Rose Madder

Rating:
Summary: Awful
Review: A good idea ruined by Stephen King-stupidness. In my opinion, the last good novel this guy wrote was Misery. Since trying to stay awake through Insomnia and loathing Regulators, I've decided to give the rest of his novels 100 pages before I decide to trash it or stay with it. Life is just too short to waste time when there are so many far superior authors out there. If I didn't keep getting these Stephen Kings as gifts I probably wouldn't bother at all. On to the review: I have to admit, by page 80 I was very hooked. Everything went along quite nicely until around page 300, when the patented Stephen King-stupidness kicked in. You know what I mean: the villian starts spewing that gawd-awful baby-talk...."Anna-Anna-bo-Banna, banna-fanna-fo-Fanna". Give me a break. When is King going to grow up with his readers? He's writing for 16 year-olds. I've lost all desire to read any more King.

Rating:
Summary: An uneven, yet definitely admirable attempt!
Review: First off, dear reader, we all need to learn that Stephen King is not God. He is an immensely talented man, probably the best contemporary author of mass market books (in my opinion). But he is human, and stumbles every now and then. Even when he stumbles, I still cannot put him down, as was the case with Rose Madder. I don't have any problem with the general theme of the book, indeed, it's very satisfying. Norman is King's most monstrous human villain since Annie Wilkes. (Try not to be at the edge of your seat as he slowly moves in on his wife.) No, it's not really the story I have a problem with, even though I felt that this time, the supernatural elements could have been left out and a more satisfying ending would have been for Rose herself to afce Norman down, instead of some bizarre, unexplained mystery woman who looks like Rose, but isn't. (King has this habit of late of not really telling us who the supernatural characters are...and we end up on the last page asking, "What was that all about?" See Storm of the Century to learn more on that.) No, my only real problem is that King is so so careful not to upset readers that he makes a few missteps in the battered women storyline. First off, kudos to him for even approaching this topic. The first 5 pages of the book are among the most terrifying he's ever written. Yet, he has Rose spend a month in a woman's shelter after 14 years of severe abuse by an evil man, and after that, she can fall into a relationship with anothe rman just like that! I think it would have been more interesting, and built up Rose more as a character had she not fallen in love and made it truly on her own. (Considering Rose's new love interest is the anti-Norman, that is, one of King's dullest characters ever conceived.) King also seems to take pains to show us that battered women don't hate men (this can be true) and amazingly, not one of the women in this book is a lesbian, indeed, he bends over backward to stress that point. (Yet, when they hold a fundraiser later in the book, who is the headlining act? None other than The Indigo Girls!)That said, I think that by trying too carefully to avoid any such issue, the story feels flawed. Indeed, Rose seeking other women for comfort and love seems a more natural conclusion than the tacked on love interest who makes me yawn just by thinking about him. This should not hamper ones enjoyment of the novel (and it's a thrillride) but nor should it be taken as how women in shelters all are (so desperate to prove that they STILL LIKE MEN!) All this, and a strange coda that seems to have been borrowed from "The Lord of the Rings." You half expect to hear Rose start hissing, "My preciousssssss" when she has her ex-husbands ring. Despite all this, it was a Stephen King novel, and while I am pickier than most, a mediocre King novel is sure a heck of a lot more pleasurable than most of the books out there. I think this book actually needs a sequel...I want to see more of Rose's strange painting world.

Rating:
Summary: Surprising!
Review: I thought the book was very surprising. Who knew King would write a book revolving around women

Rating:
Summary: Icky ze boll
Review: Rose Madder starts out interesting, incredibly well-written and frightening. A little over halfway though the book, certain phrases are themes become painfully repetitive. What made the book interesting initially, it's feeling of reality, is lost in a long slew of fantasy babble. I found myself skipping entire pages out of boredom. It causes the ending to be terribly unsatisfying. On the other hand, watching Norman (the wife-beating villan) turn into Mr. Garrison from "South Park" was rather amusing.

Rating:
Summary: A bone shivering thriller!King at his best!
Review: This book is brutally scary and a connection can be made with the real world.An ultimate stay up late page turner.

Rating:
Summary: From the ridiculous to the Sublime
Review: I have read many SK books - from early stuff to latest - and they have been pretty good. Unfortunately, RM is a disappointment. Plot and characters start off well enough, but it eventually degenerates into psychological twaddle once the painting is purchased. Sorry SK - could do better!

Rating:
Summary: If you like King, you will like it.
Review: Though he has done better, I believe he has done much worse. I think Rosie's out and out fear of Norman is very realistic, however this should not be viewed as a guide for abused women. In real life their is no magical window/painting to help them escape their "Norman". I liked the book overall though.

Rating:
Summary: Different from Kings normal stuff but great
Review: Some people hate this book, some people love it. I myself loved the book. It kept me turning the page from beginning to end.

Rating:
Summary: This has to be the worst book I ever read
Review: It's been awhile since I read this book so my memory of what I disliked so strongly about it has faded, but I remember struggling to finish it, and really having to force myself to read it. I couldn't identify with the main character, and after awhile I didn't want to in the slightest. The painting was terribly out of place and when I reached that part I thought to myself, "Whaaaat? Did King get a little too close to the white out?" It didn't work at all for me. Spend your money on a more worthwhile purchase like The Long Walk, The Regulators, or Desperation.

Rating:
Summary: GRIPPING LATE NIGHT PAGE-TURNER
Review: This is very complex and thought out! It'll keep you on the edge of your seat until the last page. Although, in some parts it's a bit too sci-fi.