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Lisey's Story  By  cover art

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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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

One of my favorite Stephen King novels

Great characters. Great dialogue. Great use of language, like all of King’s books. I especially like Lisey, a woman who discovered she was stronger than she thought she was. Marie Winningham was FANTASTIC!!!!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Classic King WTF story.

I will never visit Maine. The story was good, The narration was weird but outstanding.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Mare Winningham!!

All the characters are brought to life in this already great story narrated to perfection by Mare Winningham

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Wow

This is a most amazing, heartbreaking, psycho-thriller turned beautiful romance. One of my new favorites.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Even though this book gave me nightmares one night

This is the best reading I've ever listened to. Mare Winningham's interpretation of all the characters in the story was superb and completely believable. Occasionally she even made me laugh out loud!
It was difficult for me to stop listening, so needless to say, not much housework got done. To Stephen King: you never disappoint. I open your books not knowing what to expect, but always entertained, and the relationship between Scott and Lisey is so special, this book will probably prove to be one of my favorites written by you, so thank you.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excepcional

Excepcional y emotivo. Una oda al amor y al duelo y a las hermanas.

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Great writing by Steven King. The performance was excellent..Kings books are always tops

I always look forward to his books…not so much the short stories…the story line of liseys story is interesting from beginning to end

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Big, big kudos to Mare,

What a beautiful, wonderful, fabulous narration by Mare Winninham. She brought such life to each character. Best narrator of a Stephen King novel ever!

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King at his Best!

Narration was very good. Story kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. A+

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The best

Long time favorite. More than one listen.
A touching story about a wonderful marriage, with a side of horror.

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