Take a photo of a barcode or cover
0hfortheloveofbooks 's review for:
Four Past Midnight
by Stephen King
“Why, what happens to today when it becomes yesterday, what happens to the present when it becomes the past. It waits - dead and empty and deserted. It waits for them.”
Four Past Midnight is King at his best in my opinion. He is a master storyteller and that is so evident in these four novellas. It is easy to become enveloped and lost in his tales.
The Langoliers and Secret Window, Secret Garden were by far my favorites. Each had such rich, real characters (real as in believable, not actual, ahem, John Shooter). The Langoliers was storytelling magic. There was actually nothing I did not like about it. I loved the connections made to The Dark Half in Secret Window, Secret Garden. I realize I am a huge fan of King writing about writing. It always feels so personal.
I was dazzled by the first two novellas and then along comes The Library Policeman. This story was anything but bad but it was just too long. In true King style why say something in a few words when many will do. The length didn't bother me near as much as a particular scene towards the end...I would have dealt with it had the situation been left implied (even when it was just being hinted at, it was understood) but to see it played out was just disconcerting and uncomfortable.
The Sun Dog was a slow burn. There was a lot of build up to finally arrive at the crazy and creepy conclusion. I loved The Sun Dog because it's a Castle Rock story. Unpopular opinion - I love Castle Rock more than Derry. Derry is so synonymous with It that it doesn't lend itself easily to other story lines whereas Castle Rock is definitely not right, there are hundreds of different avenues just waiting to be explored; and don't mind if I do.
Four Past Midnight is King at his best in my opinion. He is a master storyteller and that is so evident in these four novellas. It is easy to become enveloped and lost in his tales.
The Langoliers and Secret Window, Secret Garden were by far my favorites. Each had such rich, real characters (real as in believable, not actual, ahem, John Shooter). The Langoliers was storytelling magic. There was actually nothing I did not like about it. I loved the connections made to The Dark Half in Secret Window, Secret Garden. I realize I am a huge fan of King writing about writing. It always feels so personal.
I was dazzled by the first two novellas and then along comes The Library Policeman. This story was anything but bad but it was just too long. In true King style why say something in a few words when many will do. The length didn't bother me near as much as a particular scene towards the end...I would have dealt with it had the situation been left implied (even when it was just being hinted at, it was understood) but to see it played out was just disconcerting and uncomfortable.
The Sun Dog was a slow burn. There was a lot of build up to finally arrive at the crazy and creepy conclusion. I loved The Sun Dog because it's a Castle Rock story. Unpopular opinion - I love Castle Rock more than Derry. Derry is so synonymous with It that it doesn't lend itself easily to other story lines whereas Castle Rock is definitely not right, there are hundreds of different avenues just waiting to be explored; and don't mind if I do.