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flavoredowl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Cancer, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, and Slavery
huckleberryale90's review against another edition
- 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
Minor: Child abuse, Slavery, Racial slurs, Cancer, and Trafficking
tifftastic87's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Jack Sawyer is the kid all of us in the 90s played pretend at. We were given a magical quest by a mysterious traveler and there were to be no shortcuts. Jack's road is a bit darker than I'm sure most of us pretended, it is a King story after all, but it is both a coming of age tale and a chosen one quest. Being able to flip between our world, or the 1980s version of our world, and a parallel one called simply "the territories" Jack is special because he doesnt have a "twinner" and thus is single natured. His whole goal is to save his mom, and her twinner the Queen of the Territories. Everything tries to stop him. Nothing is easy and he wants to give up many many times. But he presses on.
I loved this as a teen, I loved it just as much as an adult. I sobbed, I laughed, I rooted for Jack and shouted at the villain. I would definitely read it a third time.
However, there are some questionable themes. Jack is only 12 and he gets beaten, propositioned, exploited and stalked. He is set on his mission by a common trope of King's "the magical black man." These things are hard to listen to and some made me cringe pretty hard, but the story itself is worth it.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Slavery, Death of parent, Drug use, Kidnapping, Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Classism, Gaslighting, Gore, Stalking, Body shaming, Body horror, Confinement, Gun violence, Homophobia, Child death, Chronic illness, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Ableism, Animal death, Blood, Death, Grief, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Murder
Moderate: Car accident, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, War, Police brutality, Addiction, Pedophilia, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Sexual assault, Vomit, Rape, and Sexual violence
shiv91's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
The only reason I didn't give the full 5 stars is because the book had very rare instances of seeming to go on a bit in terms of getting to the end of the main protagonists goal.
I plan on getting the sequel to see where Jack ended up so wanting to continue is always a good sign!
Moderate: Slavery, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Torture, Violence, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Pedophilia, Medical trauma, Homophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Cursing, Cancer, Physical abuse, Murder, and Emotional abuse
finn_vibing's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Body horror, Blood, Death of parent, Slavery, Animal death, Death, and Torture