Misery

Rating:
Summary: misery loves company
Review: I haven't read a Stephen King novel in about 15 years, but upon watching the movie adaption of _Misery_ with my husband recently, I remembered how much better I had liked the book (although the movie is good as well; Kathy Bates is amazing). So I decided to pick it up and read it again, to see if I would like it as well now that I am an adult.

In short, I did. Claustrophobia and medical issues top my list of fears, so this novel of being trapped in a crazy ex-nurse's house with broken legs and codeine addiction grabbed me right away. Paul Sheldon is as dependent on Annie Wilkes as he is threatened by her, since as well as administering violent "punishments," she is dispensing the magic capsules that keep his pain at bay. She is the one who pulled him out of his battered car and brought him back from the brink of death: to keep him in her home, her favorite writer, her pet writer. Without her dubious rescue he _would_ have died-- and later wishes he had. But it is when she reads Sheldon's latest (and what was supposed to be the last) _Misery_ novel that her insanity truly reveals itself. He had killed Misery, and she was going to make him bring her back to life in _Misery's Return_, a strange and tortuous novel-within-a-novel.

Some of my favorite descriptions dealt with the writing process (of "finding the hole in the paper"), and also realistic portrayal of the excruciating pain Paul was going through. Upon re-reading, I thought about King's own somewhat-recent accident on a mountain road, when he was struck by a car and his legs were broken. Did he think about _Misery_ then? A captivating and satisfying quick read.

Rating:
Summary: Misery never felt so good
Review: I would like this review to be taken seriously regardless of my age. This book is absolutely superb. A terrifying thriller about how Paul Sheldon, a famous author, is nursed back to health and kept captive by the psychotic nurse, Annie Wilkes who while being his #1 fan also feels the need to punish him as gruesomely as possible whenever he does something she doesn't find to her liking. This book is so wonderfully written. King describes every last detail so everything is crystal clear. I would suggest this book to anyone with the exception of those with weaker stomaches. This book is not for people who cannot stand some violence. It is so frightening you are pretty much forced to turn the pages. It took me little more than one day to finish it. It is made even more scary because of King's technique of taking realistic characters and a realistic plot go more and more sinister as the book goes on so you think "this could really happen." This is a spectacular Stephen King book. I ate it all up and I hope this review encourages more people to do the same.

Rating:
Summary: Bittersweet Misery
Review: Misery couldn't be better, if you know what I mean. This novel is a loosely based purging of Stephen King's thoughts about his fans, and he weaves a novel out of that that is inexplicably excellent. After releasing The Tommyknockers, Stephen King had this book published in 1988 to rave reviews and massive fanfare, and was even made into an Academy Award Winning movie 2 years later(Think about a tight schedule). Stephen King's vivid descriptions of Paul Sheldon's misery and his insane captor Anne Wilkes make this book stand as one of his strongest and happens to be one of his most popular books. Great for people trying to get into Stephen King.

Story:

Our story revolves around writer Paul Sheldon, who like The Shining's Jack Torrance is buried in the harsh Colorado winter. After a brutal Car wreck, Paul is Saved by his Number One Fan, The Former Nurse Anne Wilkes(There's a reason she's a former nurse), who nurses him back to health after he attains some ghastly injuries. As soon as Paul comes back to The Living, he learns that Anne Wilkes is a SERIOUS Fan of his Misery novels, romances of a sort. Paul is mortally afraid of Annie, as he has already figured she's insane, and he prepares for her to crack. And boy, does she ever. She begins by making him burn a novel(Fast Cars, She apparently didn't like it) that he has worked on for the past 2 years, giving him the Choice of either getting his pain to go away or burning his manuscript. Then, upon learning that Paul killed off Misery Chastain in his new novel, she MAKES him write a new one, and the choice is simple:If he writes it, he lives, and if he doesn't, he dies. This is how Stephen King haunts people, folks. But he begins to find solace in his writing and it is the one thing that keeps him from going insane.As Annie's bad mood progresses, she becomes more depressed and demanding, and will do anything to get Paul to obey her. Holding his pain medication and cutting off parts of his body are just 2 of her methods. As Paul uncovers her shocking path he is likewise set on a path to revenge that will end in either his death or Annie's .They're are many road bumps in store for Paul, and he must get over them so his story will be told. The story is impecable and majestic to be saying the least.

Writing:

Stephen Kings prose screams off the page with its dark and twisted humor and terrifying descriptions that make you need to get under a blanket, you're shivering so badly. It's almost as if King lived in the world of Paul Sheldon, because his desriptions of Paul's thoughts and his apprehension at Annie put you directly into his mind. I also like how King had a story within a story(Kind of like The Regulators the Movie screenplay in The Regulators), as we Constant Readers get to read chapters of Paul Sheldon's new special Annie Wilkes novel, Misery's Return. It's kind of cool to read 2 different stories at once, and learning how Sheldon's writing process works.I also love the metaphors this novel has, Like how writing Is Paul's Africa, a place where he can escape to. Also the metaphor of how Annie Wilkes is The Goddess, because of her impenatreble stronghold on Paul. The story never seems to lag or get haggled in boring chapters, as the story is just straight up action through 338 pages. The only thing that sticks out like a thorn to me is that the ending seems to be really rushed, like King was trying to reach a deadline(Like Paul) or he just wanted to get the novel over with. Overall, his writing is not at his peak (Like in The Shining or Needful Things), but its a close second. Great.

Bottom Line, if you're a potential buyer who wants to read a great book or discover a new author, just buy this book and thank me later by saying this review was helpful to you.
The Circle Closes

Rating:
Summary: Misery is King's best
Review: I read MISERY in one sitting in one day. It is very good. We are drawn into the psychotic universe of ex-nurse Annie Wilkes, Stephen King's most monstrous and most human villain. Paul Sheldon has killed off his bestselling star of his bestselling MISERY book series, and has written a non-Misery book that he loves. Then Paul is in a car accident and his legs are crushed, then he's rescued by Annie Wilkes. Annie gets him addicted to pain medication and soon Paul realizes that his is her prisoner. Annie forces Paul to write a new MISERY novel bringing her heroine back from the grave. During this the dangerously insane Annie does horrible things to Paul. She crushes his knees, chops off one of his feet, and other various mental atrocities. Yet Paul needs Annie to survive. Despite her wicked deeds, you almost pity Annie Wilkes and her suffering. The reader in subjected to incredable amounts of suspense, wondering wheter Paul will ever escape his deranged warden. This is one of King's best books ever, the action flows so crisply that the reader feels right on the scene. A darkly comic scene has Annie disposing of a nosy police officer by running over him with a lawnmower. Once you start reading MISERY, you won't be able to stop until you've finished. Astonishing achievement by the master of the macabre, a sick love letter to all his number one fans.

Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly good
Review: I thought that Misery would be a really boring book, becuase the whole story takes place in one setting (think 12 Angry Men) and there are only two characters. Well, Stephen King's writing and insight makes the book interesting. Stephen King is probably the only author who can make a story of a man lying in bed for months on end be interesting. Paul Sheldon, a writer, has a bad accident and his car skitters off the road in a snowstorm. He is saved by Annie Wilkes, who just so happens to be his #1 fan. Annie is not a normal person, however. She is a manic depressant and takes alot of her anger out on the helpless Paul. By the end of the book, Paul's body is nearly mutilated by Annies horrific acts of violence. It's a pretty gruesome book at times, but overall it's a good read at about 350 pages.

Rating:
Summary: Stephen King's MISERY---One of his Best!
Review: MISERY is one of those novels that made me want to hug myself in enjoyment. With its cleverly ingenious humor that somehow mixes so well with its occasionally gruesome violence, this is a novel that made me wish I had written myself! I bought and read this book 12 years ago, and have recently unearthed it from a box that had been stored in my garage since I moved into my new home three years ago. This brought back some great memories, and I'd like to share them with you.

Narrated in first-person by Paul Sheldon, a famous writer of cheesy romance novels (starring a heroine named Misery Chastain) who crashes his car in the middle of the snowiest winter in the middle of Colorado and is rescued by local nurse Annie Wilkes, who happens to be, as she immediately lets him know as soon as he comes to, his "Number One Fan." She also happens to be, as he soon finds out, obsessed and dangerously crazy. Her care of him soon becomes a prison, one from which he knows he must escape, someway and somehow. It will prove to be difficult, as he is bedridden with two badly broken legs. When crazy Annie reads Paul's latest installment of the Misery series and finds out, to her horror, that he killed off her beloved heroine, all hell breaks loose. When she finds out that he did this to finally exit the romance-novel arena, and was working on a more street-savvy book starring a troubled teenage boy, she makes him start on a book entitled "Misery's Return." As distasteful as this is to him, he is not in a position to argue his way out of it, knowing that Annie holds all the cards and has him completely at her mercy. After all, it's hard to argue with a big, strong woman who carries an axe, and who, by the way, saved your life.

MISERY is a taut thriller that understands its two main characters, the introverted and reserved Paul Sheldon and yes, even Annie Wilkes in all her irrationality. King loves her even as he simultaneously (and hilariously) makes fun of her quirky speech, which he dubs "the Annie Wilkes Lexicon." MISERY is a real page-turner (I read the entire 250-page book in one day) that is full of suspense and dark humor. I love it in all its ooginess, and if you haven't read it yet, then you'd just better do it now, you dirty bird!

MOST RECOMMENDED; AGES 17 & UP

Rating:
Summary: Misery
Review: Award winning author, Stephen King, stuns his audience of readers with yet another magnificent display if imagination in his novel Misery. Stephen King had his book published in 1988 and it was, 2 years later, made into an Academy Award Winning movie. Stephen King's stunning and vivid descriptions of Paul Sheldon's 'misery' and his psychotic captor, Anne Wilkes, make this book one of his most popular.

The novel begins as Paul Sheldon, a best selling novelist, is involved in a terrible car accident, which leaves him very badly injured. His smashed up car is discovered by a woman by the name of Annie Wilkes. As Sheldon awakes from his unconscious state, he finds himself in the small guest bedroom of Wilkes's house with his legs shattered and badly splinted. He quickly becomes aware that his new caretaker is more than just his "number one fan" but is also a mentally disturbed woman who seeks to keep him prisoner in her home.

Stephen King wrote this novel to grip his audience and throw them into a life different from that of which they live and hand them the experience of being trapped with a person of an unstable mind. His dark and cruel humor leaps off the pages in his horrifying descriptions that can almost be felt. Through his vivid descriptions of Sheldon's mind and disquiet towards Annie, it seems almost as though he himself were experiencing them. Also, unlike many books that I have read, the setting is told descriptively so to create a detailed picture in your mind, but is also not so descriptive and boring as to "put you to sleep".

King's style never ceases to amaze his readers, especially when he combines two stories into one. In the novel, Paul is made to write a new episode in his books, just for Annie, which brings back to life the main character of his series. As Paul begins his new novel, the reader is able to read along as Annie would. King intertwines Paul's novel chapter by chapter while maintaining the original story about Paul and his captor.

Another of the novels major attributes is the tone. The tone is one of suspense and makes it very easy to keep reading. King also incorporates flashbacks and memories from Sheldon's childhood into his thoughts or ideas in the form of metaphors, such as the tide of the ocean covering a "rock piling". This signifies the medication that he is taking washing over and covering the pain that he suffers. This form keeps the book interesting and ties it together, bringing in ideas or thoughts that were originally brought up at the beginning.

Although the ending seemed rather rushed, as though King was trying to finish the book quickly to reach a deadline, Misery is by far one of his best. His brilliant writing brings the characters to life before your eyes making reading the book an experience worth remembering.

Rating:
Summary: Misery
Review: In the book Misery there is a lady who has a depression disorder. She is a retired nurse. She got into a lot of trouble with the law. She would go around the hospitals and kill older people and newborn babies. In the beginning of this book Annie finds Paul Sheldon's car on the side of the road in Sidewinder Colorado, on her way home. Paul Sheldon is a famous author. She takes him to her house where she holds him hostage for several months.

As Paul wakes up from being in a coma for several weeks, Annie tells him about the wreck he had and she explains how his legs are broken in many different spots. Before Paul had the wreck he had wrote another book to the series of the Misery books he had killed of the main character. Annie told him that he had to bring her back to life. Annie threatens Paul several times through out the book. After Annie finds out that Paul got out of the bed room she chops his foot off with an axe.

This book was pretty gruesome but I really enjoyed it.

Rating:
Summary: A great thrill ride
Review: Stepehen King had a way of making us terrified whether he is writing a horror story, a thriller, or even a love story. And MISERY is no exception. When writing this book, King took a break from the blood and guts of his horror novels and gave us a thriller. A thriller that made me as nervous as some of his freakiest to date.
At least once in every persons life, we wonder what it would be like to be trapped. Held prisoner by someone else, and not able to do anything about it. This is a terrifying nightmare that King brings to us with this book.
Annie Wilkes is as psycho as they come. A deranged murderous ex-nurse living deep in the mountains of Colorodo. When her favorite author crashes his car near her home on his way to get his manuscript reviewed, She finds his crippled body barely alive and takes him home. The terror begins.
At first you want to believe that Annie is a good person, helping a crash victim back to health. But why did she not call 9-1-1? Why was Paul still in her home when he awoke, two weeks later?
As the story progresses Paul Sheldon is put to the test. A test that will find how mentally stable a perfectly normal person can be after having body parts amputated with an ax, having to drink dishsoap water, and getting beaten physically and mentally.
Again, although this is a change in pace for King, he still hits his mark. I was purly terrified and as nervous as Paul Sheldon every time King entered Annie into the story again.
Another perfect story by Stephen King.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: This is Stephen King's complaint book. It basically whines about the pains of being an author, which is quite apparent if you see through the horror story of Annie Wilkes, the maternal yet homocidal woman whose originalized and specific insanity makes the book unforgettably haunting.

But I love it.

It's one of his best and there's nothing like it. If you're an aspiring writer like I am, don't take the whining too seriously. But at least you'll get a bigger picture of the bad points about being an author.

This is a fantastic read and I recommend it to everyone. Except, don't take it too seriously. It's not his most serious novel... it's short and he wrote it in a short time. Also, the plot is simple and its meaning is easily seen. Not that it's not disturbing; it is.