Joyland

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Michael Kelly

Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

"Joyland is a breathtaking, beautiful, heartbreaking book.... Even the most hardboiled readers will find themselves moved."
—Charles Ardai, Edgar- and Shamus Award-winning editor of Hard Case Crime.

Set in a small-town North Carolina amusement park in 1973, Joyland tells the story of the summer in which college student Devin Jones comes to work as a carny and confronts the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and the ways both will change his life forever. Joyland is a brand-new novel and has never previously been published.

©2013 Stephen King. All rights reserved. (P)2013 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

King never fails to spin a tale

I’ve read almost all of Stephen Kong’s books, some I’ve disliked, some I’ve tolerated and some I’ve been mesmerized. Joyland falls under mesmerizing, a mystery that unravels slowly and completely. I would highly recommend this book. Great story!

An amazingly engrossing story.

I bought this book because King is one of my favorite authors and it was on sale. I’m so glad I did. This story isn’t a thriller, though it does have some thrills at the end and some touches of supernatural. What it is is a story that feels so real. It’s written from the perspective of a man recalling the summer of his 21st year and his time working at a third rate amusement park. This shouldn’t be all that interesting but it is. I was totally sucked in. I feel like I know Dev. I feel like he is real and I know what he went through. It’s like we are sitting down over coffee and he’s telling me what happened that summer. I almost cried at one point, barely an hour into the book because King had so well developed the characters already. I loved it. I wish it could have lasted longer.

Michael Kelly did a great job bringing the story to life. His voice is Dev’s voice. His voice for Lane was equally perfect. Excellent job.

I highly recommend this book. It’s a quick escape back to a summer that didn’t actually exist. I hope to go back there again soon.

Wonderful narrator and good story

I really enjoyed this story and the narrator is amazing. He really puts you in the time of the story.

Reminder of what great fiction can be

I don't read a lot of Stephen King because, frankly, he scares the crap out of me...so when he finally does a mystery/thriller I'm thrilled to be able to turn my attention to a simply brilliant writer who completely explains and imbues his characters in feelings, thoughts, and motivations. This one is a great mystery with only a slight horror/otherworldly themes that showcases what fully developing characters can look like. I'm reminded again why I don't read much Stephen King: he paints such a brilliant picture that whatever he writes can inhabit me for a few days - - and I don't do scary dogs, clowns, cars or people. Enjoy, my fellow cowards.

Short Yet poignant The best of King

I’m a huge king fan. I’ve read the long ones and the short ones. I feel this one should be in the top ten to read.
I’m sure the experience would not have played as well. If not for Michael Kelly. Hats off to the performer. Perfectly written & Perfectly read.

Great Story

not one of the scary stories but it was a good one and I didn't see the bad guy coming

Another Stephen King Experience

What did you love best about Joyland?

I loved the setting in carny land. Several of his books are set in a similar place. King and I are the same age, and when I read his books they vividly take me back.

What about Michael Kelly’s performance did you like?

He was great! He sounds somewhat like King himself.

Excellent!

Would you listen to Joyland again? Why?

Yes I would listen to the story again. The reader has a very pleasing voice who helps bring the story alive.

Cornball... But very enjoyable

No one ever confused Stephen King for a master novelist. This was not the richest plotting he's done and often I felt that all the seemingly diverse characters were much to similar in what they said and how they said it. Everybody sardonic and smarty-ass in their repartee. Thus said it was defintt fun to listen to right to the über cornball finale.

Fun Ride

What about Michael Kelly’s performance did you like?

It took me a chapter to really get into his voice narration but I got used to it and enjoyed it.

Any additional comments?

I listened to Mr Mercedes before this one - and I was struck at how many small references that you can find in the books when you listen or read them so close to one another. Names used (Rose, Brady, Midway, etc), places, and the like. It's nice because they tend to all kind of daisy chain each other together in small ways. This book felt in some ways like....the Hardy Boy's grew up a bit and wrote a book. Except it is just one of the Hardy's. I admit, the cover art for this one kept me away for a while- until after Mr Mercedes (and earlier in the year I'd listened to Doctor Sleep) when I wanted to dive into more of King again. He's a great writer, but some stories thrill me and some fall flat. This one is decent and interesting. Not as good as Doctor Sleep, but I enjoyed it a lot.