Doctor Sleep

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Will Patton

Length: 18 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

An epic war between good and evil, a gory, glorious story that will thrill the millions of hyper-devoted readers of The Shining and wildly satisfy anyone new to the territory of this icon in the King canon.

King says he wanted to know what happened to Danny Torrance, the boy at the heart of The Shining, after his terrible experience in the Overlook Hotel. The instantly riveting Doctor Sleep picks up the story of the now middle-aged Dan, working at a hospice in rural New Hampshire, and the very special 12-year old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals.

On highways across America, a tribe of people called The True Knot travel in search of sustenance. They look harmless - mostly old, lots of polyester, and married to their RVs. But as Dan Torrance knows, and tween Abra Stone learns, The True Knot are quasi-immortal, living off the 'steam' that children with the 'shining' produce when they are slowly tortured to death.

Haunted by the inhabitants of the Overlook Hotel where he spent one horrific childhood year, Dan has been drifting for decades, desperate to shed his father's legacy of despair, alcoholism, and violence. Finally, he settles in a New Hampshire town, an AA community that sustains him and a job at a nursing home where his remnant 'shining' power provides the crucial final comfort to the dying. Aided by a prescient cat, he becomes 'Doctor Sleep'. Then Dan meets the evanescent Abra Stone, and it is her spectacular gift, the brightest shining ever seen, that reignites Dan's own demons and summons him to a battle for Abra's soul and survival....

©2013 Stephen King (P)2013 Simon & Schuster Audio

Complicated story but quite possible. I enjoyed t

Struggle to remember the names and places. The little girl developed during the story, but little info on her mother.

Loved this book.

What made the experience of listening to Doctor Sleep the most enjoyable?

I listen to a lot of Stephen King, and his books always entertain. However, this one is exceptionally good. I will be revisiting The Shining to catch up with Danny as a child.
What adds to the pleasure this audio book gives, is the narration. Will Patton does an amazing job, and I felt myself being sucked in to the story. Only one other narrator has done Stephen King's tales such justice, and that was the late, great Frank Muller.
I'm a massive fan of both audio books and Stephen King alike, but the narrator can make or break it for me. Will Patton made this book a joy to listen to.
Bravo to Stephen for another great book, and bravo to Will for a great performance.

The Shining returns

Doctor Sleep’s story follows Danny Torrance – the special boy who survived his father’s murderous possession by the Overlook Hotel twenty years ago – living a nomad’s life as he moves from place to place, wrestling with an alcohol problem that he uses to dull the effects of the Shining. His ability has become more powerful over the years and the demons from his childhood still haunt his waking hours and his nightmares.

King has managed to take the idea of the Shining and develop it in ways not before thought of. We encounter characters who have a fair bit of “shine” that manifests itself as different abilities. Some of these characters are good, some are evil. The latter includes the True Knot; semi-immortals who were once human, but are no longer. They survive by feeding off the “Steam” that children with the Shining produce when they are tortured to death. Of course, Danny inevitably crosses paths with them as he seeks to save a powerful child from their insane obsession. It’s a good story. Nothing wrong with it at all. It just doesn’t stand out from King’s earlier works.

As to the narration, I’ve only ever seen Will Patton in movies and was a little sceptical as to his selection as the story’s narrator. I haven’t ever seen much acting range from the man. I was wrong. Patton brings each character to life in a performance that I wouldn’t have believed possible from the understated actor. He is brilliant.

King By The Numbers

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I'm a big Stephen King fan and have very much enjoyed his last couple. While this wasn't classic King, it was certainly an enjoyable listen.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Finding out what happened to Danny Torrance after The Overlook burned down was the most interesting. Find out about The True Knot and, in particular, Rose the Hat, was often dull and predictable.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Will Patton?

I have; Alas, Babylon (which was fantastic). He's pretty good here and I have no problems with his narration, though he does sometimes get a bit over-wrought.

Was Doctor Sleep worth the listening time?

Way more worthwhile than answering the same question you asked first off in this review. Allow me to cut and paste...'I'm a big Stephen King fan and have very much enjoyed his last couple. While this wasn't classic King, it was certainly an enjoyable listen.'There. Happy now? Good. Moving on...

Any additional comments?

Not his best but plenty good enough. The middle third especially is outstanding, but the first third is too long and windy and the climax is oddly formulaic for King, something which can arguably said for most of the story. It feels like a good idea not quite seen through, if that makes sense.

A very silly story.

I am a great Stephen King fan and read everything he writes, even the shorter storys. But this is just the silliest book I have ever tried to read. I read The Shining on a fairly regular basis. So when Doctor Sleep came out I spent my credit without a qualm. After all, I can beleive in a haunted hotel with a drunk slowly going mad and as this is a follow up story about Danny, it should be good, I thought. But the idea of beings who live on the "steam" of terror, this is beyond my head to beleive in at all. I have tried to read it on several occasions, but each time I get to the "steam head" idea, my brain just yells, this is stupid. So my freinds if you can beleive in Zombies, which I am unable to do, you will probably love this book, but if you are like me, and used to Stephen Kings mind of Horror, I think like me, you should just give this one a miss.