Category Archives: Psychological

Misery

04 Thursday Jul 2024

Posted by in Horror, Psychological, Reading, Thriller

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Misery by Stephen King
1987 / 454 pgs. (110,565 words) Psychological-Horror-Thriller

Misery, a classic by Mr. King. It grips you from the start and does not let go. Paul Sheldon, author of the Misery Chastain novels wakes up from a confused and drugged out haze. As he gathers his wits and surroundings, he feels agonizing pain from his hips and below. He meets his savior, Mrs. Annie Wilkes, not only a former nurse, but also his number-one fan. Also, he realizes that he is not in a hospital being cared for by trained professionals but held against his will at Annie’s house. However, with two shattered legs, he is not going to be leaving anytime soon.

Annie loves the Misery books and really does not care for Pauls other works. As he has heard and read from other fans, please, just write those wonderful Misery books –signed, your number-one fan. His latest manuscript was in the car that Annie pulled him from. She reads it and finds it horrible, his worst writing ever. She did mention that she was waiting for the latest Misery book, Misery’s Child, to be released in paperback. What she does not know yet is Paul killed Misery. He despises Misery Chastain, as he feels he can write a lot more than just romance novels that swoon all of his fans. Once Annie has Misery’s Child in hand and devours it, she is terribly upset, and blames Paul for murdering Misery.

With the help of a BBQ pit, Annie demands Paul to burn his latest manuscript, the horrible book called Fast Cars. Once that is complete, she brings him an old Royal typewriter and has him author a book just for her, the greatest novel he has ever written, Misery’s Return! That, dear readers, is the first fifty pages of this masterpiece, for it only gets worse for Paul, much worse as he drafts the only book that will keep him alive.

Annie Wilkes, I believe is one of Mr. Kings greatest antagonist. She is one of the most polarizing characters because you are not sure what she will do at any given moment. This effectively makes the narrative an on-the-edge of your seat experience. The conclusion is incredibly satisfying with frightening consequences.

This novel, I felt, was a narration of frustration from Mr. King as he feels like Paul in various interactions with fans that have played out over the years. Considering, Mr., King received backlash from fans after the release of Eyes of the Dragon. Many fans just demanded him to continue writing horror books. I would imagine it was the same feeling that Tom Clancy received when Red Storm Rising was published, which was not a Jack Ryan novel, and readers demanded another Ryan book. I could imagine many authors reading this novel and stating, “that is how I feel”. Geroge R. R. Martin faces this all the time with his fans demanding for the author to sit a write Winds of Winter and do nothing else until it is complete.

Would I recommend this book, oh yeah! It is a great read and did not disappoint.

Enjoy a good cup of coffee and a delightful book!
Lopaka

Rage

13 Saturday Aug 2022

Posted by in Psychological, Reading, Thriller

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Rage by Stephen King
1977 / 211 pgs. (54,176 words) Psychological Thriller

This was the first book King published under Richard Bachman. An interesting fact about this specific novel is it is out of print by request of Mr. King himself. Why did he do this? The following narration should clearly define the answer to why.

Charlie is a senior in high school who is called into the principal’s office to discover his fate after attacking a chemistry teacher with a pipe wrench. Once the verdict is read, transfer to Greenmantle Academy, Charlie mouths off to the principal and is immediately expelled from school. After arriving at his locker, he takes the gun and extra rounds he brought, sets the rest of the contents on fire, and closes the door. While smoke billows out of the slots in the locker door, he walks into a classroom, shoots the teacher in the head, and takes the class hostage. He kills another teacher who bursts into the classroom, wondering why they do not evacuate while the fire alarm is going off.

After the fire is out, the principal, a psychologist, and the local sheriff talk to Charlie over the intercom system, asking him to release his fellow students. He refuses and plays mind games with the adults while talking about “Getting it on.”  Much of the novel is about Charlie and his fellow students talking about challenges that many youths take on during their most impressionable years, High School. From the physically challenged to the jock who is a cowered inside and uses his aggression against others to hide it. Even sexual, or lack of, experienced is shared in the classroom while police and others wait outside the school for Charlie’s next action.

Naturally, I do not want to give away the ending. As one can deduce from the narration, why Mr. King asked his publisher to stop printing the book. After several school shootings, one of which reportedly Rage was in the locker of one of the shooters, Stephen King stated he no longer wanted the book in circulation for obvious reasons. 

This book is just more than just teens talking in a classroom. It is also about how many teens feel growing up in High School. It is a deep dive into youth’s challenges in school as they grow up, build an identity for themselves, and determine where they will go next on this fascinating journey called life.

I enjoyed this book. However, given the subject, for many, this could be a very challenging or not disturbing book to read, especially with the school shooting at the beginning and the hostage situation in the classroom. It is not an easy book to find. Since I am reading all of King’s novels, it would not be a complete list without Rage.      
 
Enjoy a good cup of coffee and a delightful book!

Lopaka