Rating: 
Summary: A worthy read.
Review: When I read fiction there is really only one thing that I am truly after, and that is story. Story, story, story... why tell a story if it lacks story? A distant second would be good character development.This story has both. And I love Stephen King's approach to telling a story this time... a group of guys (and a gal) sitting around, shooting the bull, and telling of their experiences with something that looks something like a Buick. Story!! Meanwhile, you gain a deep appreciation and understanding for nearly every character in the book. It made me feel like I was listening to a bunch of guys swap stories around a campfire. Is this Stephen King's best work? Definately not. But that should not stop you from picking up a copy of the book. It is still a fun read, though a little bit slow at times, that builds up to a satisfying ending. If I were to find a complaint about this book, it would be Stephen King's choice in constantly shifting viewpoint characters. I guess this was the ideal way to tell this story, but I felt the transition between viewpoints weren't done very well. Especially since they all sounded like Stephen King!! Maybe that was my disappointment, the viewpoints and backgrounds all changed (and even genders) but they all sounded the same. I also think one of the strengths of this book is Stephen King's depiction of these small town state troopers. You learn to love them. You learn to appreciate them. You almost get the impression that Stephen King was a trooper all of his life. My hats off to Stephen for such wonderful reality. BRAVO!!
Rating: 
Summary: "Buick" is a lemon
Review: As a voracious reader of King novels, I've come to learn that this master of the modern horror novel (he is!) can be wildly inconsistant. "From a Buick 8" is living proof. As other reviewers here have stated, this is NOT "Christine" revisited -- as if this exonerates its plodding pace and stuptifyingly boring characters. King's most successful novels put everyday people (ones his dear constant readers can connect with) into reality-shattering, deadly situations. But his storytelling prowess and folksy prose usually allow the reader to transcend disbelief and go along for the ride -- feeling the growing menacing that imperials the story's characters. In "Buick 8" we feel no growing menace -- even though King tries mightily to build it. In the end, it's just a weird-looking car locked away in a police garage that occasionally spews out strange lights and even stranger-looking dead creatures. These creatures are apparently disgusting and appalling, and King works hard to convey this feeling, but it was lost on me. I wanted to be fascinated, but it was more like "HUH?" The Buick in question is being stored in a garage at a Pennsylvannia state troopers barracks. Apparently it caused one of the troopers to disappear once, so its remaining caretakers are in constant dread that it could do it again. In fact, as a reader, you pour through the entire book hoping it will indeed suck up one more of these redneck cops into some unseen dimension just to spice things up. I know this is suppose to be a more cerebral work on man's fascination with the unknown, but for me it was a sombulant tribute to state troopers who liked to spend their free time staring through garage windows. Much of the dialog seems self-conscious and forced: unusual for a King novel. I want Stephen King to scare me, jolt me, maybe make me think a little. "Buick 8" made me scared to think that King's seemingly endless well of ideas could be a last running dry. I'm not willing to believe that yet. The man has hit some tough patches in the past ("Cujo," "The Girl Who Love Tom Gordon," etc.) and perhaps this is just another blip on the screen. After all his last few novels have include the elegently frightful "Bag of Bones," and the somewhat bloated, but nonetheless original "Dreamcatcher." He'll be back.
Rating:
Summary: Solid Characters
Review: For those who said this isn't one of King's best works--I agree. He's written better. But I believe King serves his purpose. He has here a terrific father/son character study. There are even elements of a coming of age story here. There isn't much action in the greater portion of the novel, but I believe the suspense and even horror comes from the subtle things. As stated numerous times here, this isn't his best work, but it is still a helluva story.
Rating:
Summary: The twilight of King's career?
Review: Actual rating : 2.5 stars. I discovered King's books when I was 19. I started with his greatest, "The stand", and went on to some of his finest creations. I used to have high regard to the way he poured life into his characters and created solid stories that illuminated many aspects of human nature in the most fascinating way. I still appreciate those books and they stand the test of time. Having read his latest books I can't escape the thought the he may have fallen from grace, or/and I just grew older and what he does no longer attract me as an older person. ============================================================= The beginning of "From a Buick 8" was promising; I sensed the old sparkle that captivated me in my youth and was delighted to go with the flow of King's writing. Alas, after a few tens of pages the story just dragged and I made an effort to finish it - firstly, to see whether there would be an improvement later on, and secondly, to be able to give a report to you, the potential reader. It turned up that the events described continued to be uninspiring. The characters were not special or enthralling to such a degree that it is quite hard now to point a finger on someone that is worth mentioning. To my best understanding and discernment, the fact that King had chosen too ordinary personas to populate his book had a strong effect on the curiosity and appeal the work generated as a whole. Even so, I found some places where the wisdom of King penetrated to the story as used to be the case in his greatest books of the past. The fact that he managed to bring himself to write a number of important anecdotes that made me think for a while - made the book a little more than a regular page turner. These things should have contributed to the advancement and impact of the general plot, functioning as a sidekick to boost the reader's interest, but they did it only to a limited extent. Sadly, I predict that you will forget the story a few hours after reading it. ============================================================= I feel like the current King belongs to my past now. That does not diminish his contribution to my admiration for the art of writing, and I will always remember the significant roll his books played in its development.
Rating: 
Summary: quite boring
Review: i'm a great fan of stephen king & would strongly recommend his 'different seasons' to anyone. But this latest story strikes me as being long-winded and not the least scary. one of my most disappointing stephen king read.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't Let the Negative Reviews Mislead You
Review: I think a lot of readers missed the boat on this one. 'From a Buick 8' is one of the best novels King has written in a long time. If you'll bear with me, I'll tell you why. The story involves the death of a Pennsylvania Trooper named Curt Wilcox. Curt's son Ned is about to finish high school. He takes a job with the police department, mainly to learn all he can about the death of his dad. The cops take him in, show him the ropes, and tell him an out-of-this-world story involving his dad...and what APPEARS to be a Buick Roadster. And as we've come to expect from King...strange things happen.... People who don't like King because of "monsters and gore" should enjoy this book. It's more of a thinking person's book - it's not really flashy and it won't gross you out, but you'll remember the story, the characters, and the atmosphere much more than you would after reading 'Pet Sematary' or 'The Tommyknockers' or even 'It.' What does King do differently in this book? For one thing, his exploration of character has evolved into something far beyond the stuff of most horror novels. Writers who want to know about characters and character motivation could do much worse than to study King. 'From a Buick 8' is not jammed with characters, but there are several and they're all satisfyingly well-drawn. King's use of description and the atmosphere he creates have always been good, but they really serve his purposes here quite well. You almost feel as if you are in Shed B with the Buick when these creepy events happens. King has always been a very visual writer and that gift certainly comes through here. In his best works, King addresses not only our fears, but our hopes and dreams as well. 'From a Buick 8' is part coming of age story, part self-discovery, and part self-examination. The ending? When you get there, you'll understand that it couldn't end any other way. It's different and satisfying. If you haven't read King in a long time, now is the chance to give him another try. Ignore the negative reviews from people who want to see monsters and gore on every page. Judge for yourself. (Just keep an eye out for '57 Buicks, though.)
Rating: 
Summary: curiosity vs. satisfaction
Review: "From a Buick 8" explores the horror that can exist in your imagination. The Pennsylvania State Troopers that house the old Buick in the shed behind the barracks know horrible things surround the old car, but most of them can only imagine what this car is capable of. But through this car, they have learned what fear is all about.
You already have a good idea what this novel is about, so I won't go into the details. The story centers around the people working at the barracks who take turns telling what they know to a young high school boy. The characters are well developed, deep, interesting people. Their personalities are characterized by their reactions to the car out back. The reader gets to know them through each of them talking about the stories surrounding the old Buick.
So, what's good about this book? The character development, the mystery, the potential for horror, the fear it instills, and the curiosity it arouses. The fact that King does not write down his exact vision of the horror lurking within this car is the best part. You must use your imagination to conjure up what you, the reader, think this car may be capable of. Is is the car, acting alone? Or is the car a mechanism an evil empire uses to perform its deeds? You decide. Some may find King's lack of explanation decreases the satisfaction they derive from reading this book. I did not. I enjoyed having my brain tickled into deciding for myself what the Buick was and could do. I think King's enormous popularity has created an interesting situation. Any time one sees his name as the author, immediately they think of their own favorite King book. All others are compared to this, their one favorite. For a true King fan, it's almost like having lots of kids: all are different, each loveable in his own way. Don't sell yourself short by creating expectations about what you read simply because of who wrote it. Take each book and enjoy it for what it can provide. Imagine how boring it would be if all of King's books were exactly like "It" or "The Stand" or whatever else you thought was his best.
OK, off my soapbox, back to the book. Not fast paced, but good enough to hold my interest. Well written, good characters, and enough horror within the Buick to keep your mind going. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: King Classic
Review: Fully enjoyed this title. A little different for King. More story and less freaky weirdness, not that it isn't freaky weird but there's less of it than usual. Fun read. I also recommend Evolution by Jennifer MacDonald. I just finished it and found out it's on sale here for half price.
Rating:
Summary: King needs a road map.
Review: King's recent books have been really poor. In both Dreamcatcher and Buick, Stephen seems to have lost his way. There's just nothing here of interest. I'm still a fan of King, but he is slipping. I can only hope against hope the upcoming Dark Tower books will not be this poor, but I fear King's lost his touch.
Rating:
Summary: Very slow and somewhat boring
Review: Stephen King is a great writer, but this is definitely not one of my favorites. Yes, I've read all his statements about how he likes to write different things, etc. To me, this one was "bad" different as opposed to "good" different. The plot is almost non-existing, and the characters and pretty boring as well. The book was extremely hard to get through. If you liked "Desperation" or "Insomnia" - this is a totally different kind of book. Not a bad book, but not a book I would recommend.
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