Book Review - Joyland by Stephen King

Joyland by Stephen King

From Goodreads: 


(may have some spoilers?!?!?)

"I love crime, I love mysteries, and I love ghosts," says Stephen King, who has combined these elements into a wonderful new story. Joyland is a whodunit noir crime novel and a haunting ghost story set in the world of an amusement park.
 
It tells the story of the summer in which college student Devin Jones comes to work as a 'carny' in small-town North Carolina and has to confront the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and the way both will change his life forever. It is also a wonderful coming-of-age novel about friendship, loss, and your first heartbreak. Who dares enter the funhouse of fear?

I haven't read Stephen King for a long time, and I had only read a couple. I probably have watched more Stephen King movies than read his books. The last one I read was probably IT, and that was 20 years ago. I remember I was quite proud of myself for having to finish it, since it was around 1000 pages, and probably the longest book I'd ever read, and my English wasn't that good then (not that it's that good now, but much better than before.) I did like it (I finished right?!) but I remembered thinking it was a bit too wordy or descriptive, and could probably be a bit shorter. Plus I didn't like the ending. Though you have to say it has some staying power because I still remember the gist of that story.

Anyway, so I never felt like I need to read another King, especially since the last movie I watched (The Mist? was just so-so. Much preferred Misery). But I'd been reading good things about Joyland from bloggers, and thought it's time I give him another try.

Plot-wise, it's just okay. But this man can write - I was totally sucked in, and I finished this book faster than a lot of other books I'd read this year. You really just want to keep reading to find out what happened. I could vividly "saw" what's happening as I read, as though I was the director and cinematographer of the movie. AND I didn't find it overly flowery or descriptive or wordy. Don't ask me how he did it as I am no expert on book analysis or English. He just did.

He totally made me want to go to a fun park now.  And especially go on a Ferris Wheel just so [Spoiler in white] I could fly, like a kite [/Spoiler].

I am giving this 3.5 Stars - why not higher? I will explain in the next paragraph, but it will contain spoiler, so be warned.

[Spoiler]
After I finished the book, I was wondering what "it is not white" meant... after some googling, some one mentioned that it probably referred to Lane's hair being not white... the hint is just too subtle I think, especially given that Mike said it a couple of times so I was expecting an a-ha moment. Or King could've made it a bit more explicit so we weren't left wondering - and I wasn't the only one who didn't quite get the hint.

Also, this is a ghost story. I don't know if I believe in ghosts or not (I haven't made up my mind). I do like a good ghost story - like, the Sixth Sense - but the ghosts in this story just seemed too convenient for the storyline. I did like that though it was Eddie Parks, and not Linda Gray, who saved Dev.

It also seemed a bit too contrived that Lane just stopped murdering girls....
[/Spoiler]



Note - The book was borrowed from the library.



All reviews and posts are copyrighted by Christa @ Mental Foodie. Please do not use or reprint them without written permission.

Book Review - The Door to December by Dean Koontz

Title: The Door to December
Author: Dean Koontz
Year: 1985
Page: 528
Genre: Fiction - Horror

New to me author? Yes
Read this author again? Maybe...
Tearjerker? No
Where did it take place? US
FTC Disclosure: Borrowed from the library

Summary (from goodreads.com):
The #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers a truly suspenseful novel of a mother who must save her daughter from a threat she can hardly understand. What happened to nine-year-old Melanie during the six years she was subjected to terrifying experiments? And what is the unstoppable power that she can unleash from behind the "Door to December"? 


First Sentence:
As soon as she finished dressing, Laura went to the front door and was just in time to see the Los Angeles Police Department squad car pull to the curb in front of the house.  

Why did I pick this book?
Was in a reading rut. Very busy at work, so wanted to read something "fun" (but not chick lit) that won't require too much brain power - tried reading non-fiction, but just can't focus when I am too tired. Anyway, saw a thread on a forum where suggestions for scary books were made. I thought it may be fun to read a scary book (yeah I have a twisted sense of humor...) as I hadn't read any horror for a while, especially something that is chilling. There were two instances where I got scared after reading a book (1) after watching IT, I got scared turning the faucet on (okay that wasn't technically reading, but I did read the book later). (2) Hostage to the Devil: The Possession and Exorcism of Five Contemporary Americans by Malachi Martin (non-fiction). That was over 10 years ago so I am ready to read something scary again :) I had heard of Dean Koontz, but haven't read any of his books (if I did, it was a long time ago and I don't remember). I know he's often compared to Stephen King (I'd only read IT, but watched a few other movies and liked them, e.g. Misery, and other non-horror ones like Stand by Me and The Shawshank Redemption). This particular book was recommended on the forum, so I thought I'd give Koontz a try.

My thoughts:

• For a 528 pages book, I expected a lot of twists and turns and scary stuff

• Truth is? I guessed the one twist within the first few chapters of the book, but just read on to see if I guessed it right, and I did. That spoiled the fun. I don't think I'm particular smart, but I think after reading many murder / mystery / suspense / thrillers type of book, even if this one is more of a 'horror' book, you tend to pick up the clues a bit easier

• So I was disappointed as it got a bit too predictable. The premise is interesting, but the book could've been shorter

• The characters are fine, feel indifferent about them really. But you do get a sense of who they are. In fact, when I was reading, I could imagine this being made into a B-grade tele-movie. 

• Would I give Koontz a second chance? I did borrow another one of his books, False Memory, when I was browsing the library shelf while looking for this book. Will see if my mood feels like it. If you have read Koontz before, any recommendation? I don't mind that it has a bit of a paranormal edge. I used to read a lot of John Saul's books and really enjoyed them back then. Don't remember why I stopped... maybe time to pick one up again?

 
Rating: 2 Stars

 

Have you read this book? 
If you have, I would love to hear what you think! I'll link your review here if you wish!

Challenges:
100+ Reading

Book Review - We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Title: We Have Always Lived in the Castle    
Author: Shriley Jackson  
Year: 1962  
Page: 160  
Genre: Fiction - Horror 

New to me author? Yes
Read this author again? Not sure
Tearjerker? No
Where did it take place? US?
FTC Disclosure: Borrowed from the library (thanks to inter-library loan!)

Summary (from amazon.com):
Taking readers deep into a labyrinth of dark neurosis, We Have Always Lived in the Castle is a deliciously unsettling novel about a perverse, isolated, and possibly murderous family and the struggle that ensues when a cousin arrives at their estate.

First Sentence:  
My name is Mary Katherine Blackwood.

Why did I pick this book?
After I read Liar by Justine Larbalestier, other people asked on the author's website if there are similar books. Since I thought Liar has such potential (and spoiled by the ending, in my opinion), I thought I'd give this book a try as others have said this is a similar type of book. The author has also said she loved this book.

My thoughts:

• I think my expectation was way to high and I was very disappointed by this book! I can see why the readers said this is a similar type of book as Liar (I don't want to explain as it'd spoil it), but it is just not my cup of tea. Many reviews said this is creepy, horrifying, scary, disturbing, haunting, strange... I thought it was boring and could guess the twist 1/3 way of the book (and it's a pretty thin book!) I wasn't scared or creep out or disturbed or haunted at all (unlike after watching IT the TV movie in 8th grade... I almost didn't want to turn on the faucet to wash my hands!)

• As I was reading the story (would have given it up had I not wanted to find out what was so great about this book), I kept thinking, how old is Mary Katherine the protagonist? It was very hard to guess her age by her voice/behavior. When I read some amazon reviews, some reviewers mentioned she was 18 and I was wondering how they came up with that age. When I looked back at the first page of the book to write out what the first sentence was - the 2nd sentence said, "I am eighteen years old, and I live with my sister Constance." Duh! But really, I'd already forgotten about that fact as I read the book...

• I still don't get why this book is so popular... have you read it? Could you share your thoughts please?? I didn't even find a quote I liked in the book...

• The only thing I like about it is this - the protagonist, Mary Katherine, is called Merricat, by her sister. I thought that was cute. 

Rating:    1 Star

Have you read this book? 
If you have, I would love to hear what you think! I'll link your review here if you wish!

Challenges:
100+ Reading