Misery - Stephen King
In Misery, as in The Shining, a writer is trapped in an evil house during a Colorado ... more
winter. Each novel bristles with claustrophobia, stinging insects, and the threat of a lethal explosion. Each is about a writer faced with the dominating monster of ...
Misery - Stephen King
In Misery, as in The Shining, a writer is trapped in an evil house during a Colorado ... more
winter. Each novel bristles with claustrophobia, stinging insects, and the threat of a lethal explosion. Each is about a writer faced with the dominating monster of ...
Misery - 0450417395
InMisery, as inThe Shining, a writer is trapped in an evil house during a Colorado ... more
winter. Each novel bristles with claustrophobia, stinging insects, and the threat of a lethal explosion. Each is about a writer faced with the dominating monster of hi...
A review by darkangelwing on Misery - Stephen King February 10th, 2007
Author's product rating:
Would you read it again?
Maybe
Story
Outstanding
Characters
Outstanding
Readability
Good
How does it compare to other works by the same author?
Excellent
Advantages:
A nice gripping and readable novel ; A terrific tale of survival ; Very atmospheric ; The characters thoughts and feelings are projected well to the reader
Disadvantages:
Suddenly stops flowing towards the middle ; King can be slightly over obsequious towards the main character
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
After the arduous ordeal of reading King's novel IT at a rather strenuous length of over 1200 pages, I felt that over the Christmas period I needed a break and chose to read shorter novels such as Down and out in Paris and London, Animal Farm and Ian Flemming's Casino Royale. But it wasn't long until I craved a good horror novel to read, especially at nights when Insomnia kicks in from time to time. It should be said that Misery, although moderately short in length at just over 350 pages, I didn't initially feel too inclined to race through it as I did with King's shortest and one of his best novels, Carrie. As an avid Stephen King fan, I know that too many characters in a novel spells disaster as King often spends the middle of his thrillers by flashing back to the characters pasts. Having have see the film years ago and considering the critical acclaim I was thoroughly looking forward to it, especially as it focused almost entirely on two characters.
With the often clichéd survival plot i.e. Cat and Mouse, such as that of the film, The Hitcher. King used the same method that he did in The Shawshank Redemption, patience and hope. Initially in Misery, King doesn't mess about explaining the events that led Paul Sheldon to end up in Annie Wilkes's house in the snowy woods of Colorado. This made me feel a bit apprehensive to be honest, I was half expecting a brief account of how Paul not only ended up in such a predicament but how he crashed his car, feeding my curiosity this latter became apparent as the novel wore on. The genius element of the novel as a whole was the feelings and intense interaction between Paul and Annie, the complete unpredictability of Annie's rage always left me with a severe sense of foreboding.
Misery can be unpredictable and to be honest slightly misleading in parts if you don't follow the plot carefully. Throughout the novel I was expecting Stockholm syndrome to start manifesting in Paul Sheldon's mind, considering Annie had him hooked on drugs, and he relied on her so much. The trouble with Misery are the wretched flashbacks and the patches where Paul is writing a novel for Annie, which is initially a great idea, but these parts really put a halt on the readers progress annoyingly. The title alone is very clever by King, as it is a play on words, being ambiguous, Misery would imply the feeling where as it can also refer to the main character of Paul Sheldons most successful novels.
The plot of Stephen King's novel is centered around two main characters, Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilkes. Paul Sheldon is a successful novelist, most known for his saga on a character, with a slightly perverse name called misery. Paul has just killed her off in his previous novel and is feeling liberated having good vibes for his latest novel 'Fast Cars' and is taking a voyage from New York to California. He is suddenly caught in a harsh snowstorm in Colorado just outside the local town, Sidewinder, and ends up in a horrific car accident. Annie Wilkes discovers the wreckage and resuscitates Paul Sheldon, taking him back to her isolated house to nurse him better. Of course, she was his number one fan, she was Misery's number one fan and when she found out what he's done to Misery, she wouldn't like it, she wouldn't like it at all.
Annie forcefully encourages Paul to resurrect Misery and to write her a novel, un published, just for her pleasure. Annie will never let him leave, not while he's alive at least. Paul writes Misery's Return using a rather ill designed 'Royal' typewriter, which will play a far more important role before the end. Having said that the pages in Misery where Paul is showing the reader what he is typing can be ambiguous. It did certainly speed up my reading in an attempt to get past it to the exciting events and dialogue between Paul and Annie. Towards the second half of the novel though, despite these interruptions, the interaction between Annie and Paul is the main event to look forward to. The dominance of Annie over the crushed and broken body of Paul is a complete contrast of power. You'd expect Annie to be pretty thick in the head due to her constant mutterings and colloquial ramblings, however it rapidly transpires that she is cleverer than Paul and even has a nursing degree. It is pretty intense reading at times, especially when Paul tries to venture out of his room for food and painkillers. Perhaps the most terrifying element of Misery, is the fact that Annie can practically read Paul's mind.
There are two iconic scenes in Misery. The first being the horrific torture and pain Annie inflicts upon her victim, the amputation. It's almost like Victorian style surgery, done with only the basic tools and certainly without a local anesthetic. Its pretty ingenious the way Annie feels inclined to 'Hobble' Paul, this by cutting of his foot, she says this is what the British did in the diamond mines to prevent workers stealing diamonds yet letting them continue working. Even more disturbing is the fact that King describes these torture scenes in vivid detail. The other moment to watch out for is the scene where Paul ventures into the living room and finds a large, chunky scrapbook, showing every mysterious 'accident' Annie has participated in.
In terms of style, King has adopted a similar horror repertoire that he did in Dolores Claiborne. The whole, witting for the right time to strike cliché is parallel to that of Dolores and in many ways the two novels are similar. You are encouraged to feel empathy towards Paul Sheldon and at times you do, but I'm not sure if its Kings intention or by accident that your feelings remain less sympathetic towards Paul towards the end game. The whole hate, why won't you die, and the luck is always on your side concept, which is used in films such as T2, Aliens and even Hard Candy of late, is pretty ferocious throughout. You automatically suspect that Annie has had a tough upbringing or society made her into a psychotic but this isn't strictly true and it takes a bit of analyzing to reach a conclusion as to what the main cause was to her psychosomatic personality.
There are two primary words to sum up Annie Wilkes though, Narcissist and neurotic, its pretty interesting reading, how nervous and on edge she always is, especially hostile towards her neighbors, police and pretty much anyone in her town, she probably labels everyone as officious. Notice the rather clever hint towards The Shining midway in the novel, although written ten years later, the reference to Sidewinder and the Overlook hotel. King's lexicon isn't too advanced for adolescence, however a few words here and there encourage the reader to have a dictionary handy. Misery is a pretty readable book as i said, it does slow down dramatically in terms of pace in the middle like most King offerings, however as always there is a smashing finale to look forward to.
In comparison to the film, which I think is worth a mention, as usual the film directors feel compelled to change King's story slightly, much to his frustration i.e. The shining has two versions of the film adaption. However the infamous film starring Kathy Bates and James Caan is similarly impressive and wouldn't be a bad idea to see after reading the book. In conclusion, it is a book that anyone will enjoy immensely, especially King fans as its no wonder this became a classic. If you enjoyed Dolores Claiborne and The shining you will notice the parallels between the books in places, but Misery is an iconic read and deserves to be on anyones book shelf. It's pretty easy to read and enjoy Misery, the structure is split into parts, chapters and step numbers throughout.
The length is a pretty readable 369 pages, the price at the back is £7.99, which is what you'd expect to pay at your local Waterstones. I do think its a bit pricey considering the length, but its well worth it, I got my'n from the local market and Amazon and eBay will offer dirt cheap prices second hand. All in all, Misery is one of the top ten horror novels ever written and should provide a welcome distraction at nights with a warm cup of hot chocolate at hand.
...Name With Many Faces***
Misery is the heroine in best selling writer Paul Sheldon’s series of romantic historical novels.
Misery is the pig that resides on the homestead of Paul Sheldon’s ‘Number One fan’ Annie Wilkes.
When Annie Wilkes rescues him from a car crash - Misery is the situation Paul finds himself in.
Two years of hard graft and in a quiet hotel room Paul Sheldon finally writes ‘The End’ on the novel he hopes will give him the acclaim ... ...nightmares about it today. However, Misery is my partner’s favourite book of all time - he has been begging me to read it almost from the very beginning of our relationship. My problem is not the horror aspect but the pain. My worst phobia of all time is pain. I can’t stand the thought of it; I can’t watch it... even Casualty makes me want to vomit. I can’t bear the thought of blood - yes I know, I know, if you have read the other opinions I have ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Brilliant characters who excite powerful emotions within the reader Disadvantages: It drags on a little at times, reading type-written sections is annoying after awhile
...his romantic novels that star Misery Chastain. Popular as the series may be, Paul has become increasingly unhappy with the trashy style and character, and so decides to kill off the aptly-named Misery in her final book.
Finally free of Misery and able to concentrate on more satisfying, serious works of fiction, Paul is rather pleased with himself, and decides to embark on a drunken drive. Spontaneously, he decides to head North towards Colarado. ... ...talks eagerly about his latest Misery novel, and regularly gives him pain killing drugs.
The bad news for Paul is that he has already made his biggest mistake. Annie is no ordinary 'number one fan' - she is absolutely obsessed with Misery Chastain, and is none to happy when she discovers that Paul has murdered her idol...
Paul becomes more of a prisoner than patient. Trapped in the plain bedroom thanks to his mashed legs, he is forced to resurrect ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Edge of your seat action, good character development, well-written. Disadvantages: Some foul language might become old after a while.
...in the famously written book Misery are not only bone chilling, but after a while you might almost think they are real. * Annie Wilkes- She is Paul Sheldon's number one fan, and plans to never let him go alive. Her infatuation with the one novel with the character Misery in it has got a great influence on the way she treats Paul, and tortures him. * Paul Sheldon- A famous author that has written many number one selling novels and books recently goes ... ...Thriller Misery is a bone-chilling thriller in its own sense, and once you start reading, you will not want to stop that easily... Whatever you do, remember it is only a story right? It is almost believable something like this could possibly, or did happen to somebody once you get in an entrapment. Before you start reading Misery make sure you check the doors are locked, the lights are on, and that Annie Wilkes is not under your bed. P L E A S A ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: Excellent for those long winter nights Disadvantages: I couldn't put it down !!!
To me Misery is an astounding piece of literary genius penned by the infamous Stephen King. The book is again in the horror genre. Fascinatingly this book reads like a true story. It is a tremendous psychological thriller about obsessive love and extreme terror.
The story
There are two main characters in the book. There is Paul, a number one selling author and Anne, a nurse who says she is Paul’s number one fan.
The story begins when Paul is involved ... ...character in the books - Misery Blaise. Anne then forces Paul to rewrite the novel so that Misery lives. Here starts the torture, and the dark side of the Anne’s character emerges. Anne makes sure that Paul has no means of escape. She does this by physically restraining Paul and using every means of torture, she can conjure up to force Paul to write the novel. When you read the book, you can sense Paul’s sheer terror and helplessness of the situation. ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
...want to know what makes Misery so scary, its because whether or not you like it you empathise with the characters. In Misery for example. Just by reading the book you became Paul Sheldon stranded in that crazy woman's house after that terrible automobile accident. You felt his physical pain after he had awaken from that concussion, broken legs dislocated pelvis etc. and you felt his fear and anguish being trapped in that woman's house while she was ... ...Wilkes puts Paul Sheldon in misery throughout the story, slowly killing him in a way but at the same time saving him. Without her he wouldn't have survived, but without her he would not be tortured. The torture she puts him through is incredible, very creative. this is definitely one of Stephen King's best books. I have read the book and seen the movie and I recommend both. But I recommend the book most of all. It expresses much more detail than ...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Advantages: gripping storyline, graphic horror Disadvantages: too many creepy crawlies!
...I have long been a fan of StephenKings novels, reading the vast majority of his early
works, including The Stand, Delores Claiborne, Misery and The Tommyknockers. I fell
away from his more recent works as I felt that they were not his best works, these include
Gerald’s Game and The girl who loved Tom Gordon.
However the King is back in spectacular style with The Green Mile and Desperation.
Desperation tells us of travellers heading down highway 50, the loneliest highway in
America and the town of Desperation just off it. These travellers include a family of four
headed on their annual holiday to Lake Tahoe, a young couple going home to New York
and a once famous writer struggling to make a comeback.
All these travellers are stopped along their way by a police man, who for different reasons
stops them...
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Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Advantages: Fantastic read, involving storyline and characters, long Disadvantages: Some formatting errors, not horrifying at all, inconclusive ending
...After deciding that I really needed to read more sometime near the end of last year, I picked up a copy of MISERY, also by StephenKing. I fell in love with the man's style of writing and ability to have you clutch the book so strong your knuckles turn white. So when it came time to pick out some stuff I wanted for Christmas, and having read about the premise behind CELL, I decided that this was one of his books to try.
The Story
CELL opens in a very quick and to-the-point way: the main action in the book has started within the first 15 pages, so there's no dawdling. The book follows Clayton Riddell, an artist whose life, along with the many others, is ruined when an event known as the Pulse happens.
The Pulse is effectively a virus that affects everyone taking mobile phone calls. It wipes their minds and turns everyone...
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Advantages: Fantastic story, chilling, wonderfully woven characters, extremely realistic Disadvantages: Only available in pricy hardback edition at time of writing
...Until October 2007, I had done very little reading - save for the Harry Potter books, on their release - for many years. Being honest, I'm a wannabe author, and in October I was approaching the end of writing the first draft of my first novel. Many times, I had heard the advice 'read as much as you can', but didn't really pay it much heed until then.
The first book I picked up was StephenKing's Misery (a fantastic read, by the way) in a charity shop, and it was as soon as I started reading it that I fell back in love with reading once more, King himself taking up the reigns as my favourite author.
And when, in February, I saw his latest book - Duma Key - half price in Waterstones, and also laid my hands on a free £10 Waterstones voucher, I picked up the novel with no hesitation.
The Story
Duma Key is the story...
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12.01.2001
