Desperation

Rating:
Summary: My Review
Review: I think it's safe to say Stephen King hit his prime long, long before this book was released. Next to The Stand, Salem's Lot and The Shining, this book is laughable. However, as long as you aren't expecting another book in the league of his earlier work, you won't be disappointed.

The story is that of young David Carver, an eleven year old who is touched by God. Basically, in exchange for bringing his friend out of a coma, God sends David to an isolated desert town to do battle with the demon Tak. Tak possesses a sheriff at first and takes in different families to keep for his use when his current host dies. Eventually, the families escape the jail and must escape the town before they are found by Tak...

Didn't wanna give anything away, but that's the overview of the plot. I had mainly two problems with this book. The first being that it is very formulated, from the characters to the overall flow of the story. The fiesty girl, The writer, The gifted boy, The ex-alcoholic, the ex-hippie, all King's characters from this book can be summed up in a single stereotype, and that's not good. What's worse is he's already used these stereotypes in the past in other novels. The second problem I had is that the book gets a little too preachy for my tastes at times. I'll go to church if I want to hear a sermon, I read books for entertainment. Overall, this book is nothing groundbreaking or great but functional all the same.

Rating:
Summary: Stay ahead of the mummy. 1 John 4/8 Remember!
Review: Stephen King has always been one of my favorite writers. As far back as I can remember his stories scared me to death, yet I couldn't keep my hands off them. His written words were like a drug that would get deep inside you and never let you go. I was given this book eight years ago and never had the chance to read it until this year and boy did I miss out. I remember reading "The Regulators" and not really getting into the characters, but now after reading "Desperation" I can't wait to sink my eyes into "The Regulators". Stephen King proves that he is the master of his domain with "Desperation". From the opening paragraph, until the chilling conclusion, these 600-some odd pages just flew by with excitement, horror, and tension.

Following a band of seemingly unconnected Americans through the desert of Nevada, we watch as innocent bystanders as they are taken away from their quiet words and whisked into a little private Hell known as Desperation. A mining town that holds more secrets than they are aware and also harbors a demon that these people would never imagine. Armed with nothing except God's ultimate plan, they are lead by the most unlikely of heroes, a young boy named David and a drunk author named Johnny. Together they forge further than their bodies ever expected to fight an unbeatable demon named Tak. Their world will never be the same...

I think what I enjoyed most about this book was the religious undertones. It is a heavy character in this story. While most will think of it as the "hero" of the story, I thought that the idea of "cruelty" was done very well. The message that God needs to do a deed (that you may not like) to prove another point to you was an interesting concept. The idea that there is no such thing as randomness, but instead a master plan created by God to fight his battles. I am not a religious person, but when it told in an original way in a story, it compels me to read more. One of my favorite parts of this book is when David sees his "God" for the first time in the Viet Cong treehouse. The sounds, the visuals, and the aura of that scene instilled upon me the truth that King is one of the most imaginative authors out there. While others will argue that his approach to writing is formulaic and repetitive, I would have to disagree. I am not a fan of unoriginality, and to see fresh characters, fresh stories, and new tie-ins to his other stories (see "Tommyknockers" and the "Dark Tower" series), it only makes my smile get bigger.

I would also like to say that this is a deeply driven character story, and when I finished the book I wanted to know more about where these people were headed. I was that deeply into them that I dreamt of more. I wanted to continue to see what their reaction would be after this event and how their lives would ultimately change. I think that is why I am so interested in picking up "The Regulators". I want to see my old friends again. In 600-plus pages, you get to know your characters well (if they are written well) and King has done a superb job. I loved David, I loathed Johnny, I felt nervous around Steve, Mary kept me grounded, Collie freaked me out (so much that I lost sleep one night), Cynthia was mysterious, Ralph was like my own father, and Audrey surprised me. There was just so much that you could sink your teeth into with these guys that once you were planted, you never wanted to leave. King has that nasty habit, and I am glad he didn't drop it for this story.

Overall, this book impressed me. The unique characters, the secluded story helped build a sense of this dreaded town, and the language was such that you could follow these guys without getting lost in excess. I suggest it for all King fans, and for those getting interested in fantasy more and more. This was more than just a horror book, it was nearly 75% percent fantasy, and that you can't beat!

Bravo Mr. King, Bravo!

Grade: ***** out of *****

Rating:
Summary: The good, the bad, the terrifying.
Review: After finishing the Dark Tower series, I decided to go back and re-read some of the other King novels with Tower ties. I remembered reading Desperation and The Regulators back to back when they first came out, and really enjoyed the stories they told. And after recently re-reading Regulators I could, if I squinted, see where it might connect to the Tower...the western setting, the "worlds" overlapping etc. So when I opened Desperation again I couldn't wait to see what clues to the Tower it might hold......really, it doesn't. King's force of evil in Desperation, Tak, references "can toi" a couple times, which is a phrase familiar to readers of the last two Tower books, but that's about it. The story of the people trapped in the town of Desperation is still a fantastic read, and one of King's most gruesome novels (if I thought hard enough I might be able to come up with a scenario scarier than awakening in a dark room full of spiders, snakes, rats and scorpion, but it would be tough) and King keeps the story going at a fast pace that never gets dull. I really like the tie-in with Regulators, and found the character switching from book to book a cool gimmick. But if you are reading Desperation to see where it ties in with Roland and his Ka-Tet, don't bother, pick up Insomnia instead.

Rating:
Summary: I've been Kinged!
Review: the worst thing about this book is that it started out so good. fast-paced, scary and filled with extremely haunting images i was hooked from the very beginning. i actually found my heart beating faster on a number of occasions.

strangers captured and herded together by a psychotic mutating demon possessed cop and the evil army of desert animals that follow his command. scorpions marching around in large groups killing people, spiders spelling out messages on the wall, main characters getting beaten and killed without mercy, piles of dead bodies. man, i was loving this book! i couldn't put it down and then right when king had worked everything up into a frenzy and he was about to push it over the edge into horror masterpiece territory (pg. 324 of the hardback).....he CHOKES and turns this into some kind of christian, god saves the day tomfoolery.

miracles and lots of them. lock in a jail cell? no problem, the boy will shrink and slip through the bars! cell phone dead? no worries, hand it to the boy and suddenly it works! all of the suspense instantly disappeared and from then on whenever anything looked bad just think about god and BAM! a miracle happened! yea, there was still violent scenes but how can you be scared or even nervous when God Almighty Himself is doing all the work for you?

worth the read if you're bored or love god, but overall very disappointing.




Rating:
Summary: My Favorite King Book
Review: I have read many, close to all, of Stephen King's books and agree with most of the world that the man definately has talent upon talent.
With Desperation, as well as The Regulators, I feel King has written something very special.
I read it on a trip home to Nevada, it is set in the desert by the way, and was completely enthralled it. I actually read it straight through.

Rating:
Summary: Picture an ancient God...
Review: ... who can manipulate at will, has all the powers a God would normally carry, but has one tiny drawback: not being able to walk the earth on its own. This is the basic premise of Mr. King's "Desperation", a fantastic book that I couldn't put down, and wanted to pick up again just minutes after I finished it.

These are some of King's most intriguing characters, and I could clearly see everything about the town of Desperation, as well as its unfortunate inhabitants, right inside my head. I did a review earlier for "Gerald's Game" (another great King book), and I stated that, if I can picture everything I'm reading as if it's going through my head like pictures on a movie reel, I know it's a good book. The same applies here.

When you read this, you actually CARE about these characters, you're actually praying ALONG with David and Johnny and Steve and Mary that they get through whatever boondoggle is coming around the corner for them next. If cast right, this would make an outstanding 4 or 5-part TV miniseries. I love the relationship between Steve and Cynthia, and Johnny's smartass attitude and smarmy wit make him one of King's most realistic and believable characters in years.

There's a different version of this book (same characters, different setting, different circumstances) called "The Regulators", also by King, under his pseudonym Richard Bachman, but it doesn't hold a candle to this book. I suggest reading this one first, if not only. Trust me on this one.

All in all, this is another superb King book, one that shouldn't be missed. And by the way, if you ever see a miniature stone animal statue anywhere - gift shop, antique store, etc.- think twice before picking it up or touching it. Just read the story. You'll see why.

Rating:
Summary: Finally
Review: One of the better books he's written in a long time. This book falls more under the style of Classic Stephen King. If you enjoyed his earliest novels, you should enjoy this.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent !
Review: The King is back. After a long hiatus I finally sat down to read a Stephen King novel and decided on this one. Good choice as I loved it !