The Shining by Stephen King…(R.I.P. 2)

The blog Stainless Steel Droppings has hosted this reading challenge for the past 6 years. This reading challenge asks you to read books that fall into the following genres:

Mystery
Suspense
Thriller
Dark Fantasy
Gothic
Horror
Supernatural

 If you’d like to join up just click the image above to find more info. Know that if you’re new to challenges (or just really busy reading other things) this challenge comes with levels. Including one that asks you to read just one book. I’ve chosen Peril the First, which means I’ve signed up for 4 books! That’s a lot of scary for a scaredy-cat like me, lol.

Without Further Ado, My 2nd Book…The Shining

BookTalk

Have you ever known a person who was special? Someone who always seemed to evade trouble? Always seemed a step ahead? Maybe they always knew what mood you were in? They just seemed to Know something the rest of us miss…

An unexplained 6th sense perhaps? Some call this gift The Shine. People with shine just seem to be aware of things others aren’t. Not everyone is capable of predicting lottery numbers or if it will rain tomorrow…no…most are simply ‘touched’ by The Shine. Walking through life unaware they posses this gift.

But not Danny. Danny is more than ‘touched’ by The Shine. Danny radiates The Shine. He is the boy who doesn’t just stumble upon his luck. He can call forth visions of the future and answers to his problems. At five, Danny is just beginning to realize this is an unusual skill. He’s also beginning to realize that his visions aren’t always happy and helpful…

Lately Danny is dreaming of a place…A hotel…The Overlook. It is a place filled with death, with secrets, and with Redrum. Danny has been forewarned of the dangers of The Overlook. As much as Danny wishes to avoid the horror he’s about to find that it may not be for him to decide. You see, The Overlook wants to keep Danny within it’s walls…Dead or Alive…

Review

I don’t know how scared I was by this book. I mean it has all the elements. Kid with paranormal connections, Father who goes crazy, Creepy hotel full of ghosts…lots of death and murder…not to mention those moving topiaries. Yep, nothing scarier than a hedge in the shape of a bunny.

I do kid. This book really was freaky. I think I’m just more scared by things that chase you, by stuff like the apocalypse and a deadly virus taking over the world. I also think I was distracted by the bits and pieces I knew from the movie. While I’ve never seen the film through general culture I knew what Redrum meant, and knew that Jack Nicholson went crazy in a hotel during winter trying to kill everyone.

But I was also expecting those creepy twins. While in the book, they played a smaller and completely uninvolved role. They were not the ghost hiding behind 217. The biggest surprise from my read was how well written a book this was. I’m not a reader who thinks that in order for a book to be good it needs to be “well written” in an old-school literary canon kinda way. I’m just as ‘in awe’ of a writer who is a good story-teller or one who can create tension and play on my emotions. But as a former English major, and a general literary devotee I do appreciate a man who has full command of his writing skills.

King manages to combine horror, paranormal, and a bit of rawness while still showing masterful writing chops. Sometimes I found myself enjoying the read, not because I was so into the story…but because I loved the way King was playing with his words, with his use of punctuation. Very well done, and still accessible. Bravo.

I’m not going to reveal too much about the plot. It’s not my place to ruin the mystery for the next reader. I liked that the book delved into the history of the characters. Showing how the experiences that formed them was twisted and used by the hotel. And I loved Danny. I really liked the kid, and for all of his 6th sense abilities he didn’t creep me out. And finally the end was slightly happier than I expected. Don’t get me wrong…it’s all super-horrific and gory…but it ends with hope. Didn’t see that coming…

Rating: 4/5 Well written tale about a Hotel that comes to life and a family that falls apart.  

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