Duma Key: A Novel by Stephen King Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Duma Key: A Novel
Book Review: Another Writer Spouting Political Wit
Summary: 3 Stars
The book is good - I haven't finished it yet, so I'm reserving judgement. I've been a King fan since Carrie, but most of his recent books have not moved me much. However, one thing I simply cannot understand is why these writers can't keep their political views to themselves. I don't care what his opinions are and I wish he would respect a large part of his buying public and their views - because surprise, surprise, Stephen - we don't agree with you! Liberals are not the only people buying your book. Lucky for me, I was able to borrow it. The Bush bashing is getting old and it's getting tiresome. LET IT GO! And as I said, for someone whose books have also been somewhat tiresome lately, I would suggest he can it and try to write a good book up to his old standards. Patricia Cornwell got a lot of flack for her political agenda in her last book - she blamed it, not on her own really bad book, but said it was a pentagon conspiracy to get her. Eee gads.Book Review: Another great King Novel
Summary: 5 Stars
You can tell a good novel by how much sleep you lose! I had trouble putting down the book and would read into the wee hours of the morning! Stephen King is a brilliant writer. The story flows seamlessly.Book Review: Another page turner by King
Summary: 4 Stars
Just finished the book last night. Started slow but soon became hard to put down. Found myself wanting the book to just get to the mystery solving quickly, but isn't that what reading a good book is all about? Very entertaining.Book Review: Art Imitating Life?
Summary: 3 Stars
The prolific purveyor of terror, Stephen King, semi-successfully turns his finely honed, `I-know-what-scares-you' gaze from the venue of his beloved Maine to the seemingly serene retiree-haven of the Florida Keys in his umpteenth novel entitled, "Duma Key". This tale of horror explores the idea of an imaginative power so forceful that when it flexes its muscle a combination of all-hell-breaking-loose steam and creative juices gone wild collide with the impact of the construction crane that nearly ends the life of chief protagonist and narrator, Edgar Freemantle, rendering him without an arm and a severely damaged leg. In his usual easy-to-read style that makes use of the most current common day benchmarks of our 21st century culture--from the mention of items for sale from popular mail order catalogs to quotations from popular songs--King freely allows Freemantle to muse insightful with regard to his accident, the effect it had on his former life and his struggle towards a recuperation that will in his mind allow him to again live productively.
I use the prefix `semi' because although successful in his execution of creating a thoroughly believable character experiencing some pretty unorthodox events, King always writes a good book slipping in some thought-provoking big questions that still appeals to the `American Idol' watching masses. However, in terms of fashioning a novel that actually horrifies, `Duma Key' fails on some nuanced level.
Don't get me wrong--`Duma Key' provides an above average amount of entertainment. Freemantle's voice compels the reader to turn the pages; King's concept of speculative almost LSD-induced art fantasy that actually Pygmalion-izes into a complicated reality with a vengeance boggles a mind even well-versed in the painted daydreams the likes of Salvador Dali, Le Douanier Rousseau, and Yves Tanguy. From the standpoint of someone who collects art strictly for pleasure, the visual delights conceived by King titillate and amuse--this combined with Freemantle's odd clairvoyance lends an interesting blend of voyeurism that has the reader sitting on the edge of his/her seat, cheering Edgar on--willing him to become the celebrated media-darling Picasso of `Pink', the name of his rented Duma beach house.
However, when the actual `horror' of the story molecularizes into an adversary wreaking collateral damage on Freemantle's friends and family and Edgar, with the help of two well-meaning and understanding buddies formulate a triumvirate of evil-trouncing ubermen, the third-portion of the narrative casts aside the philosophical ruminations and moves into overdrive--much action with the usual King touches of slimy visceral images that worked well in "IT" but fall short here. I've mentioned my `immune' theory in some of my other reviews with regard to the way an audience well versed in the art of movie and television viewing where the inner-workings of the mind of a serial killer blending together with that of the supposed normal productive citizen is considered de rigueur, blurring and sanitizing what is actually perceived now as truly horrific.
In short, King's evil embodiment simply doesn't seem that evil when the audience has already been desensitized to such archetypical views of the dark side. The idea of ancient badness seems almost whimsical, like some entity that escaped from the climatic end reel of `Indiana Jones and the Ark of the Covenant'--the black mammy protectress as stereotypical as the voodoo woman--all headdress and earrings--in a New Orleans genre film like "The Skeleton Key." We may recognize these characters as beloved familiars--a part of any good storytelling--but after the likes of cheek-eating Hannibal Lector, the assortment of blood-sucking vampires in the mini-series of `Salem's Lot' and now the intellectual and thoughtful serial killer/avenger Dexter in the popular Showtime serial--King's Team Wicked lacks that extra dash of sauce piquant that had the crowds in the Roman Coliseum roaring for bigger and badder atrocities.
Bottom line? Stephen King's latest bad boy, 600+ page "Duma Key" adequately supports the already established King horror mechanism. In a pensive narrative that may reflect King's own experience regarding his nearly fatal accident, themes of life and death ebb and flow in the mind of main character Edgar Freemantle as he battles the inevitability of change after a life-altering experience. However, King's need to bang in the action, bites him as his ultimate explanation for all the strange Duma Key goings-on just don't satisfy an audience already immunized and sated with enough cinematic horror to fill 20 volumes of Edgar Allen Poe tales and then some. Recommended solely to experience King and his reflections on life and immortality after his accident through the voice of his protagonist and his delightful artistic conceptions, all of which would surely make up an interesting and most attractive art collection for exhibition.
Diana Faillace Von Behren
"reneofc"
Book Review: At Last
Summary: 5 Stars
Who would have guessed? After the relentless, and somewhat desperate mining of his back catalog that resulted in disappointing mashups like Buick 6, Cell, and Lisey, who would have guessed that Steve had a masterpiece left in him? Duma is outrageously good, filled with deeply felt insights into marriage, injury, and loss that, for once, are simply and beautifully written, without the self-referential self-holiness that has marred his work ever since the accident. Oh, and, by the way, there's a walloping good horror story included as well. ABout three quarters of the way through, as much as I was enjoying muyself, I began to suspect that once again Uncle Stevie was going to try to build up to the "ultimate horror" and leave us as unsatisfied as he did when he's tried it before (cf. It, the Crimson King, etc.) Instead, he hits a grand slam with the best ending ever. (in a tiny, minor quibble, I felt like the post climax scene was confusing and unnecessary.) There is nothing derivative here, just a master storyteller at the peak of his craft.