Toivo

There are some pretty excellent stories here. Maybe they aren't everybody's cup of tea, but they are good. Porkpie Hat I call brilliant.

Don't buy this expecting 12 page O Henry ironic twisters. These aren't those kind of stories. These stories are longer and darker. They don't necessarily end neatly resolved. More than once I got to the end thinking, "what just happened here?" I savored each story for quite a while after finishing.

The first half of this book is a sort of autobiography. I can't imagine why it was included. I did learn that his brother is a super-genius or something like that. I am sure he is a wonderful guy and I admire King a hell of a lot, but I just didn't have much interest in the beginning of this book.

The rest is, as the title says, more of a memoir on the craft of writing. I do not believe that it is particularly helpful to a writing student. It isn't much in the way of instructions on how to write (for that see Lawrence Block or, better, Sol Stein) as mostly just what King does. But what works for King might not work for others.

King has an amazing talent for characterizations that draw readers into his stories. I think he could write a book using any technique imaginable and it'd come out pretty good because of his characters. I was hoping to learn something about how to do that or at least get a glimpse of the master at work, but I don't feel I got that.

For anyone interested in writing, I'd recommend this. It is always interesting to see the creative process at work, a topic about which writers are traditional secretive when it comes to the details. On the other hand I have gotten more helpful writing advice from online writer's blogs than I did from this book. That doesn't mean it wasn't a good book, but my expectations were at odds with my experience.

[This is a copy of my review of the first book, The Mirror of Her Dreams.]

This pair of books are the most captivating that the author ever wrote. I absolutely recommend this book and it's sequel for anyone who enjoys fantasy novels. I think very highly of the first Covenant series, but for purely enjoyable story telling this is his best.

First things first- this book has a lot going on. The main character is involved in lots of plots and sub-plots and had many very interesting interactions with many vivid characters. The book is a fantasy/mystery. The climax is absolutely great.

My only real complaint about Donaldson is that his characters are so damned frustrating. In other books, after restating every problem a hundred times they often do little or do something weird or simply wait for someone else to do something. This book has some of that, but I believe that he handles it much better than in the Covenant novels. As I said, there is a lot going on and many times the character has good reason not to act.

Unfortunately the reader is the patron saint of frustrated narration and I think he was a terrible choice for any Donaldson novel. Technically he's is very good reader, but for my money he was a bad choice here.

This book and its sequel are the most captivating that the author ever wrote. I absolutely recommend this book and it's sequel for anyone who enjoys fantasy novels. I think very highly of the first Covenant series, but for purely enjoyable story telling this is his best.

First things first- this book has a lot going on. The main character is involved in lots of plots and sub-plots and had many very interesting interactions with many vivid characters. The book is a fantasy/mystery. The climax is absolutely great.

My only real complaint about Donaldson is that his characters are so damned frustrating. In other books, after restating every problem a hundred times they often do little or do something weird or simply wait for someone else to do something. This book has some of that, but I believe that he handles it much better than in the Covenant novels. As I said, there is a lot going on and many times the character has good reason not to act.

Unfortunately the reader is the patron saint of frustrated narration and I think he was a terrible choice for any Donaldson novel. Technically he's is very good reader, but for my money he was a bad choice here.

The author has a very interesting story to tell, but the characters are so dead that it is impossible to care about them. That makes it impossible to care about what happens to them. In the end what might be a very tragic and thoughtful story becomes a deadly bore.

Reading a plot synopsis made me think, "brilliant!" In reality I found this book mostly frustrating as every character consistently took NO ACTION to help themselves, help someone else, or even answer questions put to them. Unanswered questions are great for building a little tension, but this author's abuse of that literary device can be measured on the richter scale.

What a great read. This book is a combination of a decent thriller and a supreme mystery story. Or maybe I'd call it a couple of mysteries because the story is very complex and intertwined. The author constantly reveals new layers on each of the stories.

P.S. This is the version that you want. Do not pick up the abridged version by mistake. I have both. The abridged version is cut so short that it is not only loses the very essence of the story, it also stops making sense.

I have read the novel a couple of times. It is fantastic. This abridged version is terrible. So much meat is cut from the plot that it doesn't make a shred of sense.

The novel upon which this is based really is great.

Audible- please get an unabridged version of this story (as well as the other Blue Rose stories).

I have never read anything by this author before. The book and the reader were both superb. I mean really fantastic. I was blown away at how much I enjoyed this story.

I read this book in college when it came out. For me it is far and away my favorite of King's novels. But the reader really takes hold of this book by the throat. His energy and passion make listening to this an absolute treat.

My advice- buy this book.