Alex

Which part of sequel don't I understand?

Reviewed: 08-22-24

One might expect that a sequel to the novel highlighting D'artagnan and The Three Musketeers might actually contain said characters. But you would be wrong.

One might also think a sequel to a book that paints the Cardinal Richelieu as the key antagonist might consistently carry the same stigma. But again, you would be wrong.

But somehow, even with the missing musketeers and the hero as the Cardinal (it took me a couple hundred pages to accept that), it all worked. And all the political espionage, the intrigue, the duels, the action, and all the witty dialogue made this a fun book to read.

The final struggle was how the original novel (which was never finished - as the novel) was brought to completion with the addendum of The Dove, a short novella written years before. As The Dove is written in letters between two characters, it took some time to transition to that change in style. I will say at the very end that Dumas' stylistic writing brought it to a gripping end with me nearly biting my nails on how it would end.

In all, while it wasn't the book I expected, it was a great book, after all.

Now, onwards to the next in the sequel. I'm scared to have any expectations at this point as I'm sure Dumas will make me abandon those from page one. 😁

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Not my favorite King novel

Reviewed: 08-24-21

I've wanted to read this novel since I was a kid. I've read about 15-20 different Stephen King novels and am not sure why it took so long to get back to this one. After reading so many of his novels I knew there had to come a day that the inevitable would happen; that day is today. What I'm referring to is having to say that one of his books was good, but not one of his best works.

I think the most significant reason for my comment is that the villain just wasn't as defined as I have come to expect in a King novel. For example, in "It", "The Stand", "The Shining", and "Doctor Sleep", to name just a few, the antagonist is written extremely well and the evil that exudes from these antagonists make you understand just how badly you want them defeated. I didn't get that from this book in which a few asides and glances to the past just made it look like he was a bad guy working with thugs, but not why the showdown in the end occurs.

Additionally, I did enjoy the story but it just didn't have the same story-telling narrative I've come to expect. I will say in the gallery scene and the follow-up I did believe it came back to a classic King-esque writing.

And finally, I was a bit at a loss as to the reading techniques that Johny was teaching Chuck and the relationship with his own experience with The Dead Zone. I was expecting that we were going to learn in the end that Johny was able to use a similar, if not same, technique that would allow him to access The Dead Zone and fill in the gaps we kept waiting to have filled.

All in all, the story was good. I am glad I read it and can't say I wouldn't recommend it. But if this is your first Stephen King novel, I might recommend you check out some of his other hits first so you see just how amazing this author is. Start here and you might be just a bit disappointed.

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Like nails on the chalkboard

Reviewed: 10-04-20

Don't get me wrong. Kate Reading's performance met the excellence of what I've grown to expect with the Stormlight Archive (SA) series. It's Lift, her utter selfish character and overly forced immature idiocy that I could not stand. Thankfully the first hour was a repeat of one of the interludes in Words of Radiance and I was able to skip it. I am glad to have read this singularly for the reason of checking Book 2.5 off my list, but I wish I had not lost those 5+ hours of pained reading time.

Hearing at the end that Lift is one of Sanderson's favorite characters and an upcoming character in a later installment of SA has me concerned but hopefully my 90+ quality and enjoyed hours already invested into the series will help assuage that fear.

If you must listen as I did to check a box then reader beware. If not then find a quick Cliff notes version and jump into Oathbringer. You'll be glad you did.

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3 people found this helpful