A review by hopeloveslit
Misery by Stephen King

5.0

Misery is a masterpiece. It is frightening, disturbing, and addicting. From the beginning, this book sucked me in—consistent page-turner.

I love antagonists (yes, I'm that girl), so Annie's psychotic nature was terrific and exciting (for me.) Her character was terrifying. I am curious to know how Paul Sheldon slept at night. The way she would switch up, the trances she would drift into—literal chills throughout the whole read. Annie Wilkes is a nightmare! 

There's so much I can say about Annie. But I don't want to spoil her evil! I was highly empathetic toward Paul. He is a top-tier protagonist. You want to route for him the whole way. I admired his strength most of all. I loved how King incorporated writing insights since Paul is a novelist. Paul's emotions range from agony to hopelessness and rage. The descriptions of the pain Paul endured are stunning in the darkest way. 

Annie's obsession with Paul's fictional character, "Misery," was relatable. I fall deep into the fictional world. When a character I love dies, I mourn them. That's relatable for most! I felt terrible for Annie (slightly) once she read that Paul "killed" off Misery. 

I love how there was nothing paranormal in this book—just the true frightening nature of the darkest parts of humans.