This is the first Stephen King novel since Dreamcatcher that I’ve put down half way through.
Seriously, what the fuck is up with this book? Whilst the initial set up is interesting, the piece is horrifically over-written (another case of too little editing) and delves into territory that is not only ludicrous but also utterly bonkers. Firing beams of light from people’s fingers? People’s souls manifesting as balloons on strings? This is supposed to be a horror novel, not a comedy. Strands of the plot are so flat out mental that it immediately takes you out of the narrative. I shook my head on more than one occasion out of sheer disbelief. Only a couple of years before King had delivered what I now believe to be his last truly great non Dark Tower work, Needful Things, a book that warrants a 700 + page length in terms of it’s epic scope and huge array of characters. Insomnia is only the same length due to King’s inability to reign it in. The author himself, in his excellent memoir “On Writing”, even admits that this and his subsequent novel “Rose Madder” are his most over-written of his works. No shit.
Other than the fact that, as always, King’s style is effortlessly readable, I would advise avoiding this one. It really just doesn’t work.
2/5
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