Reviews

Bag of Bones by Stephen King

bradland's review against another edition

4.0

There does appear to be a distinct difference between Stephen King’s writing before and after the early 1990s. It’s kinda hard to pinpoint why, but it’s like he put the premise of the story front and centre in his early career. For example, you knew early into the novel that Carrie White had psychic powers, the Shining house was haunted, Christine was possessed, there was a plague in the Stand, etc. Yet later, King’s stories were about the building of the characters and the plot/theme becomes secondary because you're not quite sure what it is till well into the book. I felt this way with Hearts of Atlantis, Rose Madder, the later Dark Tower books and very much so with Colorado Kid. The Bag of Bones goes down this same path, the characters take centre stage with a ghost story tagging along for the ride. It almost falls into the same trap Rose Madder did where the story takes too much of a sharp turn, but fortunately doesn’t, so the ghost story doesn’t feel foreign to the characters and situations that have been built. I found this novel quite interesting in the fact that King’s stories typically involve normal people, living normal lower/middle class lives, yet here King’s main character is a reflection of himself, a successful well off writer able to earn a piece of crust doing what he loves. Despite this, King still keeps the story down to earth and fortunately tries to keep to this formula even today. The novel is quite enjoyable to read for the most part, everything from Mike Noonan’s torment with writer’s block and dealing with the death of his wife, to his befriending some of the town’s folk and lawyers, even down to the destination. The only things that weren’t great were Mike’s confrontation scenes near the end but King’s batting record on the home stretch wasn’t grand anyway.

kiti227's review against another edition

4.0

Horror house story x the horrors of history made by humans because our species f-ing sucks.

Standard great horror story by King, interlaced with standard psychological story by King. So basically Kings two bests combined. This might be my favourite genre of his so far.

Unfortunately the stories aren't quite his best, in my opinion. I mean, it's still King, so they kick ass for days, but in special orders King chart, they're only good.

As per most of his books in this era, the horror elements don't tie in that seamlessly and don't get resolved completely.

The more human nature focused parts hit deep though. Especially the rape scene sticks for a loooong time.

Good read, haunting, but also slightly unsatisfactory.

papilooonglegs's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Stephen King's writing style just isn't my favorite. I think he's overly descriptive and unnecessarily sexual. I enjoyed the paranormal elements and the overall plot of the book however.

mklynch27's review against another edition

3.5

Keeping in mind that I’m never thrilled by King’s descriptions of women and people of color, this is maybe one of my favorite stories of his that I’ve read so far. The ending didn’t completely keep me in it (a little too much ghosting and

sadness

) but the grieving writer communing with spirits in his haunted house while aiding a young mom and her daughter in a dirty custody battle, and solving the small town’s mysterious tragic past that links the two is exactly what I’m here for. 

booktrovert_crystal's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

In true Stephen King fashion, the characters and their relationships are the most intriguing part of this novel. This story in particular is unusual because it focuses more on the child custody case rather than the horror aspects. To be fair, the two are in some ways linked, but I still found myself more invested in the drama between Mattie and her father-in-law than the mystery/horror elements. Nevertheless, Bag of Bones is still a page turner in its own right and I couldn’t wait to see what happened next.

zone_a3's review against another edition

dark emotional informative tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Racism, Rape, Child death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Hate crime, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts

dellu's review against another edition

dark emotional funny sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

markgoodyer's review against another edition

5.0

Perhaps my favourite Stephen King book, I could not tear myself away from it!
The world King has made is so real you never question the ghost story that is the heart of this book.

deanashuman's review against another edition

4.0

Gotta love a well-crafted story, especially one that scares the bejeezus out of you!

jenhurst's review against another edition

3.0

This is King’s take on a ghost story and a haunted house. I liked it, but felt it was a little too long.