Rating: 
Summary: A leisurely stroll...
Review: The Talisman is one of those books I read again and again. In fact, I've bought several hardback copies as one after the other wore out from being dragged to the beach or on vacation. So, you can imagine how delighted I was when I saw a sequel was coming out. I saved reading the hardback until I had a long weekend, savoring the anticipation. And I must say that I did enjoy the book. And yet, and yet... To enjoy this book you must have patience. Be ready for a leisurely stroll. I think the fact that I read the Talisman first means that I was more patient with Black House because I knew something good was coming and I didn't mind looking out the window and enjoying the scenery on the way. If you can enjoy the character development and description without being irritated that the plot doesn't move along very quickly, I think you will like this book. Straub and King are a great team, and the characters in this book are among the most vivid and well drawn of any I've read.
Rating: 
Summary: I Was Horrified!!!
Review: This book with a very scary title really really horrified me. I expected a fantasy book, but instead got lots and lots of scary parts about some psycho fisherman. It was a little on the slow side so I had Keynote read it to me for sleepytime and that worked good except for the bloody bits. Very gruesome and scary scary scary too. An average horror novel if you ask me by two above average writers. Microwavable, yeah!!
Rating:
Summary: FROM BLEAK TO BLACK HOUSE
Review: As with "The Talisman," the forecursor of this mammoth novel, everything but the kitchen sinks seems to be thrown in! After finishing the book, I thought to myself: this is one preposterous, overblown, confusing and inconsequential book. However, after digesting some of the better points, I found out that though is quite a "weird" book, one can't help but enjoy the narrative style of two geniuses of modern horror. As in any King/Straub book, there are moments of sheer brilliance in some of the dialogue, some of the imagery, and some of the humorous things even the bad guys do. This one is also replete with lots of gore and carnage, and most frightening of all, it's focus is on the kidnapping, murder and cannabalizing of small children. If you haven't read "The Talisman", you may find yourself lost in some of the background, regarding the Territories. I read the book a few years back and I still got lost. However, "The Talisman" is too big a book to go back and read. There are times in this book when you want to push King and Straub on to wrap things up a little quicker. And the disappointing lack of resolution to the Marshall family situation is a big faux pas--after spending much of the book with Fred, Judy and Ty, we only know what happens with Ty. And, unbelievably, the authors who serve as the narrators flying around on a crow(?), have a disclaimer that lets you decide if you want a happily everafter ending, or a not so happy one. The choice is yours, they say. Of course, who ISN'T going to finish the entire book? I wasn't too pleased, to say the least, but it obviously leaves room for more tales of Jack and Sophie.
Now, what makes this book really worth the "4" rating is some truly exceptional characters: Henry Leyden, the blind comrade of Jack, is one richly realized character, full of pathos, bathos, humor, wit, intelligence, courage and compassion. It would be like having Anthony Hopkins steal a movie away from Tom Cruise. Leyden is brilliant. Also quite good are the motorcycle gang consisting of "dropouts" from society: intelligent, college educated men, who have a big part in the story and whose bravery, persevarance, and sensitivity are not what one usually expects in a motorcycle ensemble. What happens with Mouse is extremely unfortunate, but well conceived. Other characters well-developed include: Wendell Green, an outright obnoxious news reporter, reminiscent of the evil guard in "The Green Mile"; Chipper Maxton, the deceitful and conceited owner of the Maxton Nursing Home, who certainly gets his come-uppance; Fred Marshall, the father of one of the children who goes from a tough, "together" salesman to an on the brink father, terribly afraid of losing his son; the cops are also fun to read about, even the rather "goofy" one who blows the cover on some important facts when he tells "only his wife." The way this spirals into a community newscast is funny, and so realistic.
Wow...all in all, it is a big, big book....and if you suspend your belief of what is real in this world, then you should have a grand time.
RECOMMENDED FOR KING AND STRAUB FANS AND READERS OF "THE TALISMAN".
Rating: 
Summary: Surprising disappointment
Review: I gave up on King when he stopped writing horror a few years ago, but had to pick this one up. The Talisman was one of the best King (/Straub) books, so it seems that a sequel would be a sure hit. Unfortunately, this is not really a sequel to the Talisman. Its more of a horror/mystery story with some talisman references tacked on to the end. It was a good story, but the whole time I kept thinking how much better it could have been (Imagine Jack, Henry and Beezer on a journey through the territories).
The first 500 pages could have been a lot shorter, leaving more room for what we really want - Jack in the territories again.
I think the high point was the tie-in to the gunslinger series though, wonder how he talked Straub into that?
Rating:
Summary: Good Book, Not For First Time King Readers
Review: I was thoroughly engrossed by almost every part of this book (except for a few minor points I will discuss at the end). At the beginning, I have to say that it was extremely eerie and disturbing to read this book dealing with child kidnapping during a summer in which the media is so focused on this issue. So, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone who isn't ready to read this subject matter. But for people who regularly read Stephen King-like works, I am sure you can handle it. Black House is a sequel to the other book co-written by King and Straub, The Talisman. It is also a step in the process of filling out the "Dark Tower" saga that King has most directly written about in "The Gunslinger" and its 3 sequels. I would warn you against this book if you haven't read either "The Talisman" or the "Dark Tower" saga, but I would guess that you would find this book interesting if you have read one but not the other. With all these disclaimers, let me say that this book is mainly about the kidnapping of a child and a little American town's reaction to the kidnapping (and previous ones by the same serial kidnapper/murderer). King and Straub paint a very accurate picture of a town about to descend into chaos over these terrible events--a town worried about who is in its midst, about to unfairly cast blame and about to do violence. The town's reaction is very understandable, but quite chilling. Jack Sawyer, the hero of The Talisman, comes in to save the town. Sawyer is now an adult of 31 years and has taken early retirement from his job as a Los Angeles policeman. He has retired to the town but is coaxed out of retirement. Jack enters the scene much like a hero gunslinger in Wild West movies (or in the "Dark Tower" series). He is joined for much of the tale by Henry Leyden, one of the more remarkable adult characters King has created (I am not familiar with Straub's other works). Henry sort of acts partly as one of those blind prophets from Greek tragedies and partly as a kind and gentle soul amongst all the horrors. The book actually spends very little time in the Territories, an alternate world in which so much of "The Talisman" took place. As a result, there is also much less explicit action than in "The Talisman," where Jack is chased repeatedly by the bad guys. But the wonderfulness of the Territories is central to the book as is the terribleness that also lurks there and in other worlds besides. Finally, I want to discuss my minor quibbles. First, Jack spends a lot of time not remembering his previous time in the Territories and not wanting to get involved in the case. This seems artificial to me. For one thing, there is no reason for King and Straub to resort to amnesia to create suspense, they are good at suspense without such a device. For another thing, everyone knows Jack will overcome his amnesia and get involved. And, my last quibble: Why would such a good person like Jack not help out an overburdened police department to stop a child kidnapper? It seems totally unlike him. All of these quibbles are minor. This is a very good book if you have read "The Talisman" and the "Dark Tower" series. I believe you will also like it if you have read one but not the other.
Rating:
Summary: I almost
Review: gave this book only one star. I was sooo disappointed. Stephen King and Peter Straub have both been favorites of mine for a very long time. They are excellent writers and I typically devour their books in no time at all. This one took me nearly two weeks to get through. Much of that time was spent thinking about all of the other things that I would rather be reading. If it had been any other author(s), I would have gone dumped the book 1/4 of the way through and gone on to something more enjoyable. Because it was Stephen King and Peter Straub, I stayed the course, hoping desperately that it was going to get better. It didn't. Whereas The Talisman takes place almost entirely in The Territories (a wonderful fantasy world created by the authors), Black House spends only a tiny bit of space on The Territories. Therein, I feel, lies one of the largest disappointments in this book. The Territories are amazing and interesting, one of the best parts of The Talisman and should have been carried over into it's sequel. The primary bad guy, Burny, appears so relatively little in this book that I couldn't even muster up the care to hate him. Our hero, Jack, is much less interesting as an adult than he was as a child. The book was riddled with references to Stephen King's other books and movies. Especially heavy, was the tie ins made to Stephen King's Dark Tower series (I admit, I'm not a fan of the Dark Tower). In fact, Black House ends as if the whole book were just a chapter in the Dark Tower series. Another problem that I had with this book was the writing style. It was very heavy on narrative, which at times became downright boggy. One of the most obnoxious aspects of the book was the narrator. The narrator was given an active, almost sports commentator-like, voice. We're rising away from this, descending onto that...Uck! How annoying and distracting. The only reason that I gave the book two stars instead of one, is that there is to be found in the book some interesting characters. Henry Leyden, local blind guy and radio DJ is a wonderful and original character who lives on high sensory perception. I would have loved to have seen him taken to The Territories. I'm sure his response to the sensory input would have been unique. Perhaps he even would have gotten his sight back and we might have enjoyed him seeing things for the first time. The Thunder Five are also full of amusements. A gang of five beer swiling, belly sagging, bikers who also happen to be college educated and more or less drug free always makes for interesting character dialogue. Go ahead, read the book. But I wouldn't spend any real money on it. Luckily for me, I got my copy cheap through a book club.
Rating: 
Summary: disappointing
Review: I really loved the Talisman. I think it was one of the better books Stephen King has written. This was such a disappointing sequal I don't care if I read another book or short story by SK or Straub. The writing is good as usual but the story drags on for hundreds of pages until a feeble plot emerges and the writers, it seems just wanted to end the story in a hurry. Do yourself a favor and go read a cookbook it will be more entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: Not perfect, but very readable
Review: Four stars because by writing the sequel to the Talisman Straub/King hold themselves up to some very high standards. And so as not to keep you in suspense, let me summarize-- this is not up to the standards of the Talisman. If you're a fan of the book, you may be disappointed. If you aren't, you might want to give this one a try. _Black House_ reads a little bit more like a "typical" King book (Although the quality of a typical King book is higher than most others in the genre) than the Talisman did. There's more horror, less magic, and a direct tie-ín to the Dark Tower books. This isn't a bad thing, per se, but what I found so striking about the Talisman were its differences. Jack Sawyer is back, and more perfect than ever (one of my major arguments with this book is exactly how perfect Jack turns out to be-- every hero needs a flaw, particularly grown-up heros). He's living in Wisconsin and has forgotten his memories of the painful days in the Territories. He has to accept his past and step up to the plate when a serial killer stalking the area is clearly more (or less) than human. Some points: 1. A great read, you can really chew the prose and the descriptions are lovely-- not too Steinbeck at all by my lights. 2. Character of Henry is wonderful, outshines Jack himself, which is unfortunate given that Jack is the main character. 3. Unconvincing love story centering around Jack. It feels unfocused and unfinished, as though they ran out of pages or creativity when it came time to deal with the Territories part of the story in general. Definitely worth a read, in total.
Rating: 
Summary: Suspenseful Thriller
Review: As the years have gone by, I've been increasingly disappointed with Stephen King's books. While his writing has improved, his creativity has gone, in my opinion, into a long decline. I have to admit that he has been experimenting with his writing, trying some different things, trying to expand into other genres, but unfortunately his experimentation gets inflicted upon us, his fans, as released books. With "Black House", Stephen King and Peter Straub find their way back to the top of the Horror heap. First of all, this book does have graphic moments. If you get queasy at the sight of blood, or reading about blood, and dripping entrails, and children being eaten by someone or something, it's time to move on to another book. I've tried to determine whether Peter and Stephen could have written the book without the graphic detail. I think they could have toned it down somewhat, but, I also think that they were trying as hard as possible to make you realize that that which was responsible for all the events that occurred at French's Landing was truly evil, and could not possibly be suffered to exist in our world. Does the writing focus too much on scenery? Authors' choice. Furthermore, the goal of the authors was to set up how perfectly NORMAL the town was. How perfectly MUNDANE all these people are. These people are almost stereotypes. However, THEY WERE SUPPOSED TO BE! The shock of the animal among us is best if the animal is inflicting himself on normal, quiet suburban families. When Van Helsing goes out to hunt vampires, we expect to see vampires. When you go to the local convenience store, you do not expect to be abducted by someone that's going to eat your liver raw, perhaps while you are still alive. Do you need to know what happened in "The Talisman" to read this book? No. You will want to read "The Talisman" after reading this book. The only contrived part of this book was the references in it to the Gunslinger books and to "Hearts in Atlantis". The references are insider references that will be lost on some people who aren't avid Stephen King readers. The body of the book is an excellent setup for the end of the book, about which I will reveal nothing. Historically I've found many of Stephen King's endings weak. However, not in "Black House". The ending here is superb, very tight, and very appropriate. Enough discussion about the ending. This book was written for the journey, as a long book should be, and not the ending. The enjoyment is in the travel, not the destination. In this case the journey is enjoyable, though the authors manage to build the suspense so slowly and inexorably that you often want to flip to the last chapters and find out what is going on because the pace of story development is almost too slow for those of us used to the instant gratification of movies and video games. And yes, the lack of punctuation was intentional in that sentence. If you like Stephen King, particularly his early work, and if you like Peter Straub, you'll love this book. I have only read a little of Peter Straub, and his writing is okay, but I've read nearly everything Stephen King has written. This book is excellent writing for both. In fact, I really enjoyed "The Talisman", which is a fantasy. I think that both gentlemen should write more books together. Each is a quartet, but together they are a symphony. As always with reviews, there is a point to stop reading the review and start reading the book. Now is that time.... Go buy and good bye.
Rating:
Summary: A surprise
Review: After reading 'the talisman', I immediately started 'Black house'. This book has surprised me in many ways, for it is very different from its companion.
First of all, the writing style is quite different. It bothered me that King/Straub wrote about the position of the reader, describing him as floating in the characther's kitchen for example. I don't need to read that, because when reading a book I try to be inside of the character, instead of floating around it. I could say this writing style created a bit of a distance between me and the book. I didn't like that very much. A second surprise was the fact that little 12 year old Jack of the almost fairy-tale like 'Talisman' has grown up and is living a normal life. This is a big step for the reader. I did like it though.. it was great to read about Jack in 'adult form'. The way King/Straub have developed his character is quite brilliant, not to mention realistic. Thirdly, 'black house' is a lot blacker emotionally than 'the talisman', more scary too. For some people this will be an improvement, for others a disappointment. Anyway, as always King didn't let me down as far as the story and characterbuilding is concerned. I have just finished the book and am hungry for a third one. The references to the dark tower series (more or less one of my top reads so far)were .. perfect. In short: the difference between this book and 'the talisman' is a bit abrupt at first, and I personally prefer 'the talisman', but still 'black house'is certainly a very very good read.
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