Reviews with content warning for Racial slurs - The Shining

It was a bit slow moving at first but every chapter left me intrigued at the same time. It was really interesting the way King describes Jack’s perspective in his

decent into madness and convincing himself what he was doing was right

and Danny’s perspective being a 5 year old (although at times it definitely didn’t read like a 5 year old). Also has a bit of casual racism (it’s an older book but still a bit jarring) apart from that I really liked it! It made me very creeped out, had my heart racing and I think it was written really well!

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loves_nurse's review against another edition

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tense medium-paced

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

3.25

Early Stephen King's writing really blossoms with this book. However the casual use of the N-word is jarring to read in modern age.

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katie316says's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

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

4.0

The Shining has been one of my favorite movies for years, but I feel like I’m unable to enjoy it as much now that I’ve read the book and seen how much was left out and changed in the film. Of the two, I preferred the story of the novel. I think King did a great job creating nuanced and interesting characters with clear backstories and motivation. I also think he did an incredible job with the writing of specifically Danny’s scenes. It really brought me back to the feeling of being a scared little kid frozen in fear by my imagination.

For that reason, the scene of Danny staring at the fire house worried it would come after him like a snake really stuck with me.

However my complaint, like many others have said, is King’s long winded writing style. In my opinion this book was just too long for it’s content and would have benefitting from some editing down. I think the story alone would be 5 stars to me but that was lessened by the length.

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coffeekitty37's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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_marycappiello3's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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cyndakeel's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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kerryamber's review

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dark sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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hellococo927's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

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

2.25

While I acknowledge The Shining's reputation as a horror classic, the experience fell flat for me. The plot itself is decent, with the potential for a chilling family-in-peril scenario. However, the excessive exposition throughout the book bogged down the pacing significantly. I found myself frequently distracted and struggling to maintain momentum.

Going in fresh, without prior knowledge of the story, I believe the slow build could have been more effective. Unfortunately, the sheer volume of detail and background information often overshadowed the actual suspense, making it a slog to get through. While I can appreciate the attempt at character development, it often felt unnecessary and detracted from the central narrative.

Overall, while the core story holds promise, the overwhelming amount of exposition ultimately hindered my enjoyment of this classic.

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