad book. I certainly enjoyed the first third of the book the most. Which in itself is strange. Not many books where the first third is the best part. But the whole thing was enjoyable enough to read. And I appreciate that, if this is a fairy tale, that it wasn't a happy go lucky one. There are some dark and tragic things that have happened to some of these characters and I really appreciate that about most of Kings stuff. Even with things that could normally be light and fluffy, he can add an edge to it like not many others are able.
While I was certainly expecting more from this book, it isn't one that you should run away from. It's enjoyable. Just don't get your hopes up too much.
This book was totally fine. It was good. But it definitely was nowhere near Kings best work. I am glad that I had the privilege to buddy read this with Celeste and you should go check out her review as she is a way better reviewer than I am!
Fairy Tale was a strange book for me and I realized a couple things about King while reading it, that I'm going to share. First: King is a masterclass in characterization. When he is able to focus on characters interacting with each other and how they face certain problems together the story comes alive in the background and you just want more, more, MORE of that from him. This is why the first third of the book was so good! Meeting Charlie and his dad and Mr. Bowditch was so much fun! Charlie's bond with Bowditch and even more so with Radar is stuff that I could have read all day. Now, I'm a fantasy guy at heart so I couldn't wait to get to the fantasy part of this story! Hurry up and portal to the other world so we can get to that! which leads me to...
Second: King is not very good at world building. Sure there was another world and there were weird anomalies and unique characters, but it just felt bland. After finishing [b:Worm|18713259|Worm (Parahumans, #1)|Wildbow|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1519662877l/18713259._SX50_.jpg|26574170] or and Sanderson book or any other number of great fantasy authors where every time you grab the book and start reading you feel transported into a real living world; I just don't get that from this book, or any King novels when I think about it.
So with that being said the world of Empis still could have felt amazing and fun as long as King kept doing what he does best with characters and interacting with each other. But once we get to Empis there is a lot less of that going on. We meet some really interesting characters with tragic stories surrounding them, but it seems that once we get to know them we move on to the next character.
But all that doesn't mean this is a bad book. I certainly enjoyed the first third of the book the most. Which in itself is strange. Not many books where the first third is the best part. But the whole thing was enjoyable enough to read. And I appreciate that, if this is a fairy tale, that it wasn't a happy go lucky one. There are some dark and tragic things that have happened to some of these characters and I really appreciate that about most of Kings stuff. Even with things that could normally be light and fluffy, he can add an edge to it like not many others are able.
While I was certainly expecting more from this book, it isn't one that you should run away from. It's enjoyable. Just don't get your hopes up too much.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-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
Would have gotten 5 stars is not for some slow parts. I loved this book! I was so emotionally invested in the characters!
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Every time I return to Stephen King, I’m swept away into a world crafted with such care and detail. While this isn’t a horror novel, certain moments still gave me the same adrenaline rush and chills that horror usually does.
One of the things I love most about King’s writing is how he takes his time introducing and developing his main character. He lets us truly get to know them, making them feel like a friend as we embark on the journey together.
The book is filled with references to fairy tales and classic fantasy authors, making it not just a tribute to the genre but also to our own childhoods and teenage years—those magical times when we first discovered fantastical worlds through books. Reading this made me feel 16 again, devouring every fantasy novel I could find.
I also appreciated the clear division between the real world and the fairy tale world. Both sections could have stood on their own as separate stories. In fact, the first part almost made me think I was reading a crime mystery. But the wait for the magical world was worth it—it was everything I hoped for and more.
Lastly, I have to give a shoutout to the Romanian translator for preserving the book’s natural flow and allowing King’s writing to shine.
One of the things I love most about King’s writing is how he takes his time introducing and developing his main character. He lets us truly get to know them, making them feel like a friend as we embark on the journey together.
The book is filled with references to fairy tales and classic fantasy authors, making it not just a tribute to the genre but also to our own childhoods and teenage years—those magical times when we first discovered fantastical worlds through books. Reading this made me feel 16 again, devouring every fantasy novel I could find.
I also appreciated the clear division between the real world and the fairy tale world. Both sections could have stood on their own as separate stories. In fact, the first part almost made me think I was reading a crime mystery. But the wait for the magical world was worth it—it was everything I hoped for and more.
Lastly, I have to give a shoutout to the Romanian translator for preserving the book’s natural flow and allowing King’s writing to shine.
adventurous
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I know Stephen King has published a million books, but the man needs a better editor. There is no reason for this book to be as long as it was. You could probably cut about 30% of this out and still have the exact same story. I’ve only read one other Stephen King book so I’m a newbie here, but my god, does he always over explain every single thing? He would sometimes say the exact same thing in two different ways exactly after each other. Almost every single thing in this story was over explained to an eye rollingly annoying degree. We get it already, there’s a language barrier between characters, so the idiom doesn’t translate well.
All in all the story was interesting enough. The first half and second half of the story felt like two very different stories though. It also felt deceptive to draw me in with the love of a dog in the first half only to make it much less about the dog in the second half(no she doesn’t die) . I can’t even say that there was effective character growth. And the aggressive telling instead of showing made it an absolute slog to get through. If this hadn’t been the first pick of a new bookclub I would have DNF’d around 60%.
All in all the story was interesting enough. The first half and second half of the story felt like two very different stories though. It also felt deceptive to draw me in with the love of a dog in the first half only to make it much less about the dog in the second half