Rating: 
Summary: A Rose Madder by any other author would warrant 5 stars
Review: After a very strong start, Rose Madder turns out to be one of Stephen King's weaker novels, with uninspired characters and an ending which is somewhat drawn out and predictable. (A weak novel from Stephen King beats many other authors best works, however I hold King to higher standards.) The conflict between a battered wife and her sociopath husband seems somewhat Dean Koontzish or movieish to me and the characters lack the complexity of a Carrie, Jack Torrance or even the Trashcan Man. The first half of the story contains all its best parts (And the drama and emotion in those chapters are exceptional!) after that it seems unnecessarily long. Delores Claiborne and Gerald's Game share similar themes with Rose Madder, but contain better stories. King's descriptions are more than readable, of course, making the story move along at a nice pace as it draws you in and he even keeps you reading when there's little doubt as to how this book will end. It's not a bad book, just not one of Stephen King's best.
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