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A review by viiemzee
The Shining by Stephen King
5.0
This is one of the first Stephen King books I ever read, but I was also much younger than I am at the moment, so I didn’t appreciate it as fully as I do now. I thought a reread was in order, and by God I loved every page of this book.
For those of you who’ve never heard of the book, here’s a small breakdown: Jack Torrance, recovering alcoholic with a wife and five-year-old son, gets a job at a hotel called The Overlook, being it’s caretaker during the winter, when nobody is around to look after the place. Danny Torrance, Jack’s son, has something called a ‘shining’ – a sort of psychic/telepathic ability that lets him see things that have already happened, or see things that will happen, or speak to people who also ‘shine’ using his mind. Wendy Torrance, Jack’s wife, just wants everything to go back to the way it was before Jack’s drinking got out of control.
Enter The Overlook – imposing, beautiful, powerful. The Overlook reeks of shine; for some reason, the hotel has attracted tragedy after blood soaked tragedy to its walls. And now, in Danny, it’s found new power.
If you’re a fan of horror – both subtle and in-your-face – then this book is definitely for you. The depictions of blood and guts, the silent ways in which the hotel starts to take over, the violence portrayed throughout most of the novel. This book has it all, and that’s not even the best part. The best part are the characters – believable, lovable, relatable. Even the villain has his own redeeming qualities to it (that sadly the film leaves out completely). And as always, of course, King’s writing is superbly enrapturing, making you want to keep on reading til there’s nothing left to read, like Jack Torrance flipping through the old scrapbook of newspaper clippings.
Final rating: 5/5. A wonderful read for horror fans and non-fans alike. Anyone and everyone should read at least one King in their life – I really think it should be this one.
For those of you who’ve never heard of the book, here’s a small breakdown: Jack Torrance, recovering alcoholic with a wife and five-year-old son, gets a job at a hotel called The Overlook, being it’s caretaker during the winter, when nobody is around to look after the place. Danny Torrance, Jack’s son, has something called a ‘shining’ – a sort of psychic/telepathic ability that lets him see things that have already happened, or see things that will happen, or speak to people who also ‘shine’ using his mind. Wendy Torrance, Jack’s wife, just wants everything to go back to the way it was before Jack’s drinking got out of control.
Enter The Overlook – imposing, beautiful, powerful. The Overlook reeks of shine; for some reason, the hotel has attracted tragedy after blood soaked tragedy to its walls. And now, in Danny, it’s found new power.
If you’re a fan of horror – both subtle and in-your-face – then this book is definitely for you. The depictions of blood and guts, the silent ways in which the hotel starts to take over, the violence portrayed throughout most of the novel. This book has it all, and that’s not even the best part. The best part are the characters – believable, lovable, relatable. Even the villain has his own redeeming qualities to it (that sadly the film leaves out completely). And as always, of course, King’s writing is superbly enrapturing, making you want to keep on reading til there’s nothing left to read, like Jack Torrance flipping through the old scrapbook of newspaper clippings.
Final rating: 5/5. A wonderful read for horror fans and non-fans alike. Anyone and everyone should read at least one King in their life – I really think it should be this one.