Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
20,717 global ratings
5 star
79%
4 star
14%
3 star
5%
2 star
1%
1 star
1%
How are ratings calculated?
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzes reviews to verify trustworthiness.

Review this product

Customer images

Customer image
Customer image
Customer image
Customer image
See all customer images
Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Mary K.
1.0 out of 5 stars Shut up about Trump
Reviewed in the United States on September 16, 2019
Verified Purchase
It’s getting old and banal Mr. King. I was hoping to enjoy this book but alas, not to be. A word of advice though... If you continue to write, avoid politics so you don’t alienate half your reading audience because we are after all the force behind your income. Your Trump digs have nothing to do with the story. You're just a sorry old man trying to grand stand. I pick up a book to forget about the trivial day to day political b.s. so why do you feel the need to shove your beliefs down my throat? Wish I could get my money back on this but I won't purchase anything else from this author. I might also add that this book repeated itself over and over, had a slow moving story line and was hard to finish. Might be a good time for you to retire Mr. King...
Read more
Michael D. Watson
1.0 out of 5 stars Open Mouth, Insert Politics
Reviewed in the United States on September 11, 2019
Verified Purchase
Preordered this book some months ago, as was always a fan. Then read some recent SK rants made comparing events in this novel to certain views on law enforcement at our borders. Immediately returned the book for refund before reading it. I will not make another SK purchase.
Read more
Miss Barbara
TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars A great character study about people who justify their horrible choices
Reviewed in the United States on September 11, 2019
Verified Purchase
King writes so well about the innocence of kids. He also writes at his best when the subject is pure evil. Slap them together and you have The Institute. The book starts in a simple little town where a cop passing through takes a job as a night knocker. There's a kid, a really smart kid, who's 12 years old and getting ready to attend MIT because he's, you know, special. That's the setting. From there it gets chilling. Even without ghosts, or vampires or outer space boogie men.

The child, Luke, is taken in the middle of the night. His folks are murdered. He wakes up at The Institute in Maine in a room that's just like his - almost. There's other kids there and he gets the skinny from a young girl in the hallway, seemingly smoking a cigarette. She tells him that they "do stuff" to the kids, injections-flickering lights-dunking, but at least they're in the Front Half. You don't want to go to the Back Half. No, that's like the roach motel. Kids go in and don't ever come out.

To say this is a character study of the people throughout history who have told themselves that the horrible, hideous, atrocious things they do are for a "higher good". This book is King at his best. It's tense and I found myself ill at ease throughout the 500 plus pages. But it's good. A good story, good writing, and yeah, sure, it's relevant in the America of today and about our choices.
Read more
C Wm (Andy) Anderson
#1 HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWER
5.0 out of 5 stars King Brings Us Back to His Roots....
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2019
Verified Purchase
As I sometimes do, I’m going to open myself up to you in a way that may, or may not, resonate. I hope it does, but I know it is probable that detractors will hurl insults my way, as they toss expletives at the master of horror himself. Wish I could state that in so doing I share a common ground with King, but, frankly, I am no more qualified to walk in his shadow as a writer than I am to walk in the shadow of Saint Peter as a Christian.

So, why am I such a fan of Stephen King? I became a fan not due to his fiction. That writing took years of exposure before he won me over. His nonfiction writing, though, went straight to my heart. You see, I am a bit old-fashioned when it comes to fiction and writing. I loved some fiction, such as Old Yeller and Shane, but, my interest always was oriented toward the nonfiction tales by the likes of John Goddard (Go North, Young Man), Eric Collier (Three Against the Wilderness) and Bradford Angier (several books on living off the land).

Then, one day, I read “The Stand.” That book was the culmination of everything I felt a novel should be, written in exactly the right language and flow.

In recent years, King has penned a vast number of tales that tickled that nerve hidden deep inside me. While I enjoyed most all of them, not one of them satisfied that itch deep inside. Until, perhaps, “The Institute.

Once again, King is not the ‘artist’ on par with James Michener or John Steinbeck or F. Scott Fitzgerald. When it comes to plain English writing, especially the sort where the writer stays outside the story and lets his characters get through to us so we can see the world through their eyes, though, no master storyteller comes close to Stephen King, in my humble opinion. So, as you peruse the review below, know that I am prejudiced in favor of Stephen King.

In “The Institute,” we begin our journey in a small village of South Carolina. The opening is a masterful way to tug us along as we get to know a key figure and setting. Later, we meet our protagonist in Minneapolis and still later we get to know him (Luke) in Maine. To expound further would lead to spoilers, which I refuse to do…

BLUSH FACTOR: If you’ve never read a Stephen king book, it might surprise you to learn the master of horror does not write for children or for people whose ears are sensitive to foul language. Yet, I found myself enthralled by yet another novel by one of my favorite authors.

POV: Presented in third person point of view.

WRITING & EDITING: In my opinion, no writer alive today gets into the heads of his subjects and tells their story to us better than does Stephen King. I marvel in considering how perfectly he presents these kids in their own words. I mean, King is in his seventies, how in the world can he so perfectly sound as though he is one of those kids?

BOTTOM LINE:

As enthralled as I am by this latest offering from Stephen King, it should be obvious I am rating it five stars out of five.
Read more
L. P.
1.0 out of 5 stars Unecessary Politics.
Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2019
Started to read someone else's copy, but it took him only seven pages for irrelevant, negative political crapola to appear. Won't finish it or recommend it.
Read more
DrCool
1.0 out of 5 stars Better luck next time,waste of money
Reviewed in the United States on September 16, 2019
Verified Purchase
Did not enjoy the book, I was hoping that the story would really kick in. Never did. The political jabs also just made the book pathetic.
Read more
Averie Top Contributor: Photography
5.0 out of 5 stars Another Dark Lord Masterpiece
Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2019
Verified Purchase
Another banger from our Dark Lord. Stephen King's voice is present and engaging in this hearty thriller. While not as horrific as some of his other (over 50!) novels, this is just as addicting. Like his other novels, this one has a steady build and is impossible to put down. Two thumbs way up.

And, incidentally, contrary to what I have read elsewhere, one cannot read The Institute without being reminded of some of the less-than-ideal circumstances many children face today near certain boarders. However, this book sweeps broad in its impact and is not limited to any certain circumstance.

(Also, it's nice to see that Stephen King finally got a proper author photo.)
Read more
review imagereview imagereview imagereview imagereview image
Don R Kellar
1.0 out of 5 stars Waste of your Time.
Reviewed in the United States on September 16, 2019
Verified Purchase
Disappointing mishmash of King characters from every other novel that he wrote when he was still talented and hungry. Totally predictable plot and ending, after about the first few chapters will leave you desperately hoping that there is a twist or angle that will bring some rational reason for having waited so long for another King novel ......sorry Constant Reader .....this one is even worse than King’s Elevation,and that one was silly and stupid. Sad state of affairs....we deserve better.
Read more
See all reviews

Top reviews from other countries

Vicuña
5.0 out of 5 stars Simply brilliant. King delivers again.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 10, 2019
Verified Purchase
I’m a Stephen King fan. His storytelling remains captivating and horrifying in equal measure and he can still make my blood run cold. The Institute is another belting tale, showing his finely honed writing skills to perfection.

There’s a very ordinary start. Something at which King excels, small towns with ordinary people just going about their business. In this case a disgraced former cop settles in Du Pray (he loves his word play! I enjoy finding his hidden references. Eliot’s The Love Song of Alfred J Prufrock is there in a passing conversation and there must be more!) The story shifts to the Institute of the title. A shadowy place which houses children with exceptional gifts. They’re ordinary kids with extraordinary abilities who have little idea why they’re there and are fearful of the director Mrs Sigsby, and Stackhouse, the security manager. There are doctors and other adults who all play a part in a tale of dark secrets and exploitation.

So much of King’s writing is understated. He hooks you in with banal detail about people, places and conversations. It’s ordinary and almost mundane, but bit by bit he’s spinning an intricate web and setting the reader up for one twist after another. As usual, King is exploring a number of wide ranging themes. Saving the human race or maybe the planet, child abuse, extra sensory abilities, the Trump administration, minorities...it’s all there, predominantly adult’s inhumane treatment of children and loss of moral compass. As usual, King creates an array of distinct and memorable characters to shape his tale. He’s a master storyteller and his power to influence and challenge remain as relevant now as when he first started. This is a gripping and horribly plausible tale. Chilling, thought provoking and extraordinary. Simply brilliant.
Read more
Dozy Mare
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 15, 2019
Verified Purchase
I am no wordsmith, so my review will be simple and concise.

The story is wonderful. My favourite part is always when the converging stories meet and merge together to deliver shock and awesomeness.

Thank you Mr King
Read more
LabRat
5.0 out of 5 stars It's the journey, not the destination
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 14, 2019
Verified Purchase
As always with King, the ending might not be the best thing ever written, but the journey getting there is consistently good. It's like a big warm comfy King blanket to snuggle into. He creates characters you can vividly see, and situations you can feel. Very enjoyable.
Read more
Sceptic a la M. Teste
2.0 out of 5 stars Good for 90 pages then downhill, alas
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 13, 2019
Verified Purchase
The first section of the book is very well written with many of the fine Stephen King touches that evoke nostalgia alongside fear which is his signature mark.

The rest of the book is muddled and too long. The book indulges the authors' longstanding interest in conspiracies (much better expression in Hearts in Atlantis) and telekinesis (start with Carrie and move on to Tommy Knockers as well as many other places he dwells on psychic powers). There is very little tension, the villains are poorly drawn, and there is not much more to say. Perhaps the great man was just having an off day.
Read more
Wurly
5.0 out of 5 stars Here we are again, folks! Will Mr King ever disappoint?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 13, 2019
Verified Purchase
I started reading, foolishly, a few hours before I was supposed to sleep. What was I thinking, this is Mr Stephen King the master of all he purveys, I knew that, and I still thought I would be able to put the book down? Well, of course I was wrong, and many hours later I heaved my usual sigh of satisfaction in the best read this year and sadness that is was over. If you're a fan, you know what I mean, if you've not read a Stephen King before, this is as good a place as any to start. Thank you again Mr King there is a reason your readers are constant. Long may you rule.
Read more
See all reviews