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cooldudenick's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Sexual content, Murder, Violence, and Sexism
Minor: Pedophilia
lookitsemma's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
2.75
All the points are for the writing being some of the best fiction I’ve ever seen. That said, I hated the story and the characters and the sexist narrative. I can’t bring myself to pick up the next book, which is sad because I really wanted to like this series.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism and Sexual content
brogancha's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Murder, Gun violence, Rape, and Sexual content
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Misogyny, and Sexism
lvl52_grant's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.0
This book is by far the oddest of the series, but sets you up for one of the greatest stories told. A mix between western, fantasy, and horror, King builds up and tears down and builds up again his protagonist, Roland the Gunslinger. He travels through a desert at the end of the world, watching people and places slowly decay, never letting anything prevent him from achieving his goal: the Dark Tower. I first read this book as a 19 year old, a number of importance to the series, but I had never read this second publishing. Some of the newer details felt odd, like sprinkling fan-service-y cameos, but it still sets up the protagonist and reader for their journey to the Tower, answering no questions and asking many.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Body horror, Sexual content, and Sexism
theverycraftyvegan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
My spouse is going to hate when I tell him I didn’t love this book. He thinks The Dark Tower is the greatest series of books ever written, but book one didn’t do anything for me.
Was it well written? Debatable. Stephen King is a great author and I’ve loved many of his other books, but The Gunslinger isn’t one of them. You jump around a lot between the present and the past, and it was all very confusing for me. It felt like the book had absolutely no flow. Maybe the series gets better as you go but I don’t know if I’m interested enough to read 7 more—and most of them very long—books to find out.
Dystopian and apocalyptic, everyone and everything is dying. A very hard existence in an unsavoury world filled with violence and death.
I also didn’t like a single character.
And literally every character you meet dies, except for Roland, so don’t grow attached to anyone.
Jake, the boy, was a confusing addition. Where did he come from? Our time? How did he get there? Why is he there?
And Roland’s love for and eventual betrayal of Jake was just the worst.
Alice was needy and clingy and portrayed to be ugly due to a facial scar and her age. (40s???)
Sylvia was just a horrible excuse of a human.
The people of Tull all sucked.
But the battle of Tull was hands down my favourite part to read.
The Man in Black… I don’t even know what my thoughts are on him. He was very cryptic and I felt like because he only starts to speak at the end of the book I didn’t get to know him.
I’ve read it. I can say I’ve read it. It wasn’t for me. Might be an unpopular opinion, but there it is.
Was it well written? Debatable. Stephen King is a great author and I’ve loved many of his other books, but The Gunslinger isn’t one of them. You jump around a lot between the present and the past, and it was all very confusing for me. It felt like the book had absolutely no flow. Maybe the series gets better as you go but I don’t know if I’m interested enough to read 7 more—and most of them very long—books to find out.
Dystopian and apocalyptic, everyone and everything is dying. A very hard existence in an unsavoury world filled with violence and death.
I also didn’t like a single character.
Jake, the boy, was a confusing addition. Where did he come from? Our time? How did he get there? Why is he there?
And Roland’s love for and eventual betrayal of Jake was just the worst.
Alice was needy and clingy and portrayed to be ugly due to a facial scar and her age. (40s???)
Sylvia was just a horrible excuse of a human.
The people of Tull all sucked.
The Man in Black… I don’t even know what my thoughts are on him. He was very cryptic and I felt like because he only starts to speak at the end of the book I didn’t get to know him.
I’ve read it. I can say I’ve read it. It wasn’t for me. Might be an unpopular opinion, but there it is.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Murder, Violence, Mass/school shootings, Animal death, Body horror, Gore, Blood, Child death, Death, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Animal cruelty
Minor: Miscarriage, Abortion, and Pregnancy
moonlitemuseum's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
1.5
This book was incredible at putting me to sleep. I would turn on the audiobook (which is beautifully narrated by George Guidall) and let the blandness seep into my body like warm water. There is a lot of indescribably stupid and callous edgelord garbage in this book, which I enjoy on occasion, but it never feels anchored in anything that matters. Roland is a cipher. The women in the book, when they do appear, are there to have sex with or be bible-thumping harlots subject to sexual violence. Jake, probably one of the world's first Isekai protagonists, is a delight—King's strength is in the modern day, with modern things and modern landmarks—but even he feels curiously flat when Roland is using him as an emotional tether.
I really love King books, for the record, and I so want to like this book. His sprawling fantasy. And I do plan on reading the next one. But boy, this was rough. I just finished it and I barely remember anything about it. (I am going to request it from the library again though. Fantastic sleep aid!)
I really love King books, for the record, and I so want to like this book. His sprawling fantasy. And I do plan on reading the next one. But boy, this was rough. I just finished it and I barely remember anything about it. (I am going to request it from the library again though. Fantastic sleep aid!)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Rape, Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Abortion
Moderate: Gun violence, Child death, Sexual assault, Car accident, Addiction, Vomit, Violence, Sexism, and Murder
Minor: Fatphobia
Whatever the hell is going on with that woman who is given a thing she is not allowed to ask about, with the knowledge that she will have to ask about it. No neat content warning for that, but it was weird and unpleasant.kia_y_k's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Alcohol, Sexism, Cursing, Gore, Genocide, Murder, Violence, and Blood
angelfoodcakes's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I find the world building and characters of this book really intriguing, even if I found the plot a little confusing. I thought the ending was beautiful and bittersweet.
My main issue is this is very much from Stephen King’s era of writing where he has to put excessive detail into how he describes every female character’s boobs.
My main issue is this is very much from Stephen King’s era of writing where he has to put excessive detail into how he describes every female character’s boobs.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gun violence, and Sexism
ggcd1981's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
TRIGER WARNING: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Sexual Assault, Miscarriage, Child death, Violence, Sexual content, Misogyny, Objectification of female characters, Murder
Eu comecei The gunslinger com baixas expectativas, pois eu vi vários Booktubers tendo problemas com esse livro. Além disso soube que o próprio Stephen King, em edições posteriores a primeira publicação do livro, escreveu uma Intro meio que se “desculpando” pelos problemas do livro. Dessa forma eu não tinha grandes esperanças para o início da série The dark tower, mas como todo o meu projeto para ler King foi para ler esta série, eu prossegui. Para minha surpresa eu gostei. Não é ótimo mas a escrita e história de King foram interessantes e originais o suficiente para me entreter, mesmo nos momentos “estranhos” e “viajados” da narrativa. Acredito que depois de 3 livros e 1 conto posso afirmar que gosto da escrita de King. The gunslinger é o terceiro livro do autor que leio (por enquanto não tenho um preferido) mas a leitura de The gunslinger foi mais fácil e fluída que Eyes of the dragon ou The stand. Posso dizer até que gostei dos momentos mais “viajados” (e houveram diversos) pois a escrita flui. A cena inteira em que Roland confronta the dark man e contempla a criação do universo e a possibilidade deste ser apenas um átomo numa folha de grama em um universo maior foi extremamente complexa porém nenhum pouco maçante, fluiu perfeitamente e foi bastante intrigante.
Não tenho muito o que dizer em termos de pontos negativos ou positivos pois este é apenas o livro introdutório da série (apesar disso foi nada informativo sobre o universo da história). Como pontos negativos aponto apenas: a objetificação dos personagens femininos, que nesta primeira obra existiram apenas para serem sexualizadas; a violência gráfica contra animais (este é sempre um gatilho para mim); e a total ausência de explicação a respeito do universo da série The Dark tower, dos personagens e os papeis que desempenham (ler esse livro é como começar um filme pela metade). Os pontos positivos até o momento são: como já mencionado a escrita de King; os personagens são bastante intrigantes (Roland, Jake, The dark man), são mistérios a serem descobertos; O mundo e história são tão inesperados e misteriosos para Fantasia ou terror que é inevitável querer saber o que raios está acontecendo e porquê.
Não tenho muito o que dizer em termos de pontos negativos ou positivos pois este é apenas o livro introdutório da série (apesar disso foi nada informativo sobre o universo da história). Como pontos negativos aponto apenas: a objetificação dos personagens femininos, que nesta primeira obra existiram apenas para serem sexualizadas; a violência gráfica contra animais (este é sempre um gatilho para mim); e a total ausência de explicação a respeito do universo da série The Dark tower, dos personagens e os papeis que desempenham (ler esse livro é como começar um filme pela metade). Os pontos positivos até o momento são: como já mencionado a escrita de King; os personagens são bastante intrigantes (Roland, Jake, The dark man), são mistérios a serem descobertos; O mundo e história são tão inesperados e misteriosos para Fantasia ou terror que é inevitável querer saber o que raios está acontecendo e porquê.
Em geral gostei da obra e continuarei com a série. Apesar dos problemas apontados é um sólido 3.75 estrelas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Genocide, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Murder, Sexism, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol, Misogyny, and Pregnancy
rockatanskette's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
This is my first Stephen King novel and honestly? Not impressed.
There's an intriguing plot somewhere, I think, but it's hard to tell with Stephen King's raging boner in the way. I'm usually not one to care about sexual content in books, but it frustrates me when it's extraneous, distracting, and, in this case, intensely sexist. Almost every woman mentioned is described only by her sexual appeal to the main character and his own mother is defined entirely by her sexual (note: not even romantic) relationships with his father and a secondary character. If that wasn't bad enough, King sets various women up as sexually open and then calls them whores (whorish also seems to be a favorite adjective for describing even random, unnamed women). It reminds me of a John Berger quote:
"You painted a naked woman because you enjoyed looking at her, put a mirror in her hand and you called the painting 'Vanity,' thus morally condemning the woman whose nakedness you had depicted for your own pleasure."
There are two or three women mentioned who aren't defined by sex; they're cooks and maids. So do with that what you will.
It's not even the sexual part of it mostly, it's sometimes just bizarre references to genitalia. King describes Roland's balls like the meme about men writers describing breasts. At one point, I read the line "His loins were suddenly filled with light, a light that was soft yet hard" and groaned so loudly my mom asked me if I was in pain. I was.
I'm trying to decide if the questions left open are compelling enough to read the rest of the series, or if I'm just going to Google it to sate what little curiosity I have. I'm leaning toward the latter. There's only so many apparently sentient dicks I can take.
There's an intriguing plot somewhere, I think, but it's hard to tell with Stephen King's raging boner in the way. I'm usually not one to care about sexual content in books, but it frustrates me when it's extraneous, distracting, and, in this case, intensely sexist. Almost every woman mentioned is described only by her sexual appeal to the main character and his own mother is defined entirely by her sexual (note: not even romantic) relationships with his father and a secondary character. If that wasn't bad enough, King sets various women up as sexually open and then calls them whores (whorish also seems to be a favorite adjective for describing even random, unnamed women). It reminds me of a John Berger quote:
"You painted a naked woman because you enjoyed looking at her, put a mirror in her hand and you called the painting 'Vanity,' thus morally condemning the woman whose nakedness you had depicted for your own pleasure."
There are two or three women mentioned who aren't defined by sex; they're cooks and maids. So do with that what you will.
It's not even the sexual part of it mostly, it's sometimes just bizarre references to genitalia. King describes Roland's balls like the meme about men writers describing breasts. At one point, I read the line "His loins were suddenly filled with light, a light that was soft yet hard" and groaned so loudly my mom asked me if I was in pain. I was.
I'm trying to decide if the questions left open are compelling enough to read the rest of the series, or if I'm just going to Google it to sate what little curiosity I have. I'm leaning toward the latter. There's only so many apparently sentient dicks I can take.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Gun violence, and Violence
Minor: Sexual violence
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