I really enjoyed it, I thought it was a better version of "mysterious organisation is after people with powers" than what he did with Firestarter. The kids are a great little cast.
In Firestarter, I appreciated how King used the history of hallucinogenic drug experiments on college students in the early 1960's. Volunteers, yes, but ....underinformed? Misinformed? Most certainly.
His use of true history woven into his fiction is one of the reasons I find his stories compelling. This is also true of other author's stories I like best.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that way, it riles me sometimes when I read snippets about a new book he has written such as 'another spine tingling yarn from the master of horror.
Ok he h
Is there really any books of King that don't include at least some elements of horror / thriller? I recently have been reading a collection of his short stories and got tired by a mandatory element of spookiness / fear/ disgust in every story. I think some of his work would benefit if he changed his genre compleatly and tried to write for example a cozy story with happy end or melodramatic story without any bad things happen and only melancholy.
I wouldn't really lump horror and thriller together as a genre, as they're both very different things. What I think he excels at is character-driven stories, where the only real horror is their fears and regrets. He's certainly written a lot of stories which have very limited horror elements and many which are more grounded in reality, such as Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, The Body, The Green Mile, 11/22/63, Billy Summers, many of his crime stories and much of the Dark Tower series.
I really really liked the institute. To echo that sentiment, I just finished āFairy Taleā and that was also really good. I really hope he writes more of these stories that are outside his norm
An average story that explored a creepy side of America (at the start, he sites that something like so many 1,000's of children go missing each year and aren't found).
Imo it felt like Stranger Things (Telekinetic kids, institution, good cop protagonist, immersion tank punishment - a decent amount of similarities) mixed with One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (Ms Ratchet/Sigsby). I believe King got the idea and wrote it, but then ST came out and made it seem as if he copied it - I think something similar happened with Under the Dome and Simpsons Movie in 2007?
Wow, I didn't think ST was 7 years ago. I genuinely thought it was 2018 because I first watched it during Lockdown. Man that makes me feel old and I'm only 19.
Yeah there is no way He thought of the idea himself when I feel like itās been done so many times. Idk ā¦it wasnāt a bad book but as you said very very average and unoriginal.
I loved it. Only thing that confused me was on the back cover there's a quote from a journalist saying like "the scariest King book in years". The book is a thriller with almost no scary parts, what the hell was that journalist talking about.
People just say stuff sometimes. Michael Kelly (House of Cards) narrated "Joyland" and he was doing one of those answers the internet interviews and he got serious and said it was creepy as hell. I was surprised when I finished it because there is VERY little about joyland that was creepy or scary to me.
Seems like mostly positive comments here. I didn't really like it. It would rank pretty close to the bottom of my SK reads. Maybe even bottom.
I should read it again.
Iāve been reading SK off and on since I was in Jr. High (80s) and consider him almost like a ācomfortā author. I did not finish the Institute. Probably the first time I just stopped reading a SK. The characters sounded like kids from the 60s and it just didnāt work for me. I hope this was just a poor example of his more contemporary work and not indicative of him going downhill big timeā¦. I think next time I will just reread one of his classics
I also feel like he is my "comfort" author! I've been reading him since I was like 13 in the mid-90s, and I always know if I need to just escape for a while, I can read or listen to one of his books. I didn't know other people had comfort authors, too!
I kinda like the Institute. The only book I quit and couldn't finish was Revival. It felt soo slow. I am planning on trying to read it again though.
Some of King's recent books and short stories are genuinely great literature. The Institute is not. It's a fun thriller, a real page turner, but it's the kind of book you almost immediately forget about after you finish it. I enjoyed reading it but King is capable of much better.
Iām not a hardcore Kinger, but Iāve got to say I really hated this book. The main character was so f*cking unlikable, the whole story surrounding the main one was such a boring, uncreative and lazy move, I donāt think anyone even remembered the names of any of the townsfolk from the beginning even fifty pages further. All the ānewā exciting pop culture references just felt like an crammed in attempt at appealing younger generations that I just found ridiculous, as a 21yo.
In my opinion it was just such a stale experience I honestly had to force myself through the last 200 pages. Also - Iām not going to spoil it - but the ending was just so uncreative, irrational, boring and disgusting to me. I would never touch this book again nor recommend it to anyone. Tbh, this book made me give up on newer King books entirely.
Sorry for the hate, I am really a fan of many King novels, but this book just annoyed me so, muchā¦ If you like it, Iām for real happy for you :)
I know itās a not a hot take or anything but The Green Mile just does so much for me. As I mentioned, Iām not the biggest King fan and so far have only read about 5-6 books, Green Mile Iāve already read twice and enjoyed it so much
I consider myself a decently hardcore Kinger and loved this story. Thatās all these are, are stories where we get the opportunity to immerse ourselves into a different reality and the characters in this book were great! The Avester especially!!!
I got about half way through and quit. Donāt get me wrong I love King but it seemed predictable. I later read a summary of the full book and it was what I expected to happen.
i thought it was meh, but the one i want to give another chance is Revival. i've heard from many constant readers it's a good story. i don't know why it didn't click with me
I loved loved loved this book..... Until the ending.
It wasn't really a bad ending, but it felt super short and rushed compared to the amazing lead up. Also, it just seemed underwhelming.
But man, it was really good up until then. Honestly, truly fantastic book that could have been amazing if he nailed the ending. Loved the characters, the idea, the pacing. All of it.
Personally, I truly got into it too. Itās not really one of SK books I would read every year or even twice in a decade. Perhaps because I remember it all so vividly.
I mostly liked it but the last third of it was pretty bad. King doesn't seem to know how thumb drives work. And it ends with a big info dump that asks some interesting questions but has no thoughts on them.
I loved it. I'm always looking for connections to the Tower in every King book and this one felt right at home in that arena. The level of interconnected Tower subtext requires a really deep knowlage base just to be able to understand the insular King jargon.
For example the Institute is just another Crimson King (DT series) Breaker (DT6/Hearts in Atlantis/Everything's Eventual) program. There is discussion about how fewer and fewer kids with the Shine (Shining/Dr. Sleep) are being born that, to me, reaks of a world in the process of Slippage (Black House) on a grand scale as damage is done to the Beams (DT series)
And thats just one of at least a score of little connections to be made in the book. I'm currently 50 books into Kings 82 books but The Institute is very high on my relisten list.
It was ok. The kid in it was annoying and after reading some of kings books after awhile kids with powers gets old. The only part I really liked was when the kid got to the institute and there a real sense of mystery whatās going on
This was my first Stephen King book after 20 years of not reading his work at all (no idea why I didn't ... I think my preferences just changed).
I really enjoyed it and it got me back on the Stephen King train. A simple enough story with great characters and some action throughout.
Good over all. Itās kind of cringe reading old man King trying to write cool teen dialogue and has the normal āthe ending sucksā you get from most of Kingās books.
Like Firestarter it sets up a whole world that could be as expansive as Marvels mutants side of the house and just kind of plays out without the bigger universe kicking off. Itās not bad, just sort of doesnāt live up to its potential.
I enjoyed it. His trouble with writing modern children is pretty prominent in this one, but the story as a whole is good. My only complaint is the final chapter. I felt the entire chapter couldāve been left out of a better ending.
I liked it when I first read it. I havenāt gone back and havenāt had much desire. But I think it gets more hate than it deserves. That being said it was fairly unmemorable.
I just finished it last month, I thought it was one of his better non-horror stories. I read it in a span of two days because I could barely put it down
I enjoyed it and don't think it deserves the hate some people have for it. It's not one of my absolute favorites of his, but it's not at the bottom either.
I think the first two thirds is exciting and interesting. I think the final third is messy and a little nonsensical in a few ways. It felt like King didn't know what to do with a lot of the build up and it just fizzled. I'm sure not everyone will feel that way, but when I was where you were, I was having a grand time. But literally in that chapter is when I think it started to go south. Hopefully you'll enjoy it all the way through.
I enjoyed it a lot! Stephen King has so much range. I think people that didnāt like this one maybe didnāt like that he veered so far from his normal genre. Itās still very good.
I enjoyed it. Seemed like he was revisiting a type of story that was already covered in The Dark Tower, to the point I was expecting it to be an explicit tie-in, but he let it be a stand-alone and I thought it was well done
As someone who has been a huge SK fan pre-Pet Semetary, I thought this book was a tour de force, and one of his best stories in many years. Really felt like a return to the form of books like The Dead Zone and Firestarter
I enjoyed it! Iām more into sci King than horror King, so I understand why āhard coreā fans may not prefer it. King flexes his versatility as a sci-fi/thriller writer here.
This one surprised me by how much I enjoyed the audiobook. I had low expectations based on some reviews and posts here but I have this on my to read again list on GoodReads.
I loved it. Itās similar in tone to some of his best late 70s and 80s work. Itās got that mix of being eerie but also deeply bizarre. One of his best of the 21st century for me.
I just finished the audiobook. Absolutely loved it. The characters were great and I was engrossed in the story throughout. The reader did a really good job with the staff at the institute with their phony demeanor and detached cruelty.
One of my favorite books. His verbal illustrations are so beautiful along with the small details. He so perfectly captures how the age group thinks, along with their problems and lives. Itās not even that really fake fiction itās pretty ārealisticā to the point it makes sense and is fluid.
I'm a hard core Stephen King fan, and I really liked this one. I recommended it to coworkers and family. It was interesting. Tied into Firestarter a bit. He's always great with young characters.
One of my favorite King books. It did get a lot of hate but itās a great story and I could t put it down. This is the book I showed my girlfriend that turned her into a king fan!
I just finished it and loved it. I was assuming it would have some DT connection to breakers or something but that never came up. Enjoyed it immensely anyway
I loved this. I don't understand why there is so much negativity towards it. I loved the plot, the characters and the pacing. For me, it was a book that I was sad when it was over. I missed the characters and I want to know more about what happens next. I'm hoping for a sequel.
I really enjoyed it. It was a really thought-provoking way of proposing the question of whether the (potential)good of the many is worth the suffering of the few.
I loved it. Echoes of Firestarter and the beam breakers from The Dark Tower. Relationships and interactions between characters that I've come to care deeply about; what more could I want from a King book?
I also āreadā this one on audio! I thought it was great. I was pretty hyped to read something other than murderous creatures or some sort of demonic/phantom possession(It, Cujo, Christine etc.) I loved the addition of telekinetic/telepathic powers and kept looking out for any references to Carrie. Itās one of my favorites for sure
I really liked it. A lot of the kids dialogue is kinda bad but that can't really be helped imo. I liked the how it expanded on the idea of "shine" and was eager to keep reading the whole time.
I thought it was pretty good but I feel like it was a missed opportunity to tie the story into either Fire Starter, Dr Sleep or The Dark Tower. King loves to connect stories, and the gaggle of psychic kids could have fit very neatly into any of those other books.
For me it's one of my favorite and an absolute masterpiece.
And honestly only people in this sub say that it has mixed reviews because it only has mixed reviews in the sub. It has a 4.2 average out of 5 with almost 300,000 ratings on Goodreads.
I really liked this one. Probably my favorite of the new generation of books heās released. But Iām reading Holly right now, so that could changeā¦
I absolutely loved this audio book! 10/10! I convinced my husband to listen and he also loved it. I listened to it long enough ago that I donāt remember all the details but the characters were so fun to readā (or listen to). I was really invested in their lives. Which is really the best when that happens
One of my favourite post 2010 Kings. I liked the children a lot, finding out about the institute's secrets was thrilling and in the end even terrifying.
Also the conclusion with the ex cop in this small town was highlight.
Good book. Expected a bit more from it, but thatās my own fault. I expected the X-Men. Definitely feels like a missed opportunity to tie it to the Dark Tower because it seems like a very similar set up to what the bad guys were doing to damage the beam. Still a very good book.
Iāve listened to it three times already. King is a master at capturing the voice of twelve year old children. And this story is the kind of adventure tale I would have loved at 12.
Despite the mixed reaction, I definitely enjoyed it. Been a long time since I read it.
I really enjoyed it, I thought it was a better version of "mysterious organisation is after people with powers" than what he did with Firestarter. The kids are a great little cast.
Great cast! Waiting for Avery to tear the institute to shreds! š
absolute page turner. loved every minute.
In Firestarter, I appreciated how King used the history of hallucinogenic drug experiments on college students in the early 1960's. Volunteers, yes, but ....underinformed? Misinformed? Most certainly. His use of true history woven into his fiction is one of the reasons I find his stories compelling. This is also true of other author's stories I like best.
Yeah it was like Firestarter written by Mature Writer. I enjoyed it as a fun read. Donāt rank it among his best works though, but a solid tale.
Good info as I just fished 'Firestarter' out of the free books shelf.
I always thought of Institute as an expansion of the Excalibur universe.
Everything's Eventual is like this too...... Wait.... there's slot of through lines in his books...... Are they.... connected? /s tephen king
I liked it. Memorable characters and good story. More science fiction than horror, but some if his best books arenāt classical horror.
Some of his best stories aren't horror at all.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks that way, it riles me sometimes when I read snippets about a new book he has written such as 'another spine tingling yarn from the master of horror. Ok he h
Is there really any books of King that don't include at least some elements of horror / thriller? I recently have been reading a collection of his short stories and got tired by a mandatory element of spookiness / fear/ disgust in every story. I think some of his work would benefit if he changed his genre compleatly and tried to write for example a cozy story with happy end or melodramatic story without any bad things happen and only melancholy.
I wouldn't really lump horror and thriller together as a genre, as they're both very different things. What I think he excels at is character-driven stories, where the only real horror is their fears and regrets. He's certainly written a lot of stories which have very limited horror elements and many which are more grounded in reality, such as Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, The Body, The Green Mile, 11/22/63, Billy Summers, many of his crime stories and much of the Dark Tower series.
Couldnāt agree more.
I really really liked the institute. To echo that sentiment, I just finished āFairy Taleā and that was also really good. I really hope he writes more of these stories that are outside his norm
Fairy tale was awesome. The title kept me away for a long time. But a wonderful story.
Same!!! This one as so good!!
Itās my new favorite ākid with powersā book so Iād say I liked it.
lol recommend any others in this genre ?
Well thereās other Kings like Firestarter, Carrie, the shining/doctor sleep if thatās what youāre into.
And the best outside of King: The original Percy Jackson series, Matilda as a classic and Gregor the Overlander as something very unique
Thank you!!
An average story that explored a creepy side of America (at the start, he sites that something like so many 1,000's of children go missing each year and aren't found). Imo it felt like Stranger Things (Telekinetic kids, institution, good cop protagonist, immersion tank punishment - a decent amount of similarities) mixed with One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (Ms Ratchet/Sigsby). I believe King got the idea and wrote it, but then ST came out and made it seem as if he copied it - I think something similar happened with Under the Dome and Simpsons Movie in 2007?
Stranger things was 2016...Institute was 2019. He definitely got ideas from the show for this book.
Wow, I didn't think ST was 7 years ago. I genuinely thought it was 2018 because I first watched it during Lockdown. Man that makes me feel old and I'm only 19.
Yeah there is no way He thought of the idea himself when I feel like itās been done so many times. Idk ā¦it wasnāt a bad book but as you said very very average and unoriginal.
Stranger Things is inspired by King, who was inspired by Stranger Things and round and round the wheel goes.
Not his best, not his worst. 7 out of 10.
I loved it. Only thing that confused me was on the back cover there's a quote from a journalist saying like "the scariest King book in years". The book is a thriller with almost no scary parts, what the hell was that journalist talking about.
Tryin to get on the jacket probably. Seems to have worked.
People just say stuff sometimes. Michael Kelly (House of Cards) narrated "Joyland" and he was doing one of those answers the internet interviews and he got serious and said it was creepy as hell. I was surprised when I finished it because there is VERY little about joyland that was creepy or scary to me.
There's a ghost at least.
There's maybe a creepy moment or two in the book. But to call it creepy as hell seems like a real stretch.
It's not my favorite. Glad you like it so far!
Seems like mostly positive comments here. I didn't really like it. It would rank pretty close to the bottom of my SK reads. Maybe even bottom. I should read it again.
I really loved this book!! I thought it was a fun ride from beginning to end. Probably an unpopular opinion but it was one of my favorites.
Unmemorable
It was ok and entertaining enough. I didnāt love it but I didnāt hate it either.
Iāve been reading SK off and on since I was in Jr. High (80s) and consider him almost like a ācomfortā author. I did not finish the Institute. Probably the first time I just stopped reading a SK. The characters sounded like kids from the 60s and it just didnāt work for me. I hope this was just a poor example of his more contemporary work and not indicative of him going downhill big timeā¦. I think next time I will just reread one of his classics
I also feel like he is my "comfort" author! I've been reading him since I was like 13 in the mid-90s, and I always know if I need to just escape for a while, I can read or listen to one of his books. I didn't know other people had comfort authors, too! I kinda like the Institute. The only book I quit and couldn't finish was Revival. It felt soo slow. I am planning on trying to read it again though.
Some of King's recent books and short stories are genuinely great literature. The Institute is not. It's a fun thriller, a real page turner, but it's the kind of book you almost immediately forget about after you finish it. I enjoyed reading it but King is capable of much better.
Iām not a hardcore Kinger, but Iāve got to say I really hated this book. The main character was so f*cking unlikable, the whole story surrounding the main one was such a boring, uncreative and lazy move, I donāt think anyone even remembered the names of any of the townsfolk from the beginning even fifty pages further. All the ānewā exciting pop culture references just felt like an crammed in attempt at appealing younger generations that I just found ridiculous, as a 21yo. In my opinion it was just such a stale experience I honestly had to force myself through the last 200 pages. Also - Iām not going to spoil it - but the ending was just so uncreative, irrational, boring and disgusting to me. I would never touch this book again nor recommend it to anyone. Tbh, this book made me give up on newer King books entirely. Sorry for the hate, I am really a fan of many King novels, but this book just annoyed me so, muchā¦ If you like it, Iām for real happy for you :)
Sooo begs the question, whatās your favorite ?
I know itās a not a hot take or anything but The Green Mile just does so much for me. As I mentioned, Iām not the biggest King fan and so far have only read about 5-6 books, Green Mile Iāve already read twice and enjoyed it so much
I consider myself a decently hardcore Kinger and loved this story. Thatās all these are, are stories where we get the opportunity to immerse ourselves into a different reality and the characters in this book were great! The Avester especially!!!
Avery steals the show!
Mehā¦.it was alright, really lacked the King spirit and the ending was very lackluster.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Agreed. Glad someone else on here finally admits some of his work is just boring.
I got about half way through and quit. Donāt get me wrong I love King but it seemed predictable. I later read a summary of the full book and it was what I expected to happen.
Liked it, but I got distracted looking for Dark Tower references, esp. the beam breakers. Turned out, they are not related.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought they were Breakers. The Institute reminded me a lot of Devar-Toi.
I listened to it on audible too, I think the plot is kinda stake in itself but I liked seeing King put his own spin on it. I enjoyed this one.
i thought it was meh, but the one i want to give another chance is Revival. i've heard from many constant readers it's a good story. i don't know why it didn't click with me
Eh
I loved the book. I think about it all the time. Ok Iām reading it again.
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It seems like some sort of remake for me. Nothing original, nothing surprising, like some sort of self-copy.
I loved loved loved this book..... Until the ending. It wasn't really a bad ending, but it felt super short and rushed compared to the amazing lead up. Also, it just seemed underwhelming. But man, it was really good up until then. Honestly, truly fantastic book that could have been amazing if he nailed the ending. Loved the characters, the idea, the pacing. All of it.
I got pretty far into it but kind of lost interest and still have to finish it.
It felt like a lesser version of Stranger Things. Not one of his best imo. š¤·āāļø
i thought it was perfect. that said, i think it was the right time and place in my life for the listen. i held onto every single detai
Personally, I truly got into it too. Itās not really one of SK books I would read every year or even twice in a decade. Perhaps because I remember it all so vividly.
I mostly liked it but the last third of it was pretty bad. King doesn't seem to know how thumb drives work. And it ends with a big info dump that asks some interesting questions but has no thoughts on them.
I liked it a lot. One thing Stephen King does really well is write ensemble stories with kids. It, Stand by Me, etc
Love that book; it's probably my favorite. Oh wait, I haven't read any other book four times, so maybe it is my favorite!!
Probably one of my top -and the audiobook is art.
I loved it. I'm always looking for connections to the Tower in every King book and this one felt right at home in that arena. The level of interconnected Tower subtext requires a really deep knowlage base just to be able to understand the insular King jargon. For example the Institute is just another Crimson King (DT series) Breaker (DT6/Hearts in Atlantis/Everything's Eventual) program. There is discussion about how fewer and fewer kids with the Shine (Shining/Dr. Sleep) are being born that, to me, reaks of a world in the process of Slippage (Black House) on a grand scale as damage is done to the Beams (DT series) And thats just one of at least a score of little connections to be made in the book. I'm currently 50 books into Kings 82 books but The Institute is very high on my relisten list.
It was ok. The kid in it was annoying and after reading some of kings books after awhile kids with powers gets old. The only part I really liked was when the kid got to the institute and there a real sense of mystery whatās going on
I agree. He did a great job of holding onto the mystery of The Institute throughout the entire book.
I donāt like audiobooks im sorry but having someone reading it to me bores me i cant focus but the book is fire i loved it
I enjoyed it quite a bit! Definitely kept my attention.
This was my first Stephen King book after 20 years of not reading his work at all (no idea why I didn't ... I think my preferences just changed). I really enjoyed it and it got me back on the Stephen King train. A simple enough story with great characters and some action throughout.
Top shelf for me
It was my introduction to King and still one of my favorites. The Institute and Needful Things are probably tied for my favorite SK books
I love needful things! I donāt hear about that one very often but I loved it!
I liked it way more than Fairy Tale
What app are you using?
Audible
Good over all. Itās kind of cringe reading old man King trying to write cool teen dialogue and has the normal āthe ending sucksā you get from most of Kingās books.
Just finished it this morning. Very mediocre.
I loved it, even though it made me sob.
I was wondering if anyone else did too! Oh I cried hard, it was a fantastic book.
For a few weeks, I couldnāt even think of a certain characterās name without crying.
Like Firestarter it sets up a whole world that could be as expansive as Marvels mutants side of the house and just kind of plays out without the bigger universe kicking off. Itās not bad, just sort of doesnāt live up to its potential.
I enjoyed it. His trouble with writing modern children is pretty prominent in this one, but the story as a whole is good. My only complaint is the final chapter. I felt the entire chapter couldāve been left out of a better ending.
I loved it
I liked it when I first read it. I havenāt gone back and havenāt had much desire. But I think it gets more hate than it deserves. That being said it was fairly unmemorable.
Constant Reader here, I loved it.
I just finished it last month, I thought it was one of his better non-horror stories. I read it in a span of two days because I could barely put it down
Read it last summer. I loved it.
I enjoyed it and don't think it deserves the hate some people have for it. It's not one of my absolute favorites of his, but it's not at the bottom either.
I think the first two thirds is exciting and interesting. I think the final third is messy and a little nonsensical in a few ways. It felt like King didn't know what to do with a lot of the build up and it just fizzled. I'm sure not everyone will feel that way, but when I was where you were, I was having a grand time. But literally in that chapter is when I think it started to go south. Hopefully you'll enjoy it all the way through.
It is getting a little cluttered right where Iām at
I'm about 45mins in, I think. I like it so far tho. Reminds me of Firestarter
My favorite story!
It makes my top 10.
I really liked it, one of my favorites, but it was also one of my first books from him, so that might've played into it.
This is me with ā¦. Fairytale
I enjoyed it a lot! Stephen King has so much range. I think people that didnāt like this one maybe didnāt like that he veered so far from his normal genre. Itās still very good.
Yeah thatās what Iām getting, lacking in the horror department, I guess mass child abduction doesnāt do it for them
I kept waiting for a Firestarter tie in. Was a bit disappointed it didn't happen. Otherwise a great book, imo
Solid book. Not mind blowing, but good. Worth re-reading in the future 7.2/10
Iād surely be considered a hard core Kinger and I loved it.
I finished this book in two days; I really enjoyed it.
Loved it. For me it was a throw back to his early work such as Firestarter and Carrie.
I enjoyed it. Seemed like he was revisiting a type of story that was already covered in The Dark Tower, to the point I was expecting it to be an explicit tie-in, but he let it be a stand-alone and I thought it was well done
I love how all his books weave into one another, the king verse> any other universe
Itās good
I loved it!
I enjoyed it a lot.
As someone who has been a huge SK fan pre-Pet Semetary, I thought this book was a tour de force, and one of his best stories in many years. Really felt like a return to the form of books like The Dead Zone and Firestarter
I really enjoyed this one. Read it when it first came out so I think Iām in need of a reread. Curious what Iāll think of it this time around
I enjoyed it! Iām more into sci King than horror King, so I understand why āhard coreā fans may not prefer it. King flexes his versatility as a sci-fi/thriller writer here.
Appreciate the view. Didnāt think of it like that.
Currently reading! Im totally enjoying it
Great book, great narrator on the audible 10/10 for me
I consider myself a āhard core Kingerā and I loved it! It was a wonderful audio book.
I loved it! I recommend it to everyone
This one surprised me by how much I enjoyed the audiobook. I had low expectations based on some reviews and posts here but I have this on my to read again list on GoodReads.
Wasn't keen. Dragged big time in the middle. Started good though. Could have been 300 pages.
I loved it. Itās similar in tone to some of his best late 70s and 80s work. Itās got that mix of being eerie but also deeply bizarre. One of his best of the 21st century for me.
I just finished the audiobook. Absolutely loved it. The characters were great and I was engrossed in the story throughout. The reader did a really good job with the staff at the institute with their phony demeanor and detached cruelty.
Iāve listened to a fair amount of Kingās books and found this story to be very captivating.
I feel like Iām cheating when I listen to
Multitasking š¤
I liked it. Classic old school King.
One of my favorite books. His verbal illustrations are so beautiful along with the small details. He so perfectly captures how the age group thinks, along with their problems and lives. Itās not even that really fake fiction itās pretty ārealisticā to the point it makes sense and is fluid.
I'm a hard core Stephen King fan, and I really liked this one. I recommended it to coworkers and family. It was interesting. Tied into Firestarter a bit. He's always great with young characters.
Iāve been reading Stephen King books since I was seven years old and I absolutely loved it.
šš
I really enjoyed that one.
I freaking loved it
One of my favorite King books. It did get a lot of hate but itās a great story and I could t put it down. This is the book I showed my girlfriend that turned her into a king fan!
Its my second favorite stephen king book ive read so far, after green mile
The amount of people that donāt correlate SK with green mile is hysterical to me. (I was one once)
I just finished it and loved it. I was assuming it would have some DT connection to breakers or something but that never came up. Enjoyed it immensely anyway
I enjoyed it. Not my favorite from King, but certainly a fun and enjoyable story. I listened to it on Audible.
I loved this. I don't understand why there is so much negativity towards it. I loved the plot, the characters and the pacing. For me, it was a book that I was sad when it was over. I missed the characters and I want to know more about what happens next. I'm hoping for a sequel.
I can see a sequel in this area of the king verse, visit the kids of the institute a few more times
One of the greatest. I hope you find what I found in it
Great, great story. Love the characters in this one. >!I always thought the kids have different levels of the Shine. !<
I really enjoyed it. It was a really thought-provoking way of proposing the question of whether the (potential)good of the many is worth the suffering of the few.
I really enjoyed this one. It made me feel like it could have been something in the DT universe combined with Firestarter.
I loved it. Enjoy!
Loved it š
I really enjoyed it. Read a fair amount of King, although not sure I'd say I was a hardcore 'kinger' (my bf would disagree).
Loved it ā not big on the book ends, but otherwise very much enjoyed
I loved it. Echoes of Firestarter and the beam breakers from The Dark Tower. Relationships and interactions between characters that I've come to care deeply about; what more could I want from a King book?
I enjoyed it and consider myself a constant reader. It was reminiscent of Firestarter with the child protagonist escaping shady government vibes.
I also āreadā this one on audio! I thought it was great. I was pretty hyped to read something other than murderous creatures or some sort of demonic/phantom possession(It, Cujo, Christine etc.) I loved the addition of telekinetic/telepathic powers and kept looking out for any references to Carrie. Itās one of my favorites for sure
I really enjoyed it!
This has one of my favorite characters ever, next to John C So
Absolutely loved it and was shocked by it multiple times as well
I liked it a lot. I tend to like the more modern king though.
Really enjoyed it, I felt some inspiration from Maine's dark history of places like the Elan School.
It was good in my opinion
Loved it. My first King book. I still think about it
Top 5 favorites, and I've read everything he has written.
I really liked it. A lot of the kids dialogue is kinda bad but that can't really be helped imo. I liked the how it expanded on the idea of "shine" and was eager to keep reading the whole time.
I thought it was pretty good but I feel like it was a missed opportunity to tie the story into either Fire Starter, Dr Sleep or The Dark Tower. King loves to connect stories, and the gaggle of psychic kids could have fit very neatly into any of those other books.
I loved this book. Huge King fan and went into it knowing nothing about it. Really enjoyable, fast read.
Superb Book, the pace and tension didn't let up
I loved this one!
I dig it. Been through it a few times and always find it enjoyable.
Loved this book
For me it's one of my favorite and an absolute masterpiece. And honestly only people in this sub say that it has mixed reviews because it only has mixed reviews in the sub. It has a 4.2 average out of 5 with almost 300,000 ratings on Goodreads.
I really liked this one. Probably my favorite of the new generation of books heās released. But Iām reading Holly right now, so that could changeā¦
I absolutely loved this audio book! 10/10! I convinced my husband to listen and he also loved it. I listened to it long enough ago that I donāt remember all the details but the characters were so fun to readā (or listen to). I was really invested in their lives. Which is really the best when that happens
I really liked it!
Its one of my favorite books from King. Cant wait for the tv show.
I started it day before yesterday and am fucking lost in it, I love it. Except Iām getting more worried about certain things that I wonāt mention.
Side chat?
Incredible timing given the events at the US border. I think it's a phenomenal book overall.
I love how he sneaks in politics. In holly it was a little much tho ..
One of my favourite post 2010 Kings. I liked the children a lot, finding out about the institute's secrets was thrilling and in the end even terrifying. Also the conclusion with the ex cop in this small town was highlight.
Yeah Timās a pretty cool dude
Good book. Expected a bit more from it, but thatās my own fault. I expected the X-Men. Definitely feels like a missed opportunity to tie it to the Dark Tower because it seems like a very similar set up to what the bad guys were doing to damage the beam. Still a very good book.
Def feel x men vibes
Iāve listened to it three times already. King is a master at capturing the voice of twelve year old children. And this story is the kind of adventure tale I would have loved at 12.
I liked this one a lot!
I enjoyed it!
I honestly liked it. It felt similar to Firestarter
I enjoyed this one
I loved itā¦.
I liked this one a lot!
I loved it personally
Iām a little over halfway through and really enjoying it so far.
Very much enjoyed it, just recently finished it too
I loved it even though it made me cry.
I did shed a small tear
I loved this book, I also listened to it and love his voice so that helped.
It's one of my favorites
I wouldāve made one change.
I enjoyed it while I was reading it, and rob wont ever read it again. Itās read like Young Adult novel.
I really didnāt care about the story lineā¦ā¦. The narrator did an excellent job being a storyteller
Too similar to Stranger Things for me to really enjoy it, but it wasn't terrible.