Home :: Books :: Horror  

Arts & Photography
Audio CDs
Audiocassettes
Biographies & Memoirs
Business & Investing
Children's Books
Christianity
Comics & Graphic Novels
Computers & Internet
Cooking, Food & Wine
Entertainment
Gay & Lesbian
Health, Mind & Body
History
Home & Garden
Horror

Literature & Fiction
Mystery & Thrillers
Nonfiction
Outdoors & Nature
Parenting & Families
Professional & Technical
Reference
Religion & Spirituality
Romance
Science
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Sports
Teens
Travel
Women's Fiction
Nightmares & Dreamscapes

Nightmares & Dreamscapes

List Price: $7.99
Your Price: $7.19
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 4 5 .. 8 >>

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Sub-par at best
Review: I will admit to being totally incapable of understanding Stephen King's fans. It's not that I don't like him. Owning every book the man's ever published should probably be enough evidence to refute that idea. It's just that I don't understand what some of these people think when they decide what it is about Stephen King that they actually like. By any estimation, this collection is easily the worst that Stephen King ever released in his history as a writer, ranking as a failure near the level of 'Salem's Lot.

Perhaps the greatest problem with these stories is that most, if not all of them have been done before. "Dolan's Cadillac" is not just reminiscent of Poe--it is a flagrant, bloated rewrite of "The Cask of Amontillado." What's more, it's an uncredited rewrite in the notes--I'll just assume that he missed that one. Generally, the stories in this book can all be characterized as chronicles of strange events that happen to people for little apparent reason, which can be amusing one or two pieces at a time, but tends to wear quickly.

There are still good stories in this book, however. "My Pretty Pony" manages to capture what King refers to as the "plastic nature of time" very well. "Dedication" is another fine piece of work that probably ought not be missed by any fan of King's writing. Apart from these standouts, however, most of the other pieces in the book could be mixed or traded with little or no impact.

That's not to say that the book is bad--just a shake overdone. Although I will be puzzled until the end of my days with the idea that anybody could be held in suspense by a book, if the other reviews on this site are any indication, this book manages to pull it off for those who are looking for it. The book contains no small number of homages (the only other discernable theme) to other writers as well, which could be entertaining for cross-fans. In other words, if you're looking for more Stephen King that's no worse than the worst novel he'd written to this point, you won't be disappointed.

If you're looking for revelations or groundbreaking work, however, you can easily pass this collection up. King's talent lies with a particular variety of narrative prose--the long nonfiction piece at the end, the mysteries, and the single poem included only go to convincingly prove that point. This novel is not good, and not recommendable, for any transcendant qualities, but rather because it is more of the same. This is, for the most part, Stephen King in his niche. Fans will be satisfied. Newcomers would be advised to try a more solid piece.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent short stories
Review: This is a very, very good collection. It ranges from the macabre to the heartfelt, from the scary to the puzzling.

There is something for everyone here, lovers of non-fiction and baseball will love "Head Down" a great little non-fiction "essay" on Little League. Admittedly, i wasn't very interested in it so skimmed it, but it's an incredibly enjoyable piece of writing, very very well written, and at times touching.

If detective novels are your thing, you'll love "The Doctor's Case" a short story about Holmes and Watson, where it is Watson who cracks the crime, not Holmes.

Then there is the rather strange story, Sorry, Right NUmber, which is not told conventionally, more in the style of a TV script, but it's another very clever story that is very enjoyable.

And you of course then have the typical horror stories, such as Chattery Teeth and The Moving Finger. Then there are more "message" stories, such as My Pretty Pony.

King's variety is remarkable. Every story touches on a different element, but they all have something in common: The fact that they are all immensely enjoyable and well written. Once again, his notes at the end make the book even more special. My personal favourites of this colelction are Chattery Teeth and The House on Maple Street.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good "Old-Fashioned" Shivery Tales, and then some
Review: Nobody tells an old fashioned hair-raiser like King does.
And he tells plenty of them in this fat volume of not-too-short short stories.

For those who like his more "mainstream" stuff, there's a selection of stories included that have less of the supernatural elements. A good read, all around.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Kingster Does It Again! This book is EXCELLENT!
Review: I've been a fan of Stephen K since I was 14, and like I said, these stories are EXCELLENT!!!!! My favorites? Hard to choose, but here are some standouts.
POPSY -- About a kindly old grandpa who happens to be a VAMPIRE.
RAINY SEASON - B-Movie style horror with that classy Stephen K spark that makes it anything BUT B-Grade
THE HOUSE ON MAPLE STREET about a family of young'uns who plan to do away with their Stepfather from Hell
SORRY RIGHT NUMBER - A television play about a woman who gets a very strange phone call
CHATTERY TEETH - About a novelty toy that's not as innocent as it looks.
YOU KNOW THEY HAVE A HELL OF A BAND - I think I may like this one best of all. Clark and Mary are married sweethearts who stumble into a town populated with and run by departed rock stars!!!! COOL beans!!!! Wish he'd expand this one into a novel or a screenplay. It's rated G for GREAT and X for X-CELLENT!!!!
I wish I could give this book 10 stars! I think I may need a new copy soon. I'm wearing mine out from re-reading it so much!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: A sorry bunch of stories
Review: NIGHT SHIFT was a great read, SKELETON CREW was acceptable, but this collection of short stories is awful! The only exception is Umney's Last Case which is a wonderful story, rather unlike anything else I've ever read. As for the other stories; it's raining frogs? A vampire who urinates blood? Come on!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Bittersweet dreams
Review: This book is a whole lotta fun. As the title aptly hints, the twenty short stories range from horrific to twisted comedy, and everything encompassed therein. The nods to classic horror writers are subtley imbedded within the stories (except for "Crouch End", where the LoveCraft Cthulu mythos is treated to a starkly terrifying modernization).
The inner workings stories such as "Dolan's Cadillac" and "The House of Maple Street" carry a Ray Bradbury 1960's pulp air to them, while stories like "Rainy Season" and "Suffer the Little Children" will just leave you afraid to turn out the light.
The two crown gem stories found in here, "The Moving Finger" and "The 10'o'clock People", are worth the price of the book alone.
Reader's beware, the tongue in the cheek experienced during reading will be replaced by the monster in the closet as soon as the lights go out. 'Nuff said.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: For the love of God
Review: 1846. Egar Allan Poe writes "The cask of Amontillado". In this great story, where a villain is buried in a dungeon by the hero, his last words are "For the love of God, Montresor!"And the hero's reply is "Yes, for the love of God". A century and a half later, Stephen not only steals the idea in the first (and apparently the best) short story in N & D (Dolan's Cadillac) but.. read the end!

"For the love of God! he shrieked. For the love of God Robinson!"
"Yes I said smiling. For the love of God."

Hm - At least he added the word "smiling".

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Tim Curry reading Stephen King....Heaven!!!
Review: Wow - this is a dream - Tim Curry reading a Stephen King book. What a perfect combination! I adore both Mr. Curry and Mr. King. I very rarely listen to audio books unless Mr. Curry reads them, so I read the book version of Nightmares & Dreamscapes first, and as with most of Stephen King's books, thoroughly enjoyed it. I wish Mr. Curry read the entire collection, but alas, the audio book is still wonderful with a diverse selection of readers. Classic Stephen King, with some scary, some hilarious, and some downright terrifying stories...

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Partly boring - partly exciting
Review: This collection of stories has it both: it can be utterly boring, and this is true for most of the stories. But there are also very good stories in it. It is significant, though, that the best piece of writing is not fictitious. It is the report of a Little League baseball season, when the author accompanies his 12-year-old son and his team in the local championships. King shows a great feeling for baseball here, and the story is a must for every genuine fan. On the whole the anthology could be a little bit slimmer.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: That's the way I like it
Review: Ok starting with the super Stephen King(now I know why it is king) a good book with 20 stories like Dollan's Cadillac,The house on the maple street,The end of the whole mess,etc.


<< 1 2 3 4 5 .. 8 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates