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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Racial slurs, Violence
Minor: Rape
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I remember watching the movie in high school. (Looks like there's another one in the works to be released later this year.) I didn't realize back then that this was made from a Stephen King book, albeit written under his pseudonym. Of course, I wasn't reading any of his books back then either. I recall enjoying the movie for what it was - action packed, not too much emotive drama from Schwarzenegger, fun and cheesy. The book was that, but it had an extra layer of Ben Richards' psyche that gives us a deeper insight into his motivations and decisions. It's more than just trying to survive. It's trying to survive and killing those he encounters as justified.
When I thought back on the movie, I actually remembered it being played by Harrison Ford. In some ways, the roles they played could've been interchangeable back then. I think Ford would've played it closer to the book, but I am guessing the director had a different vision and for that vision, Schwarzenegger was the right pick.
As far as stories go, it was ok. King has written better. I'm not sure if he was trying to mask that he had written the book because of his choice to write it under a pen name. I read he did it because he wanted to publish books more frequently than publishers liked at the time (trying to limit writers to one book a year). In that case, it probably didn't matter to him if people recognized the writing to be his.
It was on the short side of his works. I liked the way the chapters were set up: T-minus days to the end of the story. Each chapter was super short, and I think that was to up the adrenaline factor - keep the pace fast. It was effective. Lots of action on each page. Great appeal for the millennials and younger who like things solved as teams. I liked that too.
Smart and lots of subtext, but I am too exhausted by the present dystopia the US is actually living under to dissect it in detail. I'll leave that to someone with more distance and perspective.
When I thought back on the movie, I actually remembered it being played by Harrison Ford. In some ways, the roles they played could've been interchangeable back then. I think Ford would've played it closer to the book, but I am guessing the director had a different vision and for that vision, Schwarzenegger was the right pick.
As far as stories go, it was ok. King has written better. I'm not sure if he was trying to mask that he had written the book because of his choice to write it under a pen name. I read he did it because he wanted to publish books more frequently than publishers liked at the time (trying to limit writers to one book a year). In that case, it probably didn't matter to him if people recognized the writing to be his.
It was on the short side of his works. I liked the way the chapters were set up: T-minus days to the end of the story. Each chapter was super short, and I think that was to up the adrenaline factor - keep the pace fast. It was effective. Lots of action on each page. Great appeal for the millennials and younger who like things solved as teams. I liked that too.
Smart and lots of subtext, but I am too exhausted by the present dystopia the US is actually living under to dissect it in detail. I'll leave that to someone with more distance and perspective.
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A rather interesting read… with unnecessary racial slurs? I understand that Richards is supposed to be an mc that is hard to like in more ways than one but the excessive use of the n word was not needed. The story would have been just as good without the slurs in my opinion. People may argue it’s to make the story more realistic but this book has nothing to do with race in any capacity. Besides that I thought this novel wasn’t too bad. It’s a dystopian type of world where it seems like no one will win in the end, rich or poor. The plot was fairly easy to follow. There are a few unexpected and expected twists, mainly towards that end. The first couple of chapters were hard to understand. That could be a skill issue on my part but I felt as though the words made no sense. Overall a solid psychological thriller book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Racial slurs, Blood
dark
funny
hopeful
sad
fast-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
tense