Michael's Book Babble
I'm an indie author and a scribbler of inane babble. I talk about books I've read/liked. Or at least, that's the plan.
Most of the reviews will be considered "mini-reviews." Usually, it's mostly my reaction to what I've been reading. There are people who are far better at doing full and helpful reviews. But I still have fun doing them, and hope you enjoy them!
The bleakest, most depressing, and most chilling King novel I've ever read... (and I loved it)
I love Stephen King, but I can't lie and pretend to be a die-hard fan. There are still many, many novels of his I haven't read yet, although I'm changing that a little day by day. But I'd be damned surprised if he'd written a novel as utterly depressing, chilling, and frightening as Revival. This one's going to haunt this reader for a long, long time.
I don't even really want to get into the story. I went into this knowing very little, and it's another one of those instances where I'm glad. A few of my friends and fellow reviewers were reading this as well, and they all said the same thing:
This one's bleak.
And bleak it is. It's unsuspecting, although you know something horrible happens at some point. The narrator lets us know with subtle hints. King builds up the suspense slowly, but never did I find myself bored. The book is over 400 pages long, yet it's a fast read. And when you get to the last few chapters, you better hold the hell onto something. Avoid reading the final two chapters late at night, unless you're somebody who gets excited over the thought of having some terrible nightmares.
I really think King is at his best when he writes in first person, so I was happy as hell when I saw it was written like that. I feel he gets into the heart of things a lot more better when he tells a story that way. I really felt for this character. It didn't feel like I was reading something that Stephen King wrote. I felt that it was really the character writing it.
I know I didn't do much when it comes to telling you about the book, but believe me when I say Revival is so much better when you go into it knowing very little. It's hard to write a review without over-hyping it any. Will Revival satisfy all readers? No. Will all die-hard King fans love it? Probably not. All I can say is this reader truly enjoyed this novel, as horrifying and as utterly hopeless as it ends up being. I was not disappointed for a single second. It'll go down as not only one of my favorite Stephen King novels, but as a favorite novel overall.
5 stars
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