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jnikolova's review against another edition
3.0
Short, interesting, creepy. It had the usual Stephen King undertones: the way the monster was described, the way Pete described the Burger King. But it was nice. I liked the fact that it was short and swift, didn't leave too much guessing. One of the better short stories of the King's that I've read.
dylanperry's review against another edition
4.0
4/5
This had a lot going against it for me.
I'll be the first to tell you Stephen King is not the best at writing kids and teenagers (yes, the kids from The Body included) and half of the characters in this are kids. And yes, a lot of those parts were still a bit of a slog.
But the more I read of it, the more I got into Mile 81. It's a straight-forward and short novella about a demonic car (nicknames the 'Bad Car' by one of the kids) feeding on passer-by's.
It drags in the beginning. Know that going in. But it's worth getting through.
4/5
This had a lot going against it for me.
I'll be the first to tell you Stephen King is not the best at writing kids and teenagers (yes, the kids from The Body included) and half of the characters in this are kids. And yes, a lot of those parts were still a bit of a slog.
But the more I read of it, the more I got into Mile 81. It's a straight-forward and short novella about a demonic car (nicknames the 'Bad Car' by one of the kids) feeding on passer-by's.
It drags in the beginning. Know that going in. But it's worth getting through.
4/5
beasleymomtwo's review against another edition
3.0
A weird, strange, scary, stupid short story, not what I expected from Steven King.
cafedetinta's review against another edition
3.0
Entretenido sin más, un relato del que esperaba quizás otro desarrollo de los acontecimientos, el final no me termina de convencer.
nyctei's review against another edition
3.0
Quick read, took me about an hour. Maybe a bit more.
The characters were the star of the show here. They're easy to feel empathy for. It seems like any of them could be your neighbor or third cousin or whatever.
The plot seemed like a bit of a hodgepodge. From a Buick 8, Christine, Stand by Me (I think that's the one with the kids). Nothing new or groundbreaking although there was a little twist at the end.
Still a bit creepy.
I liked it, good storytelling, but points off for been there done that gibe.
The characters were the star of the show here. They're easy to feel empathy for. It seems like any of them could be your neighbor or third cousin or whatever.
The plot seemed like a bit of a hodgepodge. From a Buick 8, Christine, Stand by Me (I think that's the one with the kids). Nothing new or groundbreaking although there was a little twist at the end.
Still a bit creepy.
I liked it, good storytelling, but points off for been there done that gibe.
zhoronto's review against another edition
4.0
It is a funny little story, if you like the way King usually solve the situation with monsters you will like it.
If you hate the way King usually solve the situation with monsters... well, you know what? Go to the Mile 81 and let the old car-thing over there give you a lift.
It will be fun!
If you hate the way King usually solve the situation with monsters... well, you know what? Go to the Mile 81 and let the old car-thing over there give you a lift.
It will be fun!
hellkitty915's review against another edition
4.0
This is Stephen King at his best. Mile 81 is gory, creepy, scary, and FUN! It brings me back to the earliest books, the ones that brought visceral reactions & all of the boogieman fears right up to the surface.
Do not listen to this in the dark. Or maybe you should. Either way, you'll be glad you listened to it - and you'll never look at another station wagon the same way.
Do not listen to this in the dark. Or maybe you should. Either way, you'll be glad you listened to it - and you'll never look at another station wagon the same way.
sarabrennan's review against another edition
3.0
Eh wit? Basically I read this by accident. So I have a long list in my notes of books that I want to read, and I spent a long time going through that list, searching every book on it on my Kindle and then buying every one that was £2 or under. When I saw this one on this list I thought ‘ah this is that Stephen King book about that competition where people have to walk forever’. It was £1.99 so I bought it and started reading it. Turns out the book I was thinking about was actually ‘The Long Walk’ and the book I was now reading was actually about a car that kills people. No, not ‘Christine’, that’s the other Stephen King book about a car that kills people. I think it’s cause it has ‘Mile’ in the title that I thought it was the walking competition book but as we have it established it certainly is not, the question is raised of, why did I add this to my list of books I want to read in the first place? What did I read in the description of this book which enticed me? I genuinely can’t think of a single thing. The story itself was fine cause it was short. Just about this daft car really. And the characters were good enough. But would I recommend that you add it to your list of books to read? No I wouldn’t.
lfields19's review against another edition
2.0
I love Stephen King. I've been reading his books since I was 12 or 13, and he's the writer I judge all other writers by. Anyone who knows me knows how it pains me to give something he wrote two stars. The sad fact is, I'm pretty sure if anyone else had written this I'd only give it one star. I can't seem to bring myself to take off the 2nd star though the book doesn't really deserve it.
I bought this book for my Kindle, happy to give my old friend SK my $2.99. I was surprised when the book ended abruptly at 80%, and the other 20% was a preview of his new novel coming out in November. A cheap ploy, especially considering everyone's going to buy it already so he hardly needs to advertise.
The story opened up with a 10 year old kid, and I found myself wondering if SK has finally gotten too old to write children believably. He has written many child characters I've adored - The kids in It, Jake Chambers, Travelin' Jack, etc etc. The kid in this book, Pete, felt incongruous somehow. Not genuine. The story, about a car that's really an alien that eats people, was pretty stupid, but really, a lot of his stories sound stupid in description. I remember a short story about some plastic teeth that came to life and killed people and I liked that one. This one just felt contrived, like he didn't really care about it any more than I did as I was reading it.
But what really got me, more than anything else, was the AT&T plug. The cop was playing Words With Friends on his iPad, internet provided by AT&T. That's almost exactly how he said it. I have a very hard time forgiving blatant product placement. It's bad enough on TV; it's worse in books. I don't see how SK could possibly need the money and I'd be shocked to hear AT&T had ever inspired that kind of loyalty in anyone, to earn a mention like that. Reading it from my very favorite author of all time made me feel dirty.
All in all, I wish I'd not read this story at all.
I bought this book for my Kindle, happy to give my old friend SK my $2.99. I was surprised when the book ended abruptly at 80%, and the other 20% was a preview of his new novel coming out in November. A cheap ploy, especially considering everyone's going to buy it already so he hardly needs to advertise.
The story opened up with a 10 year old kid, and I found myself wondering if SK has finally gotten too old to write children believably. He has written many child characters I've adored - The kids in It, Jake Chambers, Travelin' Jack, etc etc. The kid in this book, Pete, felt incongruous somehow. Not genuine. The story, about a car that's really an alien that eats people, was pretty stupid, but really, a lot of his stories sound stupid in description. I remember a short story about some plastic teeth that came to life and killed people and I liked that one. This one just felt contrived, like he didn't really care about it any more than I did as I was reading it.
But what really got me, more than anything else, was the AT&T plug. The cop was playing Words With Friends on his iPad, internet provided by AT&T. That's almost exactly how he said it. I have a very hard time forgiving blatant product placement. It's bad enough on TV; it's worse in books. I don't see how SK could possibly need the money and I'd be shocked to hear AT&T had ever inspired that kind of loyalty in anyone, to earn a mention like that. Reading it from my very favorite author of all time made me feel dirty.
All in all, I wish I'd not read this story at all.