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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
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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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
Great work from King, 27 Oct 2006
2006 has been a great year for masters of the supernatural horror genre, but until now the master of them all hasn't put in a worthwhile appearance. Well that's all changed and how!
After a mildly disappointing recent effort by his own standards with this years earlier novel "The Cell" King was being overshadowed by the likes of Scott Smith, James Herbert and Cormac McCarthy. But now he's back to show everyone who exactly who does it best. Lisey's Story has a great many of the attributes a true fan of SK would associate with his work. There's the character Scott Landon who just happens to be an author for starters!
Anyway the story follows Lisey who was the great love of Scott Landon's life before his passing two years before the book begins. Well with Scott six feet under and Lisey all alone and mourning, along comes one of King's truly evil characters in the shape of Jimmy Dooley. Anxious to get his hands on Scott's unpublished works, this man will stop at nothing. King has brought wonderful dialogue, tension, suspense and all of the trademarks from his best work to the table in Lisey's Story. Essentially a fairly uncomplex storyline, the book's strength lies as always in the immense investment the author puts into his characters. Lisey's sister Amanda talking to her in the voice of her dead husband is a delightful intricacy for example. Every single one of the characters (no matter how minor they may seem at first) is multi-layered. Every line of dialogue is carefully fashioned, and every narrative paints a picture the reader can't fail to visualise in their minds eye. There have been many of Stephen King's books of late that have been referred to as a return to form. Personally I don't think he ever really lost it. If every book is a return to form then surely the form was never lost in the first place? The competition might be getting stronger, but no one is quite ready to knock the master from his rightful place atop the mountain of horror and suspense. At 528 pages there is enough here to keep a reader occupied and enthralled for a fair few hours, days or weeks depending on whether you want to rush it or savour it. One thing's for sure though. No matter how long it takes to read, it's worth every penny.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
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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