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oafeater's review against another edition
3.0
Everyday I wake up thankful that I’m not a female character written by a male author
zgonzale's review against another edition
3.0
The Good: A really interesting and multi-faceted main character (while it's almost a running joke at this point that King only writes about writers, I have found that his author characters are often very well fleshed out), a semi-unconventional and engaging twist on the classic haunted house/ghost story, and the underlying examination of grief, love, and fatherhood.
The Bad: Sadly, Bag of Bones is another one of King's unnecessarily long tomes, clocking in at 529 pages. The first third of the book is meandering and somewhat difficult to read, and even once the plot picks up in the latter two-thirds, there's an almost mind-numbing amount of excessive detail that should have been shaved off by the editor, in my opinion. The length also makes King's perhaps best use of figurative language, repetition, far less effective and lose its storytelling impact. It may be worth noting that I have vague memories of watching the tv-movie adaptation of Bag of Bones, and that is what originally got the book on my to-read list. I may have subconsciously retained some of the plot and found the novel to be less exciting as a result. Regardless, I'm glad I finally got around to reading it.
TLDR: Interesting protagonist and original take on a haunted house, but simply too long and meandering for my taste. Raises interesting thoughts on the nature of grief, love, and fatherhood, but it would have been much more engaging if it was 250 pages shorter.
The Bad: Sadly, Bag of Bones is another one of King's unnecessarily long tomes, clocking in at 529 pages. The first third of the book is meandering and somewhat difficult to read, and even once the plot picks up in the latter two-thirds, there's an almost mind-numbing amount of excessive detail that should have been shaved off by the editor, in my opinion. The length also makes King's perhaps best use of figurative language, repetition, far less effective and lose its storytelling impact. It may be worth noting that I have vague memories of watching the tv-movie adaptation of Bag of Bones, and that is what originally got the book on my to-read list. I may have subconsciously retained some of the plot and found the novel to be less exciting as a result. Regardless, I'm glad I finally got around to reading it.
TLDR: Interesting protagonist and original take on a haunted house, but simply too long and meandering for my taste. Raises interesting thoughts on the nature of grief, love, and fatherhood, but it would have been much more engaging if it was 250 pages shorter.
readwithdina's review against another edition
2.0
He’s so long winded. This could have been 200 pages.
laeral's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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
3.25
kaylajlassi's review against another edition
Wonderful book, this should have been rated number one.
sapphirestars's review against another edition
5.0
It is really interesting rereading this, especially while rereading Doctor Sleep at the same time. There are several tiny bits that intersect that I don't think anyone would truly notice unless viewing the same two in tandem. The quote about dead speaking through gramophones is present in both for instance---SK must really be fond of that quote/idea. Kyra is given Jo's old tin box for her special treasures including where she thinks she will put a picture of her now deceased mother Maggie. In one of the first opening bits of Doctor Sleep, Dick gives Danny a tin box in which HE plans to put his own special treasures AND a picture of his deceased father Jack. The box is also used as a metaphor and one wonders if young SK had his own metal box :) Finally, the plot of the book Mike Noonan is working on at Sara Laugh's bears some resemblance to the new book SK is set to be released later in May 2018 [b:The Outsider|36000789|The Outsider|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1520585729s/36000789.jpg|57566471] (a man accused of committing a child murder that he claims innocence from despite evidence present and the quest to exonerate him). I just found these bits and pieces to be extra interesting! I was also surprised the used copy I purchased here in TN had a receipt in it...original purchase BORDERS in July 1999 from within the World Trade Center. Weird!
The first time I read Bag of Bones, I was so taken with the first half and then very board with Kyra (Kia) and Mattie. I think I recall being disappointed Jo was not cheating (why?) Either way, while him mourning the loss of his wife emotionally impacted me, I wasn't too interested in the rest. This time around I see it for the good story it is. I tore through it quite quickly and was truly shocked and saddened when Mattie died as well---was not expecting that. This makes me wonder if I need to reread Duma Key as well, since many compare and enjoy the two. While it isn't the very best of SK, it was quite good, kept me interested, and would recommend. Glad I gave this another go!
2021 reread: one of the characters in the book Mike Noonan was writing was Ray Garraty the same as the protagonist in The Long Walk.
The first time I read Bag of Bones, I was so taken with the first half and then very board with Kyra (Kia) and Mattie. I think I recall being disappointed Jo was not cheating (why?) Either way, while him mourning the loss of his wife emotionally impacted me, I wasn't too interested in the rest. This time around I see it for the good story it is. I tore through it quite quickly and was truly shocked and saddened when Mattie died as well---was not expecting that. This makes me wonder if I need to reread Duma Key as well, since many compare and enjoy the two. While it isn't the very best of SK, it was quite good, kept me interested, and would recommend. Glad I gave this another go!
2021 reread: one of the characters in the book Mike Noonan was writing was Ray Garraty the same as the protagonist in The Long Walk.
miruna_cls's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
theantisocialslibrary's review against another edition
i have to come back to this…. Bc i do not like…..
knaglieri's review against another edition
2.0
Well written enough, but my least favorite King novel. It was SO slow and plodding, and for an audiobook that was 21 hours long not much really happened. I didn't find it especially scary or much of a mystery. It's a big meh from me on this one. I did enjoy Stephen King narrating it, nasal voice and sometimes lisp and all, especially since the main character was an author. BUT the music at the end of each chapter made me crazy.