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A review by tatty_books
Four Past Midnight by Stephen King
3.0
In a nutshell:
The Langoliers - First book
A select few passengers wake up mid-flight to an almost empty plane. Each character's realisation of the situation is told parallel to each other.
Fortunately, they have a pilot amongst the mixed bag of characters.
As they navigate their conundrum and their bizarre setting, one particular character does not make it easy for them.
In a race against 'The Langoliers', they miraculously find their way back to time warp but come across yet another hurdle.
When the remaining passengers finally land, they face a new reality.
All the while, one passenger who misses most of the drama, wakes up intermittently, says something and then drops back to sleep as though nothing has happened.
An enjoyable read, nothing overly fascinating but humorous in places. A fast paced, easy read, something to flick through on the train journey.
Opening Sentence:
Brian Engle rolled the American Pride L1011 to a stop at Gate 22 and flicked off the FASTEN SEATBELT light at exactly 10:14pm.
Closing Sentence:
The six of them ran down the concourse together toward the escalators and all the outside world beyond.
Favourite Quote(s):
….because they made be giggle
(British humour/character- when they realise it is just them)""We seem a few passengers short, don't we?" he said?"
"My father never saw a child run in his entire life. They always scampered. I think he liked that word because it implies senseless, directionless, non-productive motion. But the langoliers . . . They run. They have purpose" - You'll need to find out what langoliers are to get this one.
In a nutshell:
Secret Window, Secret Garden
This is the second story in the Four Past Midnight collection.
I read this as part of a book club, which I now realise only reads Stephen King, 'Constants Readers' lol.
I think I quite enjoy his writing style, particularly the dialogue, and this story is no different.
It's not an engrossing read, but it was readable and funny in parts. The story is meta but not in your face meta. The plot builds up nicely with a few red herrings, but then the narrative shifts, and the plot becomes immediately predictable and dare I say it 'boring'.
Essentially, the story is about personal guilt that never really goes away and how traumatic/stressful situations can bring those feelings hurtling back with dire consequences if left unchecked.
The story is told in 3rd person, and to be honest, it probably would have read better in 1st person. We didn’t really get anyone else's perspective, and I don't think there was a scene that didn't explicitly involve the protagonist.
A little read for the train journey north, I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend.
Opening Sentence:
'You stole my story', the man on the doorstep said.
Closing Sentence:
And to tend their gardens.
Favourite Quote(s):
"It was good to have those make-believe worlds to fall back on when the real one had hurt you"
The Langoliers - First book
A select few passengers wake up mid-flight to an almost empty plane. Each character's realisation of the situation is told parallel to each other.
Fortunately, they have a pilot amongst the mixed bag of characters.
As they navigate their conundrum and their bizarre setting, one particular character does not make it easy for them.
In a race against 'The Langoliers', they miraculously find their way back to time warp but come across yet another hurdle.
When the remaining passengers finally land, they face a new reality.
All the while, one passenger who misses most of the drama, wakes up intermittently, says something and then drops back to sleep as though nothing has happened.
An enjoyable read, nothing overly fascinating but humorous in places. A fast paced, easy read, something to flick through on the train journey.
Opening Sentence:
Brian Engle rolled the American Pride L1011 to a stop at Gate 22 and flicked off the FASTEN SEATBELT light at exactly 10:14pm.
Closing Sentence:
The six of them ran down the concourse together toward the escalators and all the outside world beyond.
Favourite Quote(s):
….because they made be giggle
(British humour/character- when they realise it is just them)""We seem a few passengers short, don't we?" he said?"
"My father never saw a child run in his entire life. They always scampered. I think he liked that word because it implies senseless, directionless, non-productive motion. But the langoliers . . . They run. They have purpose" - You'll need to find out what langoliers are to get this one.
In a nutshell:
Secret Window, Secret Garden
This is the second story in the Four Past Midnight collection.
I read this as part of a book club, which I now realise only reads Stephen King, 'Constants Readers' lol.
I think I quite enjoy his writing style, particularly the dialogue, and this story is no different.
It's not an engrossing read, but it was readable and funny in parts. The story is meta but not in your face meta. The plot builds up nicely with a few red herrings, but then the narrative shifts, and the plot becomes immediately predictable and dare I say it 'boring'.
Essentially, the story is about personal guilt that never really goes away and how traumatic/stressful situations can bring those feelings hurtling back with dire consequences if left unchecked.
The story is told in 3rd person, and to be honest, it probably would have read better in 1st person. We didn’t really get anyone else's perspective, and I don't think there was a scene that didn't explicitly involve the protagonist.
A little read for the train journey north, I wouldn't go out of my way to recommend.
Opening Sentence:
'You stole my story', the man on the doorstep said.
Closing Sentence:
And to tend their gardens.
Favourite Quote(s):
"It was good to have those make-believe worlds to fall back on when the real one had hurt you"