Revival by Stephen King comes by the way of Audible for this review and its seems to be pretty polarizing. If you love Lovecraft, this is definitely the book for you – don’t read another second of this review and just buy the book. If you’ve never heard of Lovecraft, then read on!
Revival – Spoiler Free Review
A gentle reminder, this review is for the Revival audio book version ready by Lemmy Constantine. I will discuss the narrator in a moment, but first let’s take a dive into the world of Stephen King’s Revival.
We start our journey somewhere in the 1960s in some small town. In many ways, Revival is a lot like other Stephen King books — small towns are horrible. I’m pretty sure I’m not spoiling anything here. Every time Stephen King opens a story in a small town, you just know them folk are in for a world of hurt. Revival is no different.
With Revival, though, we get an odd couple paring of a reverend and a boy. Mind you, Reverend Jacobs (for those of us not Church minded) means that the man can marry and his wife is the talk of the town. Imagine a small town where the only thing of note that happens is Cow-Chip bingo (it’s that ‘game’ where you bet on where a cow will poop…no, really…). In the end, it’s that small town nature that really builds Jamie Morton (the boy) and maybe tears him down a bit, the way only small towns do.
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Speaking of tearing down, the Rev might be full Jesus at the start, but he has the doubt and fear of most of us. A little bit of tragedy can go a long way to expose what people say they believe (or maybe do but just in good times) and what they actually believe when the (non-Cow) chips are down.
After what seems like a ‘so long and thanks for all the fish’ moment, we zoom past the years (years seemingly kinder to some than others). What happens next might seem a bit of a forced pairing, but, as with much of King’s work, it seems to ‘fit’.
Lovecraftian
Without major spoilers–there are deep Lovecraftian themes and vibes here. The writing feels decidedly an act of love for horror years gone by. The vocabulary is Lovecraftian, the set ups, the inter-linking, and even the mythos all play a role in Revival.
What started out as subtle started to get louder and louder until a cacophony blasted from the page. It was a bit of a thrill to catch the first few strings and wonder ‘Wait, is King really…’ and then being rewarded at the end of the novel with such a passionate homage was worth the price of admission (or credit!).
Like I said, if you love Lovecraft, then Stephen King’s Revival is definitely the book for you. If you despise Lovecraft, you might want to skip on through.
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Stephen King, Revival
A note on Audible
Audible is an Amazon company that churns out what is the modern day equivalent of books on tape. If if you’ve ever had ‘that’ experience at the library or some long forgotten Borders or Book World shelves, then you know what you’re getting into. No matter how good (or bad) the book is, if the narrator sucks then the whole thing crumbles.
Although not Will Patton or Craig Wasson, two of King’s strongest narrators, Lemmy Constantine gives a commanding performance in Revival. He hits the notes and puts the right energy and emotion to leave the dear listener wanting more. If you aren’t into Lovecraft, give the sample of the audio a try and see what I mean.
Stephen King’s Revival – Score
Revival, as an audible book gets a 4.8 from me. It’s smooth, the story has a decent hook that develops well, and if you’re a Lovecraft fan then this is a no-brainer. If you’ve never hear of Lovecraft (I’ll link a few below), then you might miss some of the ‘inside’ jokes King puts into this novel. Either way–fan or not–it’s well worth the credit.
(4.8 / 5)
Where to buy Stephen King’s Revival?
If you want to check the book/movie/show out, feel free to click on below via Amazon. Remember, if you buy, we do get $.
Published in September of this year, Holly is the latest novel from the undisputed king of horror, Stephen King.
I was excited when I heard that Holly was getting her own book. If you’re not familiar with the larger body of King’s work, she was a secondary character in the Mr. Mercedes trilogy. She was also a secondary character in The Outsider, though that was called Holly Gibney #1. Holly Gibney #2 was If It Bleeds, part of a short story collection by the same name.
While you don’t have to read any of this before you read Holly, it will help you get some of the references.
The Story
When our story begins, Holly is mourning the death of her mother. Her partner Pete is in the hospital with Covid, and she is not supposed to be working.
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But when a woman named Penny Dahl calls, asking for Holly’s help finding her missing daughter, she can’t ignore the plea.
As Holly searches the last place Bonnie Dahl was seen, she starts to learn of other missing persons cases. The cases don’t have anything in common, and neither do the victims. Except that they all had an interaction, however small, with a married couple named Rodney and Emily Harris.
Retired, Rodney and Emily are suffering from the usual but heartbreaking ailments that come along with age. Arthritis, sciatica, failing memories. But they believe they just might have found a miracle cure. One that most people would refuse. At least, we hope they would.
While Holly digs deeper, her friend Barbara Robinson is seeking a poetry mentor. This search brings her dangerously close to the two killer professors.
What worked
The reason I was excited about this book was to spend more time with Holly. She was easily the best part of The Outsider and inspired me to read the Mr. Mercedes trilogy.
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And she was just as wonderful in this book. She was clever, insightful, and kind. Holly manages to be innocent and very aware of how the world works at the same time. She’s fiercely loyal to her friends and has a strong grasp of right from wrong. I sincerely hope that there’s a Holly #4 in the works.
I also loved the way this story was told. Through the course of the book, we see the story from different points of view. We see flashbacks to each victim and their terrible ends. We see Holly hunting a poor lost woman. And we see Barbara circling dangerously close to the true killers. The tension this built was incredible. It was hard not to shriek, watching all the pieces come so close to being together, only to be blown away and come together again.
What didn’t work
That being said, this was not a perfect novel. For one thing, there was an inordinate amount of attention to Covid 19.
Honestly, there were three killers in this book.
And I get it. Covid continues to be a terrible thing. It’s just one of many horrific world events we’ve suffered through, and yet another that is going to leave a scar on everyone who experienced it.
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I don’t need to tell you about the fear, and supply chain issues. The deaths and medical professionals stretched to their limits. The mass graves. The horrific reality that there were people who just did not care to take it seriously, even as people were dying.
I don’t need to tell you, and neither did King on almost every page. And it was on almost every page.
Yes, Covid took over every part of our lives. It didn’t need to take over every part of this story.
My other irritation with this book is one more difficult to explain without giving away the ending. Forgive me if I ruin anything for you, it’s not my intention.
I wanted something terrible to happen to the antagonists. I wanted them to suffer. And they didn’t suffer nearly enough.
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Finally, I wish we’d gotten some sort of closure for Holly over her mother stealing all of her inheritance from her. I understand that sometimes in life people die and we don’t get answers that we’d like from them. But this is fiction. We, and the characters, are supposed to get some sort of closure.
Is Holly my new favorite Stephen King novel? No, not really. It isn’t as good as The Stand, or From a Buick 8. But it was a good story. It was suspenseful, exciting, and a little sad. It was everything you’d want from a thriller.
Holly appears to be King’s new Castle Rock. He keeps coming back to her, over and over. And I couldn’t be happier about that.
The time has come for another installment of our resident mystery novelMonastery. We continue to follow our set of characters trying to uncover the secrets of their grandfather’s murder. Too bad members of their family are going to great lengths to stomp their efforts. Anyway, enough rambling, let’s begin!
Plot
We start this part of Monastery with our crew coming to a simple conclusion – they must seek answers wherever possible. What better place to find them than visiting Albert’s sister? It’s a shame they’re not going to the Old Farm, there would definitely be some answers there. Francis’s character development is quite intriguing to me. He’s clearly uninvolved in the cover-up and yet there seems to be a lot of understated trauma. One can only wonder if it will all boil to the surface.
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While I know some people don’t enjoy flashback sequences, Albert’s trip down memory lane provided some nice characterization for me. It’s his story after all, and even though his and Cassandra’s relationship is far from #goals, it’s complex and interesting. I also enjoyed his commentary on selective memory, I feel like that applies a lot to our daily lives.
David and Nicole’s dynamic is also explored more. The pairing bond over their taste in music and share a kiss after he helps her recover from a werewolf attack (yes, you heard that right, and I want to know more immediately). Tensions between them rise further to the point where she actually considers breaking up with Fred. That is, until he pulls a grand gesture (something David was advised to do). While I don’t condone cheating or flirting with someone to make your partner jealous, those are all love triangle tropes and this one is in full swing.
Things escalate further at the town’s raffle draw party when Aunt Doris shows up and gets paid off by Cassandra. While I’m not certain how I feel about her character, she does provide the group with valuable information – Albert’s cause of death was faked. Of course.
We end this installment of Monastery on a bit of a harrowing note. Cassandra abuses her own son in front of Henry, who is left completely traumatized. This stuck out to me as a change in tone and I wonder how much darker it will get. We’ll find out soon…
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Overall thoughts
This part of Monastery focuses a lot on Albert’s youth and the love triangle between David, Nicole, and Fred. While some people would say it’s unnecessary, I think the additions, especially the romance, both keep the pacing so we don’t fly through the mystery too quickly and lighten the mood a bit. Not to mention there is some interesting characterisation brought to light because of this. The questions are still piling up and I can just feel we’re on the cusp of things hitting the fan. I can’t wait for more.
(5 / 5)
Read further for some insight from the author himself:
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1. Last time I asked you how you integrate comedy into your writing. How about romance? How do you pick the moment that feels right to sprinkle some spice into the story without turning it into a full-blown chick flick? Do you have a personal preference of who you would like Nicole to end up with (if you can share)?
Funny you should ask about picking the right moment because David originally kissed Nicole in episode 1, but it felt rushed then, so I ultimately moved it to this third episode. I always knew there would be a romantic triangle, trite though it may seem, because at its heart this story is very soapy. As for when the right moment is, the story itself always tells me that, but have no fear, the murder mystery will always be at the center of everything.
Also, who do I think Nicole should end up with? I think she needs to work on loving herself a bit more. It may seem she loves herself a bit too much, at surface level, but do read on.
2. There is no doubt Cassandra is a bitch and a murder accomplice (if not the murderer). However, you are showing the readers layers of her character (such as her being abused as a young woman). Is this something that will be relevant in the story later on or just a device to provide her character with some humanity?
Relevant. So, so relevant. There are many glimpses of Albert’s past throughout the series, but the events surrounding St. John’s Party in 1976 compose the main flashback thread. I want to believe there is great re-read value to my story, as there are so many clues and little elements spread throughout, things you might only catch on to when you have the full picture. I mean, the werewolf’s identity is revealed in every episode they feature in – it’s just a matter of knowing where to look for it! As for Cassandra, in my opinion, she is the best character, and I am so excited for people to dive into her story.
Frankenstein is a story that we’re all familiar with. It’s been part of the public zeitgeist for generations, almost since it was published in 1818. It’s been made into movies, ripped off for TV shows, and parodied to hell and back. Frankenstein’s monster had met the Three Stooges and the Chipmunks and sang in front of a Christmas Tree to sell iPhones.
In the original story, though, our tale is told to a narrator by our main character, Victor Frankenstein. He tells a horrific tale of creating a monster in a moment of hubris, and then of being hunted by that monster.
Reading the story as a child, it never occurred to me that Victor might have been full of shit.
We begin our story with Elizabeth. She and her best friend Justine are going to search for Victor, who hasn’t been in contact with his family in months. Elizabeth worries that if Victor’s gone too long, his father will stop seeing Elizabeth as useful and throw her out.
As they search for Victor, Elizabeth remembers important moments in their past. She was a poor girl, abused and neglected by her caregivers. But she charms Victor, and so his mother takes her in.
As we go back and forth between the past and present, a dark and morbid picture is painted. Victor has some issues with anger. With seeing other people as human beings and not playthings. Most of us might call him a sociopath.
As Elizabeth recalls his bloody past and searches for him, ser realizes that he’s gotten into something much darker than he ever has before. And she is bound and determined to make sure no one ever finds out what that is.
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No matter what that is.
What worked
While I’ve read countless retellings and reimagining in my life, I’ve rarely found one that compliments the original work so well. This story feels like it could very well be the actual truth, while Frankenstein is nothing more than the lies told by a rich white boy who now has to face the consequences of his actions for once. They make sense together.
I also adored Elizabeth. Not at first, though, which I think is the point. At first, she’s a selfish person who would do anything to anyone if it meant that she was safe. And we see this over and over in the ways that she covers up for young Victor’s madness. I don’t think we should have expected anything less from the author of Hide. White seems to have a talent for creating characters who are their stories being self-serving for very understandable reasons, before rising to the calling of heroism.
What didn’t work
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This was a tightly written story, and it’s hard to pinpoint anything that stood out as not working. However, I will say this. There is a moment in the story when the tables turn between Victor and Elizabeth. Elizabeth claims to just then realize how many people Victor has killed. I kind of think she probably knew before then. She just didn’t want to.
While this makes sense, as we’re looking at a flawed main character, I would argue that it doesn’t make sense for Elizabeth’s character that she would remain with the Frankensteins. As soon as she had a chance to get in good with Henry, why didn’t she take it?
Again, this is a fairly small flaw in an otherwise fantastic story.
At its core, Frankenstein is the story of a man who creates a monster and must kill him before he can cause more pain. The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein is the same story. Elizabeth has created a monster in Victor by covering up his madness and helping to shield him from consequences. In the end, she must face the monster she created.
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