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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
One of King's finest?, 16 Oct 2006
At first I had reservations about Lisey's story. Those others of King's books told from a female perspective (Gerald's Game, Dolores Claiborne, Rose Madder) are amongst my least favourite of his novels. Thus, I was prepared to be disappointed - and, initially, I was.
The story is told as two narrative threads - firstly, in the present day, secondly as a series of memories from the heroine of the story - Lisey Landon, wife of the deceased author Scott Landon. Scott Landon who had troubles of his own - many of which seem to mirror King in real life.
Ultimately, however, one starts to care about the characters, and age and near-death has certainly not dulled King's ability to describe the minutiae of life in such absorbing detail. By the end of the story, the characters - and the portrayal of the twenty-five year marriage - between Scott and Lisey seemed real, and the feelings - although not the events - described could mirror any long marriage.
There are also enough references to others of Kings works to keep the hardened fan happy. Deputies Ridgewick and Clutterbuck from Needful Things make appearances, the Territories are never far away, and there's also mention of a little place called Shooters Knob, Tennessee.
If there is a downside - and why I haven't given five stars for this review - it is because there is nothing entirely new here. There are shades of Rose Madder, The Talisman and at least one of the stories in Four Past Midnight... but King, at his literary best, is still the best around. Despite his so-called retirement after his near-fatal accident, King seems as prolific as ever and, with other books apparently in the pipeline, I hope that they are as enjoyable as this.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bool! The End! , 12 April 2007
Those of you who are fans of Stephen King's "fantasy" novels, rather than the horror for which he is traditionally known, are in for a real treat. The language in Lisey's Story is reminiscent of the dreamy, allegorical style used in "Rose Madders", whilst the narrative itself literally takes us to another land, ("Boo'ya Moon").Likewise, the atmosphere of Boo'ya Moon itself seems to echo King's short story "Mrs. Todd's Shortcut", that same sense of other, stranger worlds, just a hair's breadth away...
Other reviewers refer to the "impenetrable" language of the novel. For me, this "secret language" only emphasized a sense of wonder and mystery, of entering new worlds - literally, in the instance of Boo'ya Moon, and metaphorically - the marriage of Lisey and Scott. This story-specific use of language also served another purpose - it contributed to my sense of leaving something behind when I finished reading - that sense of wishing to know more of these people, whose secrets I had been privy to, and whose lives I had touched upon for a moment.
This ability to create a private vocabulary and to use it seamlessly to evoke a sense of intimacy and disclosure, is King's greatest strength. The plot itself contains moments of skilful insight; haunting, sometimes frightening imagery,("...the Long Boy, the thing with the endless piebald side..."), and, tied together with that intricate delicate web of language only King can spin, it becomes probably the best, most memorable book he has ever written - and my own personal favourite.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Just Showing Off Now, 4 Jan 2007
Having been an avid reader of Stephen King for over 2 decades, I always eagerly await each of his books. In my opinion, there have only been a couple of damp squibs, namely "Rose Madder" and "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon". This latest offering, however, ranks right up there. Whilst in itself, it is not a bad story, it could easily have been cut by 2-300 pages. I feel it could have come across better as one of his short(ish) stories. Instead, you get pages of epic prose which contribute little to the effect, and a series of endlessly repeated phrases that only serve to annoy. To be honest, it was a relief to finish the book and you are not left with the usual sense of satisfaction one normally has on finishing a King book. Bring on "Cell 2".
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