What's your favourite Stephen King novel?

1. 59

   NonCopyBookposted 10 years ago

   What's your favourite Stephen King novel?
   
   I think mine is "It"- the idea for "Misery" is brilliant too (and I really enjoyed "Shawshank Redemption")...

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2. 71

   lisavollrathposted 10 years ago

   The Stand. It took me three tries before I finally made it all the way through, but it was well worth it. I also liked The Shining and Misery.

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   1. 59

      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Yes The Stand is popular (and I haven't got through it as yet either)- I enjoyed the film though was iffy about its supernatural elements (though the supernatural elements in "It" I was fine with for some reason!). Maybe I'll try again-so many books!

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3. 75

   Nicole Grizzleposted 10 years ago

   Without a doubt it has to be "Misery". It was my first Stephen King novel, so that's probably why I love it so much. Since no one else has mentioned it yet, King's "Dark Tower" series is also pretty good.

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I haven't got to Dark Tower, or King's Bachman books. Misery was second for me after Pet Sematary, they're great reading..

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4. 60

   FatFreddysCatposted 10 years ago

   King's the man. The only one of his I haven't liked was "Insomnia"

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I recall enjoying the film version of "Insomnia".. He has indefatigable energy doesn't he- he's a writer's writer and then some, touching on varied subjects, if known for horror... He is a writer that's hard to keep up with- which is a compliment!

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      LoisRyan13903posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I read Insomnia.  It was good but not as good as some of the other books

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      It does seem to be quite different for him, but he's written so much that there are a number of books you could say the same thing about.. Even "Under the Dome" seems like quite a departure in some ways...

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   Amanda108posted 10 years ago

   I'm torn between The Stand and Misery! I like them both for different reasons.
   
   The Stand isn't so much a horror novel as a true epic and I love it the way I love a favorite long-running TV series: caring about the people as if they're real, hanging on every twist and turn, reflecting on the shift in focus.
   
   Misery, like The Stand though of course on a far smaller count, is also a character novel more than a plotty horror adventure (though most of King's novels have compelling characters). But Misery kept me almost painfully on edge. I couldn't put it down. Even quieter moments drew me in with the main character's thoughts on writing and the simple, agonizing details of his daily life. It should have been dull, with so little action. Yet the words pull you in and wrap around you. You're in that room with him. It's very claustrophobic and panic-inducing. It's. Just. So. Tense! Nail biting, cheek chewing, one-more-page-before-bed inducing. There's a scene toward the very end that induced a true feeling of heart-stopping horror that has stayed with me (and no, it's not the infamous foot scene!); but it would be a spoiler, so I won't specify in case someone who hasn't read Misery were to read this answer!

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   1. 59

      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      The Stand seems to win out with fans because of the length and breadth as well as engaging characters which as you point out is a strength of Misery- I think you do really care about Paul Sheldon, and writer as hero, how can you go wrong?!

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6. 72

   LoisRyan13903posted 10 years ago

   My favorite is The Stand it took me three shots to read it.  The first two times I had borrowed it from the library but only had a week before I went back to college.  A while later I purchased it as an e-book and couldn't put it down and didn't want it to end.  I think It was a close second.

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   1. 59

      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      The Stand is becoming a standout...

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   2. 72

      LoisRyan13903posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Christine was my first Stephen King book.  And now have both The Stand and It as audiobooks

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Ah yeah, perhaps a good way for me to read the "Dark Towers" or "The Stand"...

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   chuckandus6posted 10 years ago

   THis is a tough choice because I really like all of the ones I've read,
   I think" Pet Cemetery"
   I read this a few summers ago outside while the kids were playin start to finish never putting it down.

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   1. 59

      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Yeah I couldn't put it down either and it was the first one I read - at 10 or 11 or so, so it felt a little rebellious too haha..

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      chuckandus6posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Lol I would have had.nightmares if I read this when I was 11, I remember being scared of Micheal Jackson's Thriller video.

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Well being scared of Thriller is fair enough... Just about anything or everything is scary in a way earlier on in life... They try to scare sense into us with fairy tales etc! It's all strange, new, sometimes terrifying..

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8. 95

   cam8510posted 10 years ago

   The Dark Tower series, without question.

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Intriguing, I'll check out the opening on amazon and maybe it'll be added to my list...

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      cam8510posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      It's a 7 book series.   King calls it his best work.

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      The cover (which I haven't seen in awhile) seems to suggest a story about a gunslinger travelling a dark and dangerous land..? I hadn't heard he said it was his best work, OK thanks for letting me know..

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   4. 95

      cam8510posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      The Gunslinger is the main character throughout the series.  I think he actually calls it his most ambitious work.  He considers Lisey's Story to be his best.  The first book of the Dark Tower series was written in the 70's.  It really is fascinating

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      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Ah OK, good to know that about Lisey's Story too.. Wonder if fan responses line up with his thoughts (sounds like it does with the Dark Tower..).

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   6. 95

      cam8510posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Fan responses favor The Stand and Misery.

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   7. 59

      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Hmm seems so with some references to It (because of the engaging characters and the achievements in its sheer length..).

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   8. 95

      cam8510posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I enjoyed The Stand.  Trashcan Man was quite a character.  But there are so many post apocalyptic books and films, it sort of gets lost in the mix.  I can't think of another book or series that parallels The Dark Tower series.

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   9. 59

      NonCopyBookposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      That is true in terms of the number of apocalyptic stories - I don't know of others that are as long but I'm sure they're out there...

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   10. 72

       LoisRyan13903posted 10 years agoin reply to this

       Actually a couple books refer to the Dark Tower-two of them are Insomnia and Hearts in Atlantis

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