• Home
  • About
  • Archives - Wading Through
  • Archives - The Craft Sea

Wading Through...

  • Home
  • About
  • Archives - Wading Through
  • Archives - The Craft Sea

Fairy Tale by Stephen King

Title: Fairy Tale

Author: Stephen King

Publisher: Scribner 2022

Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 608

Rating: 3/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Fall TBR

Charlie Reade looks like a regular high school kid, great at baseball and football, a decent student. But he carries a heavy load. His mom was killed in a hit-and-run accident when he was seven, and grief drove his dad to drink. Charlie learned how to take care of himself—and his dad. When Charlie is seventeen, he meets a dog named Radar and her aging master, Howard Bowditch, a recluse in a big house at the top of a big hill, with a locked shed in the backyard. Sometimes strange sounds emerge from it.

Charlie starts doing jobs for Mr. Bowditch and loses his heart to Radar. Then, when Bowditch dies, he leaves Charlie a cassette tape telling a story no one would believe. What Bowditch knows, and has kept secret all his long life, is that inside the shed is a portal to another world.

King’s storytelling in Fairy Tale soars. This is a magnificent and terrifying tale in which good is pitted against overwhelming evil, and a heroic boy—and his dog—must lead the battle.

Early in the Pandemic, King asked himself: “What could you write that would make you happy?”

The Nerdy Bookish Friends buddy read for November. I must admit that I have enjoyed Joe Hill’s writing over his father’s writing for years now, so I wasn’t necessarily super pumped for this read. On the other hand, I wasn’t mad about the selection. I was intrigued by King’s take on a fairy tale world and hero’s journey. By the end of the book, I had a few high points and a few duds. I loved how King featured the various fairy tales as easter eggs throughout the book. We get to see Charlie recognizing the stories as he encounters characters, settings, and events. I loved picking up all of those references. I also loved seeing how Charlie’s speech changes as he emerges himself in the world of Empis. Those were the high points. On the flip side, the pacing was terrible. For the first fourth of the book (~175 pages), nothing magical happens. It’s so incredibly slow. Once we get to the other world, things accelerate, but there are weird slow patches throughout the book. The entire section set in the prison lasted way too long. And then we get to the odd tone of the main character. I just don’t think that King writes 17 year olds very well now. There were some strange scenes that I just didn’t connect with. By the end of the book, I was left with very mixed feelings. Probably not the book for me.

Fall RC 2022.png
star-rating-remains-the-most-important-part-of-a-review-cad0047.cad0047.png

Next up on the TBR pile:

lovesickness.jpg venus blind.jpg stolen.jpg jujutsu7.jpg jujutsu 8.jpg jujutsu 9.jpg how to be eaten.jpg alley.jpg frankenstein.jpg deserter.jpg water moon.jpg liminal.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg uzumaki.jpg jujutsu 10.jpg
tags: Stephen King, Fall TBR List, fantasy, 3 stars
categories: Book Reviews
Saturday 11.12.22
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King

51ZJLAWiZVL._SX327_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

Title: The Drawing of the Three (The Dark Tower #2)

Author: Stephen King

Publisher: Plume 1989

Genre: Horror

Pages: 406

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Mount TBR; Popsugar - About Mental Health; Seasonal Series - Read a book while sitting outside

Beginning just less than seven hours after The Gunslinger ends, in the second installment to the thrilling Dark Tower Series, Roland encounters three mysterious doorways on a deserted beach along the Western Sea. Each one enters into a different person’s life in New York—here, he joins forces with the defiant young Eddie Dean, and with the beautiful, brilliant, and brave Odetta Holmes, to save the Dark Tower.

Picked up the second volume in The Dark Tower series. And seriously, this is one weird book. We travel with Roland into three different time periods in our own world meeting three travelers along the way. I was totally on board with Eddie. Very straight forward story. But then later we meet Odetta and things get even weirder. This is only a story of Stephen King fans. Thankfully I like his weird storytelling. Very interested in where this crazy adventure is going...

The Dark Tower:

  • #0.5 The Little Sisters of Eluria
  • #1 The Gunslinger
  • #2 The Drawing of the Three
  • #3 The Waste Lands
  • #4 Wizard and Glass
  • #4.5 The Wind Through the Keyhole
  • #5 Wolves of the Calla
  • #6 Song of Susannah
  • #7 The Dark Tower
Popsugar 2018.jpg
Mount TBR 2018.png
DYkQPpaW0AEeP9k.jpg

Next up on the TBR pile:

lovesickness.jpg venus blind.jpg stolen.jpg jujutsu7.jpg jujutsu 8.jpg jujutsu 9.jpg how to be eaten.jpg alley.jpg frankenstein.jpg deserter.jpg water moon.jpg liminal.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg uzumaki.jpg jujutsu 10.jpg
tags: Stephen King, horror, 4 stars, mount tbr, Popsugar, Seasonal Series Readathon
categories: Book Reviews
Friday 04.13.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

The Gunslinger by Stephen King

51eVqMJegrL._SX331_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

Title: The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower #1)

Author: Stephen King

Publisher: Scribner 1982

Genre: Horror

Pages: 251

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Perpetual - NPR Scifi; Popsugar - Antihero; I Love Libraries

A #1 national bestseller, The Gunslinger introduces readers to one of Stephen King’s most powerful creations, Roland of Gilead: The Last Gunslinger. He is a haunting figure, a loner on a spellbinding journey into good and evil. In his desolate world, which mirrors our own in frightening ways, Roland tracks The Man in Black, encounters an enticing woman named Alice, and begins a friendship with the boy from New York named Jake.

This series has been on my lists for years, years I tell you! I don't know why I waited so long to start this one. I finally did and it's amazing! I have enjoyed some of King's writing and this one seems to be the kind of King that I enjoy. We get a big world(s), some spooky happenings, cryptic messages, an antihero, a villain, an audience connection point, and plenty of atmosphere. The first book isn't super long, but even then, I sped through it in two days. I just couldn't stop myself from reading about The Gunslinger's walk getting him closer and closer to the man in black... On to the next book soon!

The Dark Tower:

  • #0.5 The Little Sisters of Eluria
  • #1 The Gunslinger
  • #2 The Drawing of the Three
  • #3 The Waste Lands
  • #4 Wizard and Glass
  • #4.5 The Wind Through the Keyhole
  • #5 Wolves of the Calla
  • #6 Song of Susannah
  • #7 The Dark Tower
Popsugar 2018.jpg
library 2018.jpg

Next up on the TBR pile:

lovesickness.jpg venus blind.jpg stolen.jpg jujutsu7.jpg jujutsu 8.jpg jujutsu 9.jpg how to be eaten.jpg alley.jpg frankenstein.jpg deserter.jpg water moon.jpg liminal.jpg black paradox.jpg tombs.jpg gyo.jpg soichi.jpg uzumaki.jpg jujutsu 10.jpg
tags: Stephen King, 5 stars, horror, perpetual, Popsugar, I Love Libraries
categories: Book Reviews
Sunday 02.25.18
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

American Vampire by Scott Snyder, Rafael Albuquerque, and Stephen King

american-vampire (1920).jpeg

Title: American Vampire

Author: Scott Snyder, Rafael Albuquerque, and Stephen King

Publisher: Vertigo 2010

Genre: Graphic Novel, Horror

Pages: 200

Rating: 5/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Graphic Novel

How I Got It: Library Loan

This volume follows two stories: one written by Snyder and one written by King. Snyder's story is set in 1920's LA, we follow Pearl, a young woman who is turned into a vampire and sets out on a path of righteous revenge against the European Vampires who tortured and abused her. This story is paired with King's story, a western about Skinner Sweet, the original American Vampire-- a stronger, faster creature than any vampire ever seen before with rattlesnake fangs and powered by the sun.

This was a refreshing change from the sparkly vampires.  Here we get classic horror.  Vampires with a vicious streak.  Vampires consumed with blood.  Vampires would transform into something truly grotesque.  I was riveted from the opening page.  Snyder and King's stories blend seamlessly together to create a unique tale of the first American Vampire.  I loved seeing Skinner and Pearl evolve into something new and compare them to the old style European vampires.  Vampire clan wars are too much fun!  I am really wanting to get back to the library to snap up the next volume.

tags: 5 stars, Bout of Books Readathon, graphic novel, horror, Stephen King, vampires
categories: Book Reviews
Wednesday 08.21.13
Posted by Tobe Buffenbarger
 

Powered by Squarespace.