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Lisey's Story

By: Stephen King
Narrated by: Mare Winningham
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Publisher's summary

Now an Apple TV+ limited series starring Julianne Moore and Clive Owen

The “haunting...tender, intimate book that makes an epic interior journey” (The New York Times), Lisey’s Story is a literary masterpiece - an extraordinarily moving and haunting portrait of a marriage and its aftermath.

Lisey lost her husband, Scott, two years ago, after a 25-year marriage of profound and sometimes frightening intimacy. Scott was an award-winning, best-selling novelist and a very complicated man. Early in their relationship, before they married, Lisey knew there was a place Scott went - a place that both terrified and healed him, could eat him alive or give him the ideas he needed in order to live. Now it’s Lisey’s turn to face Scott’s demons, to go to that terrifying place known as Boo’ya Moon. What begins as a widow’s effort to sort through the papers of her celebrated husband becomes a nearly fatal journey into the darkness he inhabited.

“Intricate...exhilarating” (The New Yorker), perhaps Stephen King’s most personal and powerful novel ever, Lisey’s Story is about the wellsprings of creativity, the temptations of madness, and the secret language of love. It is a beautiful, “rich portrait of a marriage, and the complicated affection that outlives death” (The Washington Post).

Don't miss more from Stephen King.
©2006 Stephen King (P)2006 Simon and Schuster Audio

Critic reviews

"As much about the facets of longtime marriage as it is about the characters themselves, Lisey's Story offers a poignant glimpse at abiding love and the tides of grief, and the internal language of relationships of all kinds." (Atlantic Monthly)

"In Lisey's Story, Stephen King makes bold, brilliant use of his satanic storytelling gift, his angelic ear for language, and above all his incomparable ability to find the epic in the ordinary." (Michael Chabon)

"Lisey's Story is bright and brilliant. It's dark and desperate. While I'll always consider The Shining, my first ride on King's wild Tilt-A-Whirl, a gorgeous, bloody jewel, I found, on this latest ride, a treasure box heaped with dazzling gems. A few of them have sharp, hungry teeth." (Nora Roberts)

Featured Article: The Shining—Book vs. Movie


Set in the claustrophobia-inducing snow-covered peaks of an isolated hotel in the middle of the Rockies, The Shining is a classic work of psychological horror that’s just about as chilling as it gets. But it’s so, so much more than your classic story of spirits and a man’s descent into madness—it’s also a tender yet deeply painful meditation on addiction, family, abuse, and redemption. Stanley Kubrick rejected Stephen King's initial treatment of the screenplay, and the author was largely dissatisfied with his novel’s jump to the big screen. So what exactly are the differences between The Shining movie and the novel?

What listeners say about Lisey's Story

Average customer ratings
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different and not

I find this work to be one King's purest. It swims in the supernatural but also seems to reveal something magical in his own heart. It is a love story in some of the ways that Bram Stoker's Dracula is. The power of love to endure even great evil is both beautiful and wrenching. Mare Wininngham is the best possible choice as narrator. Brilliant.

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Best Audio Ever

Amazingly Read!!! Beautifully done!! could not ask for a better read. I listen to several times a year

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Starts a bit slow but ends very satisfyingly.

At first it felt like a story about a grieving widow and someone tried to force in a fantasy aspect that didn't fit. Fortunately, as the story went on it became more natural and definitely enhanced the ending.

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Re-Read

Lisey's Story plus Later and Outside are surprisingly the same read to me. I only picked Lisey's Story because of an interview I saw Stephen King do on YouTube. I love most of all Steven King's books, but I think it's time to take a time out. I am reading them to close together, they are all sounding the same. Mare Winningham was fabulous. . Thank You

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Spit first then I’ll give you my opinion

Excellent story of sisters and love and good devoted marriage and the spine tingling unknown
Kept me on the edge
Mare Winningham gave me chills when she spoke the words of daddy!

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Beautifully done! What a masterpiece!

Narration was amazing and the story although it jumps to different times just seemed to flow. A Beautiful story with so much description. This is definitely a must read!

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good story

loved it!! right from the start I was hooked. fascinating, pravacative, I would definitely recommend

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Must pay attention

Stephen King loves to jump back and forth in the timeline of his story telling. This is done often in this book. It was easy to get lost if not really listening. Great story.

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Simply brilliant

This is a brilliant book from King. Definitely top tier among his work. The characters are superb and memorable, as always. This story has so much heart and soul, you can feel it. The climax was a tad predictable, but the resolution was a home run.

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Another great read from Stephen King.

Loved this book. It was rich in character development. So many twists and turns! Awesome

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