Blaze

A Novel

By: Richard Bachman, Stephen King

Narrated by: Ron McLarty

Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

A fellow named Richard Bachman wrote Blaze in 1973 on an Olivetti typewriter, then turned the machine over to Stephen King, who used it to write Carrie. Bachman died in 1985 (from "cancer of the pseudonym"), but in late 2006, King found the original typescript of Blaze among his papers at the University of Maine's Fogler Library ("How did this get here?!") and decided that, with a little revision, it ought to be published.

Blaze is the story of Clayton Blaisdell, Jr., and of the crimes committed against him and the crimes he commits, including his last, the kidnapping of a baby heir worth millions. Blaze has been a slow thinker since childhood, when his father threw him down the stairs and then threw him down again. After escaping an abusive institution for boys when he was a teenager, Blaze hooks up with George, a seasoned criminal who thinks he has all the answers. But then George is killed, and Blaze, though haunted by his partner, is on his own.

He becomes one of the most sympathetic criminals in all of literature. This is a crime story of surprising strength and sadness, with a suspenseful current sustained by the classic workings of fate and character, as taut and riveting as Stephen King's The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon.

©2007 Stephen King (P)2007 Simon and Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

"This diverting soft-boiled crime novel reflects influences ranging from John Steinbeck to James M. Cain." ( Publishers Weekly)

great story

I've read all of King's writings. including all the bachman books. this is by far the best bachman book, and one of King's best. sad story, but amazing read. narrator was great as well. his voice for George and blaze are spot on.

Lame Ending

I wasn't particularly impressed with the ending, good story though, had a cool structure to it.

one of the best-unless you're looking for a scare

IMO.... any low rating on this story comes from one looking for a scare and not getting one but if you read anything about the book beforehand you would know Stephen King did not write this story for a scare. This is a beautiful, tragic story written in the classic Stephen King way, boring not allowed. Twists and turns that make it hard to stop listening to. The narrator is perfect! His reading of this book topped off the enjoyment. I love Stephen Kings style of writing. His wit and sensitivity, he is bold and never holds back. Scary or not I know his books will be a good read.

I didn’t want it to end

This story was heart breaking. I wanted to put Blaze in my pocket and take care of him.

Top notch story telling

The narrator does a good job of creating voices to separate the characters in such a way that you can tell exactly who's talking and even get a hint of that character's personality.

The story actually left me feeling a bit bad for our main character in spite of all the bad things he had done, the root cause of which was the terrible thing that happened to him as a child.

Insufficient character development

If a main character has an extremely low IQ, there has to be either supporting characters that counter balance this like Of Mice and Men or that character must have flashes of some type of depth of thought like Sling Blade when he said that boy lives in his own heart. I didn't finish this book because it seemed unidimensional, plot and nothing else.

My Number 1 Author

I took a break from Mr. King and in listening to this, well... it was like coming home. He has a way of making home so comfortable and satisfying just like that old blanket that is always near the couch in the living room and you can smell ground chuck and onions coming from the kitchen. I have put off listening to his collection books, guess for me it generalizes his characters,thus robbing the till of that getting to know them. Mr. King you did a fine job re upping this story BUT if you tweaked it one more time, this story's story has a chance of AT LEAST another generation. Thank You.

A good listen

I love Stephen King and typically like Richard Bachman. Even though this book is a "trunk novel" as described by King, it doesn't feel out of date. It was narrated perfectly with great character differences. Bachman makes you care about the main character and how he finds himself in the current predicament. Well worth the credit.

Decent story

Well read. Tame for a Bachman, in my opinion. Plot was predictable, but still worth the read.

another great from King. (Bachman)

I fell in love with Blaze. This novel touched me with the main character struggling with a baby.