This was a fun read. Nothing special but a great one to read in between other books as it’s so small. It would make a great Winter read as there’s lotThis was a fun read. Nothing special but a great one to read in between other books as it’s so small. It would make a great Winter read as there’s lots of snowy vibes in here....more
I consider myself a constant reader, and every time I pick up a Stephen King book there's a feeling of 'coming home' and nostalgia that acc4.5 stars.
I consider myself a constant reader, and every time I pick up a Stephen King book there's a feeling of 'coming home' and nostalgia that accompanies my reading. With this being said, I enjoy all Stephen King books for the simple fact that I enjoy his writing style so it did not surprise me that I enjoyed Later. What did surprise me though, was the weird twist at the end. I'm still reflecting on whether this was done for the simple fact of adding in a twist or some shock value. For whatever reason it was done, it did not feel needed (in my humble opinion).
Later tells the story of young Jamie, who possesses the shine. He sees dead people, and these experiences as you could imagine are not always positive ones. Jamie lives with his mother and she is pretty accepting of his gift, although there is fear on her part as well. Jamie gets unintentionally drawn into a crime investigation with his mother's best friend who is a detective and sees how Jamie's gift could help. What follows is a fast paced ride and Jamie getting himself into some sticky situations.
I always love the way King writes his younger characters, he is able to create a sense of boyhood and the nostalgia that I love with all good coming of age novels. King is gifted at doing this, as I am sure many of us would agree. King really brings that magic to Later. I loved this aspect the most.
As King ages, I see threads of exploration of his own mortality woven throughout his novels. In Later I could definitely see and feel this. With this in mind, Later has a very different feel to IT for example. And this has to be expected. He is older, wiser and death probably carries a different weight now than what it did then.
I was thoroughly enjoying the novel until that final twist. I'm not angry at you King but I'm still asking why. It felt odd and out of place.
Later hasn't popped itself up into my top ten King novels but overall it was a fun ride. I will continue buying all of King's novels as long as he keeps writing them. And I will continue to be forgiving for the simple fact that he wrote them. But still, that ending. ...more
“Love is a uniquely portable magic. I don’t believe it’s in the stars, but I do believe that blood calls to blood and mind calls to mind and heart to “Love is a uniquely portable magic. I don’t believe it’s in the stars, but I do believe that blood calls to blood and mind calls to mind and heart to heart.”
In 11.22.63 we first meet Jake Epping who time travels back through a portal with the goal of trying to stop the assassination of John F Kennedy. Inadvertently he also meets the love of his life, Sadie Dunhill.
After reading this I do not think there can be any debate that King is more than a horror author. He has proven himself here without a shadow of a doubt.
I am left feeling a little bit more human after reading this one, and I’m not going to lie, a little bit heartbroken too. I found this a fascinating insight into a period of history I knew hardly anything about and found myself researching the assassination whilst reading it. It was also interesting to ponder the idea of time travel and the butterfly effect. Can we ever really change the past? Does it even want to be changed?
I grew rather attached of Jake and Sadie, and they have cemented themselves firmly now in my collection of favourite King characters. Their human-ness is what got me. Their messy, unapologetic, real human-ness. They felt real and I wasn’t ready to leave them.
There is so much beauty in this story - both joy and pain and I love the way King developed Jake and Sadie. I enjoyed seeing their relationship develop over time and it’s one of my favourite relationships in his books to date. Also can we talk about how fun it is that Jake met Beverley and Richie when he went back in time?!!
King’s writing is beautiful in this one, I think this is one of his best. The ending in this book is beautiful and bittersweet. One of my favourite King endings. I’m left with a hangover and a yearning for times gone by. Root beer anyone?...more
I am so disappointed in myself that it has taken me this many years to read Salem’s Lot! I feel like it’s really underrated!
I really enjoyed this sloI am so disappointed in myself that it has taken me this many years to read Salem’s Lot! I feel like it’s really underrated!
I really enjoyed this slow burning, creepy novel and found King’s descriptions of nature in this one particularly beautiful. The gorgeous imagery of autumn would make it a perfect seasonal read. There were so many quotes I highlighted from this book.
Jerusalem’s Lot is aka the Lot already possesses darkness before becoming infested with vampires and I enjoyed seeing the creepiness unfold as the residents of the Lot succumb to the evil that takes over their town.
Character wise I wasn’t so fussed on Susan, she didn’t seem to serve much purpose or have much to stand for on her own. Ben and Mark I really enjoyed, particularly Mark and his pivotal role in the story which I won’t go into as there would be spoilers.
Creepy town, vampires and gorgeous imagery.. what more could you want? Perfection. ...more
“People think first love is sweet, and never sweeter than when that first bond snaps.. yet that first broken heart is the most painful, the slowest to“People think first love is sweet, and never sweeter than when that first bond snaps.. yet that first broken heart is the most painful, the slowest to mend, and leaves the most visible scar. What’s so sweet about that?” ...more
“It came to him, with the force of a revelation, that you had to have been imprisoned to fully understand what freedom was.”
This was overall a really “It came to him, with the force of a revelation, that you had to have been imprisoned to fully understand what freedom was.”
This was overall a really enjoyable read for me. It even left me with a little emotional hangover after.
The Institute is based around, you guessed it, an institute where gifted children are kidnapped and taken to for cruel testing and experiments where they will be prepped for reasons not made known to them.
I enjoy when King writes about kids and this was no exception. It’s a slow burner but this is part of the magic I feel that King is known for. He slowly develops the characters and relationships, making them seem that much more believable and slowly pulling your heart in. I won’t spoil anything but one character’s outcome was particularly heart wrenching and I even shed a tear. I seem to be more emotionally invested in King’s books about children. Perhaps because they’re more vulnerable? I wanted to see them win here. I wanted to see them triumph against evil.
The ending was somewhat predictable but didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book. No scary or creepy moments for me and I think someone who is new to King would probably enjoy this one.
I wouldn’t say that in the Institute I have found a new favourite book or characters of King’s but it was certainly an enjoyable and easy read for me....more
“Late last night and the night before, Tommyknockers, Tommyknockers, knocking at the door.”
It was a wild ride and a lot of fun. Messy, crazy fun but fun“Late last night and the night before, Tommyknockers, Tommyknockers, knocking at the door.”
It was a wild ride and a lot of fun. Messy, crazy fun but fun nonetheless! I know this book gets a lot of criticism but I think if you can accept the book for what it is it can be a lot of fun.
There’s loads of characters and I’ll be honest, I lost track of a few of them along the way but there is a good story in here and some genuinely creepy moments such as what actually in the shed ...more
Bianca Rose (Belladonnabooks)
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