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Insomnia

Insomnia

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

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Vintage King
Review: A bit different in plot style from other stories by the Prince of Horror literature, Insomnia is not a book. It is a journey,a long walk. King as usual develops his characters exquisitly.He is a master at slowly revealing the plot ,piece by piece,and the reader doesnt get the full thing until the last ,tiny piece is revealed. King is undisputedly a master,a true genious and this is one of his best books I ve read so far . The only thing I didnt sooooo much enjoy in the book was the catfish scene,though it was perfectly explained and justified.And please readers,when you are reading fantasy,horror,science or any kind of fiction,dont complain for lack of realism in some parts,and by God,dont complain for lack of realism in Kings' books,because the man makes the most extraordinary of things look eerily real.This book s gonna "infect" you with insomnia.You wont sleep until the last page is turned.Thank you Stephen!!!!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Promising start, but ultimately a let down
Review: King wrote Insomnia in the early 90's, when he was still trying to transition away from adolescent-driven horror stories (like Christine, Carrie, and It) and move into more adult fare. This book comes across as a hybrid of the two. King addresses serious issues such as growing old and abortion rights, but the story itself is pulp horror comedy, complete with troll-like demons, magic rings, and evil spirits that can take human and animal shapes.

The characters are well-developed, and the story is fun, especially at first, but it is not good enough to carry its 800 pages. Unlike other King milestones-like The Stand or Dark Tower series-this book becomes tedious and repetitive. In the end, it's about an elderly couple trying to save 2000 people from getting killed by right-wing fanatics who are unwittingly being manipulated by supernatural forces. Even the protagonists don't seem to care too much whether they succeed. For Dark Tower fans, there is also a small event near the end that will affect the story of Roland the Gunslinger.

My recommendation is to skip this one. King has written many other, more entertaining novels.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Insomnia: Twisting the boundaries between dream and reality
Review: Stephen King's novel Insomnia is a "colorful" and gripping tale that has readers wondering what will come next. Ralph Roberts and his lady friend go on slightly lengthy journey into the limits of reality to help save their town of Derry, Maine. During the spell of torturing insomnia, Ralph and his friend must deal with Purpose, life, death, and Random in order to bring sanity back into their crazy lives. Although a little slow in the beginning and end, this story will keep you turning pages and thanking Stephen King for his brilliance.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Fascinating...Imaginative...Insightful Characterization
Review: I read the hardback version 2 years ago, and have just finished the cassette book tape of this fascinating book. I have read almost everything King/Bachman has written, and it never ceases to amaze me how true-to-life his characters are no matter how bizarre the plot. King's descriptions of the elderly Ralph and Lois and the intensity of the feelings in all other characters in the book are part of what draws you into the plot. Some may find it too wordy, but I think that this gives you the feeling that "you are there". Part of my fascination with "Insomnia" is how well King portrays how evil some people can really be with or without the help from the "supernatural". The humanness of his characters in this as well as his other books is what makes his work stand out. I found the constant suspense extremely enjoyable. I've been told that I have nightmares because I read too much Stephen King. Well, I guess I'll always have nightmares then, if that is what it takes to continue to read his novels. I hope his next books will be as interesting and suspenseful as this one.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Classic Story - Not Exactly Horror
Review: I just loved Insomnia! I have read it 3 times, with the last time this past week. Like It and Needful Things this book draws me to it when I have not yet gotten a new book to read. I think people didn't like this book because it went on and on and nothing really considered "Horror" happens. The book has a lot to do with the supernatural though. I feel it challenges you to think more than a book like Salem's Lot. I thought the characters were wonderful. I love the way he makes references to things and people from It. I really feel like Derry is a real place and I know the people that live there. I would recommend this book to anybody who doesn't mind reading the groundwork of a good story. Besides, what kind of Stephen King novel doesn't run on a little bit; isn't that what keeps us coming back?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: not for people who dont want to think
Review: Like several other readers that reviewed this book, I have to say the first time I read it I wasnt overly impressed. I was just bored. But, like any real reader, I just had to give it another shot. I loved it. Strangely enough, the more I read it, the better it gets. I didnt find it overly political, and I sure didnt see it as an attack on Pro-lifers (but I may be biased as a pro-choicer....at least I am fair enough to admit that) I saw it as a very well written book that goes to show that not all the monsters in the closet are supernatural in type. In fact it was the human monsters that made the book scary, the supernatural was a kind of mirror to the real horror going on. Of course, thats my two cents and not everyone who reads it is going to love it. :)

I suggest you borrow it from your library a couple times and if you like it after either of those reads, then buy it cause its worth having in your collection.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Boring but satisfying
Review: I thought that this book was good and bad at the same time. The book was about a guy who couldn't sleep cuz he always sees murders. I liked the fact that he could see murders happen before it takes place. The part I disliked about this was that it did not have enough action parts. It got to be boring at some points because there was too much dialogue. But once you got into the book, it was pretty good.

I wouldn't recommend this book if you don't have enough patience to read through the boring parts. But I would recommend this book if you have patience because there's a lot of action parts that are interesting.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Second time around was much better
Review: This has to be one of King's most misunderstood and underappreciated works. When I first read this in 1994, I was in my early twenties and didn't really connect with the older characters of this book. Now in my thirties, and not being as bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I recently dusted off my hardcover and re-read this.

In my opinion this has to rank among the best King has done. Do not be fooled into thinking there is a lengthy diatribe about the abortion issue. King populates both sides of the argument with good and bad people. If anything, King's message is probably "leave it alone" which I guess can be interpreted that he supports women's choice, but he really doesn't browbeat his opinions through his book (unlike say Dan Brown in The Da Vinci Code).

I do think you have to be of a certain age to connect with the characters. Younger readers may not appreciate all the nuances regarding growing old that King conveys in this book.

More importantly, though, my second reading has made me realize how connected this book is with The Dark Tower series King is finishing this year. This might well be considered an ancillary Dark Tower book, as The Talisman, Black House, The Stand and now 'Salem's Lot (for Father Callahan) are.

Give this book a read. It isn't horror per se, as most of King's books aren't in the strictest definition of the horror genre. It is a well written book populated with characters you will care about for the duration of the book (and after!).

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not his best.
Review: Long, drawn out, and at times plain boring, this ranks as one of the very few King books I've regretted buying. It's not horror, suspence, drama... anything that you would typically look for in a King book can't be found in this, other than a handful of quasi-interesting characters.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: 600 pages of politics
Review: This was King's worst novel to date. I would advise you to read it only if you are interested in 600 pages of shameless political diatribe disguised as fiction. Forget the plot summary on the book's inside cover--this book is one long rant on abortion, and that's it.

If you are pro-life (as I am), you will be particularly offended at King's disgusting portrayal of pro-lifers as homicidal terrorists who will stop at nothing to kill those who disagree with them, as well as his equally disgusting portrayal of pro-choicers as loving, caring, compassionate human beings that are morally disgusted at the thought of murder (as long as the victim isn't a fetus).

Bottom line, read one of King's earlier books, like Salem's Lot or The Shining. At least King knew enough back then to keep his idiotic politics out of his writing.


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