moonlitemuseum 's review for:

The Gunslinger by Stephen King

1.5

dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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This book was incredible at putting me to sleep. I would turn on the audiobook (which is beautifully narrated by George Guidall) and let the blandness seep into my body like warm water. There is a lot of indescribably stupid and callous edgelord garbage in this book, which I enjoy on occasion, but it never feels anchored in anything that matters. Roland is a cipher. The women in the book, when they do appear, are there to have sex with or be bible-thumping harlots subject to sexual violence. Jake, probably one of the world's first Isekai protagonists, is a delight—King's strength is in the modern day, with modern things and modern landmarks—but even he feels curiously flat when Roland is using him as an emotional tether.

I really love King books, for the record, and I so want to like this book. His sprawling fantasy. And I do plan on reading the next one. But boy, this was rough. I just finished it and I barely remember anything about it. (I am going to request it from the library again though. Fantastic sleep aid!)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Rape, Sexual violence, Abortion, Pregnancy

Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Gun violence, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Vomit, Car accident, Murder

Minor: Fatphobia

Whatever the hell is going on with that woman who is given a thing she is not allowed to ask about, with the knowledge that she will have to ask about it. No neat content warning for that, but it was weird and unpleasant.