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biostrings's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
tregina's review against another edition
3.0
God damn, that last part is going to haunt me. I haven't read new Stephen King in a long time, and this reminds me what a hell of a storyteller he is. I deliberately saved the last forty pages or so for the light of day instead of finishing it last night, because this is one of those things that is virtually certain to give me nightmares.
lpickett47's review against another edition
5.0
Phenomenal book by King. Highly recommended. I love Lovecraftian horror so this book was right up my alley, but I do admit that there were some slow parts. However, the payoff at the end is worth the read alone and this is the only King book I have read that actually made me think about it for a while after finishing it. I'm usually not scared by his books, but this one definitely made me feel uneasy.
dunnadam's review against another edition
3.0
Good enough, very readable. I haven't read King for a while since I read [b:Cell|10567|Cell|Stephen King|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388211745s/10567.jpg|3017730] and didn't like it.
A couple of personal problems with the book. I don't enjoy reading about religion, anything about it, and the first half of the book has a lot of it. Second, King tends to write about old time guys who were cool in the 60's and now like to jam on the electric guitar, people like himself, which is understandable but not something I can relate to or care about in the slightest.
This being said the pages did turn quickly and I liked the Dickensian chapter headers, though Dickens swore less.
A couple of personal problems with the book. I don't enjoy reading about religion, anything about it, and the first half of the book has a lot of it. Second, King tends to write about old time guys who were cool in the 60's and now like to jam on the electric guitar, people like himself, which is understandable but not something I can relate to or care about in the slightest.
This being said the pages did turn quickly and I liked the Dickensian chapter headers, though Dickens swore less.
lacrouss's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
eileenjs's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
bookymcbookshelf's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
silvia_gio's review against another edition
2.0
Awww Stephen... Another fantastic book with a horrible ending. What can I say? Another missed opportunity..
Revival is the life-spanning story of Jamie Morton and his “fifth business,” Pastor Charles Jacobs (who goes by a number of names throughout the book). The story opens with Jamie as a six year old boy, and closes with him in his late fifties. Pastor Jacobs is a friendly, vibrant young man with a passionate interest in all things electricity who is newly-hired as a preacher in Jamie's small town. While their first interactions are pleasant—even profound—Jamie and Charles run into each other a number of other times (and under vastly different circumstances) throughout the book.
The book opens with his desperate denial of preordination – because if “these horrors” we are set to learn about were fated, “then there is no such thing as light, and our belief in it is a foolish illusion.”
The book may be tricksy, but King signposts where we are going from the start: with the title, with the naming of Mary Shelley as one of “the people who built my house” in the dedication, alongside HP Lovecraft and Arthur Machen, whose The Great God Pan “has haunted me all my life”.
SPOILER.......................
The idea of a secret, terrifying “behind-the-curtain” world of damnation and slavery for all mankind at the hands (claws?) of ant-like beasts accessed by means of Jacobs' “secret electricity” seemed to some like a bit of a stretch. I admit, there are hardly any indications earlier in the book that it is leading anywhere remotely supernatural (which, granted, preserves the element of surprise), other than the indication that the electrical force Jacobs has tapped into may have some spiritual or otherworldly origins.
And then...And then of course when you finally get to the end of this book (finally) and find out what it's about, you're just frustrated at having wasted your time and money. Ants? Really? Ants? WTF Mr King? I used to be a fan but this has happened way too many times.
Revival isn't great, but neither is it crap. The man is a genius, but even the masters write a dud here and there.
Three stars and nothing more
Revival is the life-spanning story of Jamie Morton and his “fifth business,” Pastor Charles Jacobs (who goes by a number of names throughout the book). The story opens with Jamie as a six year old boy, and closes with him in his late fifties. Pastor Jacobs is a friendly, vibrant young man with a passionate interest in all things electricity who is newly-hired as a preacher in Jamie's small town. While their first interactions are pleasant—even profound—Jamie and Charles run into each other a number of other times (and under vastly different circumstances) throughout the book.
The book opens with his desperate denial of preordination – because if “these horrors” we are set to learn about were fated, “then there is no such thing as light, and our belief in it is a foolish illusion.”
The book may be tricksy, but King signposts where we are going from the start: with the title, with the naming of Mary Shelley as one of “the people who built my house” in the dedication, alongside HP Lovecraft and Arthur Machen, whose The Great God Pan “has haunted me all my life”.
SPOILER.......................
The idea of a secret, terrifying “behind-the-curtain” world of damnation and slavery for all mankind at the hands (claws?) of ant-like beasts accessed by means of Jacobs' “secret electricity” seemed to some like a bit of a stretch. I admit, there are hardly any indications earlier in the book that it is leading anywhere remotely supernatural (which, granted, preserves the element of surprise), other than the indication that the electrical force Jacobs has tapped into may have some spiritual or otherworldly origins.
And then...And then of course when you finally get to the end of this book (finally) and find out what it's about, you're just frustrated at having wasted your time and money. Ants? Really? Ants? WTF Mr King? I used to be a fan but this has happened way too many times.
Revival isn't great, but neither is it crap. The man is a genius, but even the masters write a dud here and there.
Three stars and nothing more