Rating: 
Summary: A Definite Page Turner
Review: This book flowed so smoothly I couldn't put it down. Every spare moment I had I was reading this book. I finished it in two days (including working and going to school full-time). I really enjoyed reading of Ellen's life at red rose and the oddities that occured there. It was interesting to read her perspective on things that went on over 80 years ago. She was a fascinating women. My only disappointment was that the diary had ended.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I had been drawn to this book by the unique concept of presentation. It is unusual to find fiction written in a diary form. After purchasing the book and reading it, I was very disappointed that while the concept was original, the content was very limited. The beginning of the book offered an interesting insight into Ellen and her impressions of her new husband, new maid and travels around the world. However in several points I felt that the author was trying to provide fodder for future occurances rather than observing day-to-day life that would be found in a normal diary. Later the book suddenly dropped its attention to detail for daily events and began to simply dump information with no details or insights. I got the impression that the author had promised his publisher 250 pages and when he approached that length he simply lost interest in the project. I was disappointed in the lack of any background information about Joyce's absent mentor, Max Burnstheim. I was also disappointed in the lack of information in both the book and web site on the relationship of Ellen's descendents and the house. The web site goes so far as to list Ellen and John Rimbauer, their children Adam and April and then skips to Ellen's great-grandson Steve. I guess Steve hatched from an egg as he had no parents listed in the family tree. Over all I thought the book was done strictly for commercial value with little or no attention to the literary value that can be accomplished by creating rich characters and relationships. I think that had the author spent more time trying to develop his characters instead of his story line the book would have been much more enjoyable.
Rating: 
Summary: Captivating Read
Review: I'm sorry I didn't discover this book before I saw the movie, Rose Red. It might have made the movie more interesting. As it was, Rose Red the movie seemed scattered and silly to me, with extremely unlikable characters. This book would probably have made for better TV viewing. It gives a very clear (if at times racy) picture of the life of a woman in the early 1900's. Ellen Rimbauer's personality comes through on each page. She is a very interesting character. This is a fast and captivating read.
Rating:
Summary: To the person from Balitmore, MD
Review: I thought you would like to know that the house that Stephen King based, "The Diary Of Ellen Rimbauer" on is not located in Washington. The news following "Rose Red" only showed where they filmed the mini-series. The house that the book is based on is also known as "The Winchester Mystery House" in San Jose, California. The story is based on Sarah Winchester heir to the Winchester Rifle fortune. It is a very interesting story and worth researching.
Rating:
Summary: wonderful book
Review: This was a really well written book, but I knew it was fiction when I bought the book,after all it does say fiction on the back cover. It was hard to put down after you started reading, as for scary it wasn't, and I didn't expect it to be so was not disappointed in the book. As for who wrote it-who cares? It was still worth the money, and it everyone will have their own opinion on this forever and we may never find out who wrote the book. As for the web sites listed in the book, I myself never looked them up, so I cannot say what is really on those pages. I recommend this book if you enjoy a good story, the characters are interesting and it does give you more about the people than the movie did, and answers many questions not in the movie about the people themselves. Just remember the story is fiction so if you are reading thinking it is real, then you may be disappointed to find that it is a work of fiction, but is still a well written book.
Rating:
Summary: very interesting
Review: I found this book to be fasinating. I could barely put it down and read it in a span of eight hours. I find it hard to believe that Ellen Rimbauer actually wrote these entries into her journal, they are truely unbelievable. I believe this book has interested me so much that I will search to find any information pertaining to the Rimbauers and Rose Red that I can find.
Rating: 
Summary: don't be silly
Review: I certainly hope some of the above reviewers realize this book was never meant to REALLY be taken seriously. Of course it's not real--isn't Stephen King the actual author?
Rating:
Summary: Stephen King by any other name....
Review: I'm embarrased that it took me 182 pages to realize Stephen King authored it. But I did have to laugh out loud at King writing himself into the book (p. 182). And he references himself on page 190. Good ole' Steve...pulling our leg(s) to the very end.
Rating:
Summary: Definitely SK
Review: I read this prior to watching the miniseries, and this book was SO much better than that pathetic piece of "made for television" (as Johnny's grandmother from "Owen Meany" would say) drivel.
And it is so obviously Stephen King - every page practically screams it.
Rating: 
Summary: Color me "unimpressed".
Review: Fiction? Non-fiction? Definitely the former, but either way, it's not an issue for me. I've always enjoyed that particular marketing ploy; from Orson Well's "War of the Worlds" broadcast to the "Blair Witch" craze, it's an oldie but a goodie. Rather, my complaint is with the book itself -- not only is it not scary, it seems hurried and weak; there are a few interesting bits, but not enough of them. I found the characters to be one-dimensional -- granted, the book is in diary form, but surely these people had other aspects of their personalities that Mrs. Rimbauer would have mentioned. Also, the storyline is only semi-original; the need for constant house construction and fear of "Indian spirits" seem to be lifted from the *true* story of the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, CA. I kept reading on, waiting for something to happen, but in the end, found it anticlimactic. In short, Stephen King's "Black House" (which originally peaked my interest by mentioning "Rose Red") was a much better, much scarier 'haunted house' book. ...
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