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mdxo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Addiction, and Death
jimbowen0306's review against another edition
4.0
The Shining is probably one of the most famous books by Stephen King. It's status was helped by the Jack Nicholson/Stanley Kubrick film of the same name.
In The Shining, the Torrance family act as caretakers at a hotel that closes over the winter (due to "beyond inclement" weather). While there, the father has a melt down (the book emphasises more mystical reasons for this), and the son discovers others have his "condition" (which he find is called "The Shining", which allows him to read people's thoughts).
This book sees what happened to the child when he's become an adult. He naturally has "issues" (if The Shining doesn't screw you up, having a violently drunk father who goes bananas in an enclosed space will), but he's learning to live with the issues when he discovers a child whose "Shining" is so powerful, he can feel it across continents.
The problem is that there are "baddies" (The True Knot) who are dining on children's Shining, and they've discovered the child. So she, and Danny Torrance (the child from the previous book) have to stand up to them to save the girl.
The book itself wasn't bad. It's a fairly easy read (I read it quickly) and it's a clever story, it's just not brilliantly scary. Maybe that's because I've read a lot of King's books (so I know his style), but I felt I knew too much about what was going to happen to get scared.
In The Shining, the Torrance family act as caretakers at a hotel that closes over the winter (due to "beyond inclement" weather). While there, the father has a melt down (the book emphasises more mystical reasons for this), and the son discovers others have his "condition" (which he find is called "The Shining", which allows him to read people's thoughts).
This book sees what happened to the child when he's become an adult. He naturally has "issues" (if The Shining doesn't screw you up, having a violently drunk father who goes bananas in an enclosed space will), but he's learning to live with the issues when he discovers a child whose "Shining" is so powerful, he can feel it across continents.
The problem is that there are "baddies" (The True Knot) who are dining on children's Shining, and they've discovered the child. So she, and Danny Torrance (the child from the previous book) have to stand up to them to save the girl.
The book itself wasn't bad. It's a fairly easy read (I read it quickly) and it's a clever story, it's just not brilliantly scary. Maybe that's because I've read a lot of King's books (so I know his style), but I felt I knew too much about what was going to happen to get scared.
jenmangler's review against another edition
4.0
If you're looking for a book just like The Shining, this book isn't for you. I read a review that described this as a supernatural adventure rather than a horror novel, and I think that's a good description.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the person Dan Torrance grew up to be. He faced down some of the same demons his father did, only he managed to face them successfully with the help of some terrific friends. That's one of the things I enjoyed most about Doctor Sleep: Dan really builds a family for himself. He makes peace with his past. He finds his purpose. Doing this was not easy, and his rock bottom was pretty bad, but he clawed his way up out of it.
Abra, a young girl bright with the shining, is a terrific character. I really loved her. She's strong and smart and compassionate. I would really like to read what happens to her a few years down the road.
If you're going to read this book it's a really good idea to read The Shining before you read this. It's not absolutely vital, but I'm glad I did.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the person Dan Torrance grew up to be. He faced down some of the same demons his father did, only he managed to face them successfully with the help of some terrific friends. That's one of the things I enjoyed most about Doctor Sleep: Dan really builds a family for himself. He makes peace with his past. He finds his purpose. Doing this was not easy, and his rock bottom was pretty bad, but he clawed his way up out of it.
Abra, a young girl bright with the shining, is a terrific character. I really loved her. She's strong and smart and compassionate. I would really like to read what happens to her a few years down the road.
If you're going to read this book it's a really good idea to read The Shining before you read this. It's not absolutely vital, but I'm glad I did.
mrsfish24's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
monkeyboystiff's review against another edition
4.0
SPOILERS AHEAD!
Pretty decent book, standard King fare. Easy to read, some spooky bits, flashes of savagery and violence, ended fairly well. Tied in with the Shining nearly but really it could have been a completely separate book with a bit of tweaking. The True Knot were great villains, I hoped Rose would get a more unpleasant demise.
Not King's best but enjoyable.
Pretty decent book, standard King fare. Easy to read, some spooky bits, flashes of savagery and violence, ended fairly well. Tied in with the Shining nearly but really it could have been a completely separate book with a bit of tweaking. The True Knot were great villains, I hoped Rose would get a more unpleasant demise.
Not King's best but enjoyable.
alexandra_ninelives's review against another edition
5.0
I was so afraid to read this book because the shining is my favorite King book but it was so so amazing, I loved it!!!
lucardus's review against another edition
2.0
Keine rechte Identifikationsfigur gefunden, seine oft meisterhafte Darstellung des "normalen" Lebens ist nahezu nicht vorhanden, es geht sozusagen direkt los. Andererseits lassen sich die Bösewichter zu einfach "entsorgen" und die große Gegenspielerin ist eher eine Luftnummer, deren Ende ich fast überlesen hätte und der festen Überzeugng war, da muss ja noch was kommen.
Es gibt Besseres von King. Aber offenbar musste er sich diese Buch von der Seele schreiben. Es reicht für ein paar unterhaltsame Stunden, auch wenn ich schon Spannenderes oder Unheimlicheres gelesen habe. Vielleicht sollte King nicht jedes Jahr 2 bis 3 Romane veröffentlichen und einfach mal 4 oder 5 Jahre an einem Werk brüten.
Es gibt Besseres von King. Aber offenbar musste er sich diese Buch von der Seele schreiben. Es reicht für ein paar unterhaltsame Stunden, auch wenn ich schon Spannenderes oder Unheimlicheres gelesen habe. Vielleicht sollte King nicht jedes Jahr 2 bis 3 Romane veröffentlichen und einfach mal 4 oder 5 Jahre an einem Werk brüten.
maddieproefrock's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
mrsmobarak's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0