Doctor Sleep

A Novel

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Will Patton

Length: 18 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Winner, Fiction, 2014

Audie Award Nominee, Solo Narration - Male, 2014

Stephen King returns to the characters and territory of one of his most popular novels ever, The Shining, in this instantly riveting novel about the now middle-aged Dan Torrance (the boy protagonist of The Shining) and the very special 12-year-old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals.

On highways across America, a tribe of people called The True Knot travel in search of sustenance. They look harmless - mostly old, lots of polyester, and married to their RVs. But as Dan Torrance knows, and spunky 12-year-old Abra Stone learns, The True Knot are quasi-immortal, living off the "steam" that children with the "shining" produce when they are slowly tortured to death.

Haunted by the inhabitants of the Overlook Hotel where he spent one horrific childhood year, Dan has been drifting for decades, desperate to shed his father's legacy of despair, alcoholism, and violence. Finally, he settles in a New Hampshire town, an AA community that sustains him, and a job at a nursing home where his remnant "shining" power provides the crucial final comfort to the dying. Aided by a prescient cat, he becomes "Doctor Sleep."

Then Dan meets the evanescent Abra Stone, and it is her spectacular gift, the brightest shining ever seen, that reignites Dan's own demons and summons him to a battle for Abra's soul and survival. This is an epic war between good and evil, a gory, glorious story that will thrill the millions of hyper-devoted fans of The Shining and wildly satisfy anyone new to the territory of this icon in the King canon.

©2013 Stephen King (P)2013 Simon & Schuster

Critic reviews

"Will Patton's delivery enhances King's prose in ways that make King's work so much more enjoyable in audio than just reading it…Patton's narrative voice captures the rhythm of King's words. His character voices, filled with a variety of regional American accents, remain consistent. Most importantly, the sinister aspects that embody characters and moments of this novel are superbly executed and will certainly leave listeners on edge." ( AudioFile)

"King, not one given to sequels, throws fans a big, bloody bone with this long-drooled-for follow-up to The Shining." ( Booklist)

"…a gripping, taut read that provides a satisfying conclusion to Danny Torrance's story." ( Publisher’s Weekly)

Solid succession to The Shining

My husband and I listened to this book together during our work commute. Last fall we listen to The Shining - a Stephen King 1st for me - and then watched the movie at Christmas. We started this just after the new year.

We both agree that the narration was superb, even though the bar was set high with The Shining... it'd be hard to live up to that which will was, by far, the best narration I've ever heard in a book. But this one was but just as impressive.

I've learned that you have to be patient with Stephen King books. In just these 2, I see that he takes a lot of time to plant seeds and work out the landscape, and you have to trust in the fact that the many hours of time you invest in listening to what seems like simple setup, really does eventually pay off and fits together like a big puzzle. Not all authors can do that - often they just talk on and on with no real purpose. But with these books there's definitely a purpose with every word written.

We thought about this review for a couple of days because there were something nagging at each of us. We finally figured out that while there were some great thriller highs throughout the story, in the end singer of the earlier scenes overshadowed what should have been the climatic showdown. There was nothing wrong with the end but we felt there was much more anticipation, tension, and thrill in some of the early scenes than what was built up to at the end.

Over all a solid book, especially in a world where sequels are often very disappointing

#audiobookobsessionreviewer

Breathtaking!!!

Everything you expect in a book and then some! Stephen King and Will Patton made me feel like I was right there! Instead of listening I became a part of the book! This one had me holding my breath with anticipation!!!

Pretty solid like most King efforts

Lets face it he's a really good writer that knows how to start and get you interested in a story, but isn't necessarily sure how to finish said tale. Not to say this ending is bad. Certainly not as bad as some of his books, its okay. But right near the end I started to say to myself "hmmmm really?" and "wait what's happening?" Just a little bit, not enough to ruin this. It's still a good listen and Will Patton does a great job.

Perfect accompaniment to The Shining

I wasn’t sure if I would love this book as much as The Shining. I was afraid that the book would twist the original story line in a way that I didn’t enjoy it anymore, but this was amazing. I loved how the character of Doc was imagined after the incident at the hotel. It was heartbreaking, but uplifting. I loved the surprises, and how King connects both books through unique and interesting ways. Patton does a wonderful job with the voices. It brought me right into the world.

Worth Reading

I loved every second of this book. The Naturator is perfect, love all the voices he does. Stephen King's writing is amazing and mind blowing, like a said earlier I Love this book.

Amazing sequal

I'm so glad I was able to revist Dan. The girl he works with in the book is an amazing caracter as well. I listened to this while i was at work, and got so involved in the story i was listening in the car too. This book was like watching a movie in my head and the ending was so thrilling.

Dope

Liked this better than the shining. Definite improvement over time as a storyteller. Give it a shot after listening to that racist prose titled the shining

First audio book... very satisfied

I've always enjoyed Stephen King. This felt like the King of old. Loved getting closure from The Shining. Great story and Mr. Patton did a masterful job of storytelling. Great experience for me, I will be returning for more.

Great follow up!

Great narration and excellent story...nice to have the 2 differences....movie vs. book. Both were great!

Excellent novel

The story is excellent as you would expect of a Stephen King novel. It was great to find out how things turned out for Danny Torrance. I enjoyed it greatly, though I was unhappy with the volume of the recording. The voice actor did a good job, but there were times when he whispered--and after I turned up the volume so I could hear what he was saying, he was suddenly shouting, Sometimes he was shouting obscenities. I can't wear headphones because I have to be able to hear and answer the telephone if it rings since I was listening to this at work. I was also trying to keep it low so it wouldn't disturb my employees. Unfortunately, the constantly fluctuating volume disturbed everyone and annoyed the hell out of me. Not sure I'd purchase another book narrated by this person or directed by whoever told him to do that.