Misery by Stephan King
Horror , 320 pages
Publsihed 1987 by Hodder & Staughton
This stunning novel has just two characters, which is one of the reasons it is so powerful. Paul Sheldon is the best selling author of The Misery Chastain novels. In his most recent book, Misery's Child he kills of the main character in order to start a new series of books. Soon after, he is involved in a car accident-and is saved by Annie Wilkes, his Number One Fan. She takes him up to her Colorado mountain home, where she cares for him and nurses him back to health.
Then, one day she reads Misery's Child, and is distraught over the death of her favorite character. Enraged, she buys a type writer and paper, and forces Sheldon to write one last Misery book, where he is to bring the heroine back to life.
Paul doesnt want to do it, but he has got no choice. Because Annie Wilks is not sane. She has not let the authorities know where he is, and she has hidden the pain-killers. Not to mention she is the one holding the knifes, the axe and the blow-torch...
Paul Sheldon used to write for a living...Now he is writing to stay alive.
The story was exceptional. The plot was simple, yet there was never a dull moment. I was forever on the edge of me seat, holding my breath and wondering what was going to happen next. The suspense is mind-blowing!
The two characters were so darn believable. The realism was what made this so scary. Ive got no problem believing that there are people like Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilks out there. King portrays both characters so well. The emotion is wonderful, and I can fully understand the motive behind all the actions taken.
The writing style is also fantastic. So simple and raw, yet thrilling and suspenseful.
Some scenes were absolutely breath taking, others unbearably nerve-racking, and some were even gasp-aloud gruesome. King describes everything so well. I can clearly picture every room in Annie Wilks house and garden, including the coffee-table decorations and the view of the surrounding mountains. Of course, there are some parts that are left to the readers imagination. And thank goodness that the scene involving Paul Sheldon's feet, an axe and a blowtorch is one of them.
At many stages in this addictive novel did my parents tell me to 'shut up' because I was gasping so loud or muttering: "Oh, my goodness..."
An example of how brilliant Misery is:
Usually, I read thirty pages a night. To read fifty is like...woah! for me.
On Sunday night (a school night) I was up at 2AM , with my torch under the covers getting scared shi*less by this book. That night I read 200 pages.
No, that is not a typo. I swayed away from my normal ten pages, and read almost two hundred pages!.
Misery is that cool.
Then, at the end of those two hundred pages (i still had about 100 left to go), I tried to sleep. And miserably failed. (Miserably/Misery-haha, see what I did there? haha, no, it wasnt funny. Moving on. )
I was so horrified and tense about the scenes I had just read, sleep was impossible, so i went into the living room, switched on every single light and rocked myself back and forward on the couch, trying not to think about Annie Wilks and her axe, but failing.
The 1990 movie version staring James Caan and Cathy Bates is almost as good as the book.
Bates won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role as Annie Wilks, and she certainly deserved it.
Now, I realize many people will not enjoy this story due to the fact it is farily glory, and there is some fowl language, but if you have a taste for good plot lines, realistic characters, and a strong stomach, I am begging you....Please read this stunning book!
Its sensational!
Final Mark (out of five):
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