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endaira91's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Car accident, and Death of parent
Moderate: Body horror and Cancer
ginadapooh's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Car accident, Death of parent, Cancer, Medical trauma, Slavery, Alcoholism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture
_bxllxe_'s review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Violence, Alcoholism, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Body horror
Minor: Cancer, Torture, Animal cruelty, Sexual content, and Racial slurs
sunnydaysandairwaves's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Minor: Alcoholism, Death, Violence, and Cancer
ylienna's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Death of parent and Alcoholism
Moderate: Cancer and Death
thebookishbugg's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Cancer, Gore, and Death
Minor: Car accident and Cursing
miraileah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Cancer and Slavery
delwithit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Grief, Excrement, Body horror, Terminal illness, Vomit, Violence, Murder, Death, Death of parent, Blood, and Cursing
Moderate: War, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Medical content, Cultural appropriation, Cancer, Chronic illness, Suicide, and Gun violence
Minor: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pregnancy, and Misogyny
billyjepma's review against another edition
- 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
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.
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
kittyswinny's review against another edition
- 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
<Spoiler>I would perhaps say that there weren't as many catastrophes as there should have been. Sometimes it seemed too easy for our hero Charlie to succeed. There were opportunities to have me on the edge of my seat but they fell just a little flat.
Graphic: Murder, Excrement, Death of parent, Confinement, Child death, Blood, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Violence, Torture, Terminal illness, Cancer, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief