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Misery by Stephen King (1987)

Misery by Stephen King (1987)

A story of horror, survival, and desperation.


Laura’s Rating: 2/5 Stars


Plot: Author Paul Sheldon awakens in an unfamiliar place to a wave of pain. His legs have been shattered in a car accident and he’s being cared for by Annie - his number one fan. But why is he in her home instead of the hospital? 


Analysis: The concept of this book is interesting and offers a very human type of horror, rather than that of monsters or ghosts. My big complaint is that this book is too long. For a while, I felt like I was also being held captive and wishing for it to end. The broken thought trains and drugged musings made sense for the characters but aren’t fun to read.


Paul sets out to write a novel while recovering at Annie’s. At first, I sort of liked the story within the story as it broke up the monotony. But later, the story just felt like it drew out the book as a whole. It also seemed to become much more abstract as time went on. I was over the bee metaphor immediately and just wanted to keep moving with the main plot. In fact, I didn’t love most of the metaphors in the novel, including the references to Africa and African idols, which felt out of place for a story set in Colorado.


There are one or two scenes in particular of pretty graphic violence, so steer clear if you get squeamish. The body horror is the main thrill so to speak, but the tension in some scenes and the overall sense of hopelessness pay a toll on the reader as well. This isn’t my favorite King novel and although there are elements of horror and suspense, I didn’t think Misery was a great book.


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