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Dean (6921 KP) rated The boogeyman (2023) in Movies
Jun 9, 2023 (Updated Jun 9, 2023)
Eerie (1 more)
Creature design
Mainly jump scares (1 more)
Bit predictable
Decent Horror
An ok Horror based on a short Stephen King story. Definitely has the hallmarks of a Stephen King creation. Very atmospheric in the first half, creepy while playing on the fear of those dark spaces when the lights are out. The creature, when you finally see it, does look scary. Although I think most will spot early on some clues as to how it will pan out. A few too many jump scares as well, most of which you can see coming. Still an enjoyable film overall.
Kevin Phillipson (9946 KP) rated The boogeyman (2023) in Movies
Jun 9, 2023
Watched today don't watch that many movies at the cinema based on a Stephen King story think the last one was the second part of it as I read the original short story the movie is based on so I knew what the movie was about anyway the movie I liked it even for a movie that realies on jump scares not on gore which I liked by keeping the creature mostly in the dark helpled alot ramped up the fear factor overall good film hope there's a sequel
Refreshingly different voices (1 more)
Short, easy to digest stories
Listen to the call!
A solid anthology, there were some weaker tales in there but no more than a Stephen King short story collection.
Really interesting mix of different perspectives and writing styles. I was impressed at how they were all given the same prompt and yet did such vastly different things with it.
Some of them really stuck with me. 'Forest Man' definitely got me the most. It drew me in wonderfully and successfully creeped me out.
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Thank you to Book Sirens and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Really interesting mix of different perspectives and writing styles. I was impressed at how they were all given the same prompt and yet did such vastly different things with it.
Some of them really stuck with me. 'Forest Man' definitely got me the most. It drew me in wonderfully and successfully creeped me out.
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Thank you to Book Sirens and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Dean (6921 KP) rated The Lawnmower Man (1992) in Movies
Jun 29, 2018
Wow looking so outdated now, and Virtual reality is barely used these days. Didn't take off like it was predicted. This is based on a short story by Stephen King, surprised to see a young Pierce Brosnan in this. The graphics for the virtual reality scenes look like an arcade game from the era. It's not very original, yet some how got a sequel a few years later. For a good film about Virtual reality check out the much better eXistenZ!
Night Reader Reviews (683 KP) rated Different Seasons in Books
May 15, 2020
Just Becasue
Not on my top ten list of Stephen King books that I have read, that is for sure. Different Seasons was completely different from his usual work and I do understand that was kind of the whole point. Sadly as a big Stephen King fan the difference was not really appreciated all that much. Shawshank Redemption is my father's favorite movie so it was past time that I finally read the story it was biased off of and sadly to say I can not understand what all the hype was about. The same goes for The Body as Stand By Me is considered a popular move (again one that I have not seen) yet the book was unimpressive. Apt Pupil was disturbing yes, but it was the one story out of the four that was hardest for me to get through, it just drug on and felt like it got no where. Finally I come to The Breathing Method which I was much happier with. Yet even that final story felt like it could have offered so much more if it wasn't cut short.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Night Shift in Books
Feb 23, 2020
King at his best
This is one of the first Stephen King books I remember reading, probably when I was far too young at around the age of 10/11, if not earlier. I loved it then, I loved it the handful of times I've picked it up over the past 2 decades and having decided to read it again this week, I still love it.
King is my favourite author, and it's books like this that really highlight why. I've never before known an author who can bring such detail and intrigue into 20 different short stories, even those stories that are only a few pages long. He's a master storyteller and this book is a great example. Every single story is engaging and filled with horror, telling you just enough to leave you satisfied and not feeling like you're missing out and with a well developed plot and characters.
Out of these 20 short stories, I'd only highlight one of these that is maybe weaker than the rest: 'The Woman in the Room' and this isn't bad, just more that it's lacking in the horror that the rest of the stories have and it's a shame because this is the final story. But aside from this every single story is a brilliant read and if you ever want to find a place to start reading Stephen King, without tackling his major epic novels, there's no finer place to start than this.
King is my favourite author, and it's books like this that really highlight why. I've never before known an author who can bring such detail and intrigue into 20 different short stories, even those stories that are only a few pages long. He's a master storyteller and this book is a great example. Every single story is engaging and filled with horror, telling you just enough to leave you satisfied and not feeling like you're missing out and with a well developed plot and characters.
Out of these 20 short stories, I'd only highlight one of these that is maybe weaker than the rest: 'The Woman in the Room' and this isn't bad, just more that it's lacking in the horror that the rest of the stories have and it's a shame because this is the final story. But aside from this every single story is a brilliant read and if you ever want to find a place to start reading Stephen King, without tackling his major epic novels, there's no finer place to start than this.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Nightmares and Dreamscapes in Books
Mar 8, 2020
A varied mix of stories
It's no secret that Stephen King is my all time favourite author, and I'm especially fond of his anthology books filled with a variety of short stories.
I'd read Nightmares & Dreamscapes manybyeats ago, and decided it was about time to read it again. This really is a varied bunch of stories, all well written as you'd always expect from King, but with plots ranging from an alright 6/10 to an exception 10/10. None of the stories are bad at all, but I did struggle getting through this book at times, especially as it's a rather hefty tome with some seriously small writing. But there are some noteworthy excellent stories in here, such as Dolan's Cadillac, The Ten O'clock People, The Night Flier and Umney's Last Case. There's even a surprise appearance from Holmes and Watson, which whilst it seems oddly out of place in a book of King short stories, it's a very welcome and pretty good story to mix things up a little.
Overall this isn't my King book of short stories (that accolade goes to Night Shift), but it's still a very good offering.
I'd read Nightmares & Dreamscapes manybyeats ago, and decided it was about time to read it again. This really is a varied bunch of stories, all well written as you'd always expect from King, but with plots ranging from an alright 6/10 to an exception 10/10. None of the stories are bad at all, but I did struggle getting through this book at times, especially as it's a rather hefty tome with some seriously small writing. But there are some noteworthy excellent stories in here, such as Dolan's Cadillac, The Ten O'clock People, The Night Flier and Umney's Last Case. There's even a surprise appearance from Holmes and Watson, which whilst it seems oddly out of place in a book of King short stories, it's a very welcome and pretty good story to mix things up a little.
Overall this isn't my King book of short stories (that accolade goes to Night Shift), but it's still a very good offering.
Storyline (1 more)
Characters
Short but Worth the Read!
Being an avid King fan, I could not wait to read his latest novel, Elevation, and was a bit dismayed by the brevity. Upon starting the first chapter, however, I quickly realized that King had once again duped me into thinking he was only capable of writing long, winding novels (I've been duped before by his short story books and by Joyland) and I was pleasantly entertained from the first word to the last.
Elevation is set in a small town, like most of King's stories, one which gives off the air of being both a town to love and one to avoid on a family trip; it has the small town charm we all look for but comes with the small town bigotry as well. Our main character is a long-time resident with an already established problem of which there seems to be no cure and a rocky relationship with his neighbors, one that has a profound effect on his future. King manages to pull his reader in from first page and attach you to his characters, and not just the protagonist but the supporting cast as well, in a way that will leave you desperately wishing there were just a few more pages.
All in all, Elevation is another Stephen King that should not be passed up, filled with a strong central message about how we view the world and the people in it.
Elevation is set in a small town, like most of King's stories, one which gives off the air of being both a town to love and one to avoid on a family trip; it has the small town charm we all look for but comes with the small town bigotry as well. Our main character is a long-time resident with an already established problem of which there seems to be no cure and a rocky relationship with his neighbors, one that has a profound effect on his future. King manages to pull his reader in from first page and attach you to his characters, and not just the protagonist but the supporting cast as well, in a way that will leave you desperately wishing there were just a few more pages.
All in all, Elevation is another Stephen King that should not be passed up, filled with a strong central message about how we view the world and the people in it.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated The Colorado Kid in Books
May 30, 2020
A weak story
Anyone who has read my other book reviews knows I'm a huge Stephen King fan. He's my favourite author, so it really pains me to say that this is probably the weakest book of his I've ever read (and I've read most of them!).
This is a short story that's been published separately, and I think this is the first mistake. It isnt a strong enough story to support being published on it's own. And the story itself is a massive problem. It's well written with some decent characters, but the story is barely there. There's some intrigue but sadly the ending of the story is very lacking. I know it isnt a horror and is meant to be a true crime style novel, but I was hoping for something similar to Joyland which was rather good. And sadly this is nothing like it.
This isnt awful, as it's well written enough to keep you reading but it's in no way a shining example of King's usual standard.
This is a short story that's been published separately, and I think this is the first mistake. It isnt a strong enough story to support being published on it's own. And the story itself is a massive problem. It's well written with some decent characters, but the story is barely there. There's some intrigue but sadly the ending of the story is very lacking. I know it isnt a horror and is meant to be a true crime style novel, but I was hoping for something similar to Joyland which was rather good. And sadly this is nothing like it.
This isnt awful, as it's well written enough to keep you reading but it's in no way a shining example of King's usual standard.
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Everything's Eventual: 14 Dark Tales in Books
Apr 2, 2020
Another great collection of stories
I feel like I need to include a preface with all of my Stephen King reviews, or some form of disclaimer, to warn any readers that he is my favourite author so my review may not be as neutral as it could be. Either that or he really is a great writer 😆
Everything’s Eventual is a collection of short stories that I read well over a decade ago, and as short stories require a lot less brain power than a full on novel, I decided to give this a go as I couldn’t recall many of the stories. And overall this is a very good collection of short stories. They’re all well written with developed characters (as you’d expect with King I’m sure), and the stories themselves have all got very good plots and storylines. The stories are all well balanced and there are none in here that are either overly long or too short, they’re very well paced. There are some great stories in here, most notably for me the John Dillinger story ‘The Death of Jack Hamilton’ and the Dark Tower prequel ‘The Little Sisters of Eluria’, but all of the stories are entertaining and very enjoyable. I wouldn’t say there are any amazing standout ‘wow’ stories in this, which is possibly why I’ve marked it down a little from some of King’s other collections of short stories.
Everything’s Eventual is a collection of short stories that I read well over a decade ago, and as short stories require a lot less brain power than a full on novel, I decided to give this a go as I couldn’t recall many of the stories. And overall this is a very good collection of short stories. They’re all well written with developed characters (as you’d expect with King I’m sure), and the stories themselves have all got very good plots and storylines. The stories are all well balanced and there are none in here that are either overly long or too short, they’re very well paced. There are some great stories in here, most notably for me the John Dillinger story ‘The Death of Jack Hamilton’ and the Dark Tower prequel ‘The Little Sisters of Eluria’, but all of the stories are entertaining and very enjoyable. I wouldn’t say there are any amazing standout ‘wow’ stories in this, which is possibly why I’ve marked it down a little from some of King’s other collections of short stories.