So you haven't really read all his work then, wasn't The Stand his fourth published book?

I was pretty disappointed in it as well, really didn't like the ending. I don't get all the love for that one. I enjoy his writing style though and usually enjoy his work. There's a few I haven't liked though.

I read all kinds of them after that - but after a while I stopped - didn't like them at all ..
including the Bachman stuff.

the last one I read was Cell .. ugh.

i'll be honest - there's very little horror fiction I like.
especially 'modern' horror.

I like Richard Layman and Jack Ketchum and Gregory Lamberson

I'd like to check out more F Paul Wilson (I loved the Keep as a movie - I cant remember how I felt about the book)

From time to time I try new stuff and I'm usually bored as hell and cant finish it.
As a rule - terrible character development... most horror writers want to rush to the 'set pieces' which mean absolutely nothing without well sculpted characters.

I'm far tougher on literature than I am on film and music ... I guess because of the time you need to invest before you find out if it was worth it or not ..

Yeah I wasn't big on The Bachman stuff either except for The Regulators. I threw The Long Walk across the room.

Love Laymons stuff, big inspiration for my own writing. Ketchum is also very good.

I get what you mean about character development. King has done a good job with that in some of his work though I would say.

but his is too rich .. (the overripe fruit)

The thing I loved about Dickens is that he could put a very clear image of a person in your mind with very few brush strokes ..

King will describe the last hair on a person's head ... he will lock a character into a speaking style (usually some folky good old boy dialogue soaked in history and culture)

I can't articulate this very well (i'm not the writer) but I find everything is overdone .. overexplained ..

plus he keeps regenerating the same characters over and over and over again.
He clamped onto the advice 'write what you know' like a pitbull on a bone

I know it works for a hell of a lot of people .. I just suffered from over exposure too long ago. Black House - with Strawb - was the one that made me never want to read him again. I couldn't even finish it.

Salems Lot remains the one novel of his I still like

I agree that he does over describe his characters. Sometimes he puts in elements that to me see unnecessary.

I'm more interested in the story though and a writers voice. Its hard for me to get into a book if I can't stand their particular style. Kings writing flows nicely for me and I can get lost in his books.

He does utilize the sane character type over and over again though. Writer from Maine seems to be his go to move.

Character development is important to me too just not the number one thing I look for.

I locked Salem's Lot. One of my favorites from him.

character development and prose are my big things ..

I like to be surprised ...I like to find things I can relate to and I like to find a voice I haven't heard before.
Sometimes you get one or 2 things but not all of them.

richard laymon's night in the lonesome October really got to me because I've always been intrigued by the concept that our world changes at night .. we don't own or understand anything outside of our homes at 2AM - 5AM He wrote a book about it and I was captivated.

Jack Kechum writes in a gritty no nonsense way ... it's like watching the most horrible news you've ever seen. That style works for me because most horror writers can't properly handle the alternative.

Greg Lamberson is similar .. straight forward - just the facts ma'am - very linear and economical - and entertaining.

I read a book by Cody Goodfellow - John Skip's pal. Some of the best prose I've ever read - (but the story just didn't move forward)

I'm also a 3rd of the way into the 3rd book in The Strain series and I cant continue - I've lost all interest in the characters and couldn't give a toss what happens to them anymore

Been meaning to read that Laymon book. Good to know its good.

Currently reading Doctor Sleep, 150 pages in and have a list of 10 books I wish to read after that for the year ::cool::

Got several books going but none are from my core collection, that decade and a half frenzy of white hot book collecting where I bought way more than I could keep up with if I read constantly 24/7, and this is my attempt correct it by squeezing it between UNDAUNTED COURAGE and THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN HATTERAS.



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Kevin O'Donnell always impressed me when I came across a story of his when I was reading Analog on a regular basis in the late seventies. Picked up six or so of his novels as they came out but put them on hold for some reason I can no longer remember. Only a handful of pages into it but I like it and it feels promising.

Looks interesting. sfear, do you feel guilty about unread books, like they are neglected children?

Naw, not any more. Any guilt I may have had has since collapsed under the sheer weight of my collection. I now look at myself as a sort of stamp collector who knows he has stamps in his possession he will never be able to post letters with.

I think of my library as a whole. I know I'll never read it all - because there are probably a lot of books in there I'll never be in the mood to read - trumped by different moods for other books

But I love knowing that there will always be something in there I haven't read as well as old friends I'd like to revisit.

Same goes for my other libraries - music and film

I never smoked and only drank rarely. Abhor gambling
My vice has been collecting these 3 cultural cornerstones and although lately I've turned to travel and photography, I don't regret a penny spent on my 3 loves

The books will be there. Waiting for my retirement :)

I too have no regrets over time and money spent on my collection. I had too much fun and am pleased with the results. If I have any regret it's the dwindling amount of storage space I have available. But if I can keep that as my main problem in life I'll be happy.

Just about to start 'American Psycho' by Ellis, looking forward to it as I have seen the movie a couple of times ::cool::

I've had this book on my mind lately, as well. I definitely want to read it sometime in the near future.

Right now, I'm working on...

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And I'm also reading the first Game of Thrones book. I can't wait for the next season to start.

I am 100 pages in, and it is quite close to the movie but with a few extra bits here and there, quite easy to read and very descriptive.

Antipaladin Blues by Jess Gulbranson.

Ken Follett - Fall Of Giants

About 200 pages in. Pretty good so far.

Dark Witch by Nora Roberts (first book in a trilogy called The Cousins O'Dwyer)

"Horns" by Joe Hill

I like that one. Not his best work but better than Heart Shaped Box

I think I need to start over with it. I started it late last night, and kept dozing off as I was reading.

Night Marshal:A Tale Of The Undead West

There's a moving coming based on the book starring Harry Potter.

The Bell Jar--Sylvia Plath: I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I have about 75 pages left.

When I finish this one, I'm hoping to start on "House of Leaves". I bought it about six months ago, but I haven't been able to commit myself to something so long and intricate yet.

The Night Of The Shadow
by
Maxwell Grant

Well, I was going to start "House of Leaves" after I finished the "Bell Jar", but instead I went with "American Psycho" by Bret Ellis. I'm about 50 pages in. So far, so good.

Rereading Game of Thrones; in non-fiction, On The Origins of War, by Donald Keagan. The origins of war book is pretty insightful, actually.

Finished "American Pyscho". Wow. What a read! Pat Bateman is a lot more twisted in the book and the violence is certainly more extreme. I really couldn't put this one down. Brilliant. I highly recommend it.

Moving on...today I intend to start "High Crime Area: Tales of Darkness and Dread", Joyce Carol Oates's new book of shorts. Love her writing.

Just started reading Stephen King's Under the Dome.

Almost done with John Russo's novelization of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD which came out six years after the film. Remember finally getting a copy in 1981 and reading it instead of "Death of a Salesman" for english class. Think it's pretty good with character backstory and certainly more bleak/downbeat than the film if that's possible

'Vampire Siege At Rio Muerto'
by
John M. Whalen

Damn good book

The Greatest Show On Earth: The Evidence For Evolution - Richard Dawkins

Added that to my Amazon wish list!

Reading "Naked in Death" by J.D. Robb.

Finished Doctor Sleep. Not Kings best but certainly not his worst. Something it has going against it is trying to live up to one of his best works and a novel I think everyone should read, The Shining. It glosses over a lot of plot development and story in the beginning which is something I've never seen him do before and its the first time I think I've read a book where the heroes always have the upper hand. Its not a bad story though and even though I didn't love it and didn't get that can't wait to read it feeling I still liked it.

Now I'm reading some Poe

KISS AND SELL by C.K. Lendt (1997). Lendt was a member of KISS's financial team from July 1976 (right as DESTROYER was about to get a second wind) up to March 1988 as the CRAZY NIGHTS tour was sputtering to an ugly death. Even if you are not a KISS fan, this is an excellent read involving the financial side of successful rock bands and really could be about any band. Lots of information about "The Hottest Band in the Land" from hard core rockers to a kiddie band and several misguided projects. Those boys certainly spent it like they had it and despite the constant comments from a long tongued gasbag about how rich they still were in the 80's, the book paints a far different picture.

Still continuing to read Watership Down by Richard Adams. It's a classic book and I started reading it a few years ago and than I dropped it for some odd reason. I'm glad I decided to pick it up again and I'm enjoying it. Very familiar with the storyline, I watched the animation movie when I was younger and it made me very sad but now that I'm older I appreciate it a lot more than I did when I was a young child. When I was younger, it freaked me out: especially when the field was being covered in blood.

Loved that movie when i was a kid to Sam..::smile::

Wow, is that possible? Haha. I'm not sure about Russo. I remember when the 30th(?) anniversary edition of the dvd came out and I bought it, one of the first dvd collector's editions I ever bought, and I was excited because before I had only been able to watch the film on an old vhs recording complete with commercials.

Russo really messed that up with his added scenes and new soundtrack. It was awful. There was something where you could watch the original version on the disc I think, but something wasn't quite original there I think. I don't remember. I threw the thing away when the millennium edition came out.

I just finished reading Those Across the River...a period piece with werewolves. It didn't really work for me. I feel like the author was trying to elevate the horror genre by writing like literary fiction type authors, especially those from the south. I really want a good werewolf book, but I'm having a hard time finding one. Any recommendations?

Unity and Reform by Nicholas de Cusa.