The Running Man by Stephen King Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Running Man
Book Review: A Thriller at break-neck speed...
Summary: 5 Stars
Forget Arnold. Other than the character names this book is entirely different. Ben Richards is on the run. This is the future of reality TV. Richards is poor and has a 3 year old child - sick with respiratory ailments - just like all the poor folk who cant afford clean air filters. He is chosen to be on the running man - the Mack-Daddy of all prime time shows. The runner gets 100 dollars an hour and wins a billion if he can run for the full 30 days without getting caught. All he has to do is send in a tape to the studio once a day to show he is still alive. Easy right? Then how come the record is only eight days? Because the entire county is looking for you and will get rewards for sightings or even killing you! There is also a team of professional hunters that will stop at nothing from killing their prey. Friends and relatives will be bribed or tortured as the case may be for information. This book moves at breakneck speed and the pressure does not stop until the incredible ending. The only advantage Richards has is a twelve-hour head start and the fact there are no rules. If you thought Ken Jennings was a tough contestant on Jeopardy you haven't seen Ben Richards. Buy this book and get ready to run...
Relic113
Book Review: A breather from SK's stereotyped supernatural horror stories
Summary: 4 Stars
We should be grateful that Bachmann allowed SK to write in another form so much different from what readers boxed him to be - a horror storyteller. I am no big fan of King but after looking at my book collections & reviewing the movies I have seen, I slowly realize that I have read & seen a lot of SK products. & I am proud to admit it. SK is a great storyteller - be it pure gothic horror, a touch of supernatural forces, mystery & drama & now, a futuristic sci-fi thriller. Hail to you SK!Book Review: A fast-paced, action-packed story
Summary: 5 Stars
I had read a few of Stephen King's bestsellers before this one, but "The Running Man" is the best novel of the lot. This fast-paced, action-packed story was fantastic, and I almost finished all 300+ pages in one sitting.
Ben Richards, the main character of the story, is a person with true grit and determination. He enters a life-and-death game called "The Running Man" to get money to pay for a doctor for his sick child. He comes across as a good-hearted and caring individual, even though he uses foul language and violence. Stephen King brilliantly creates a two-sided character who is both morally good and outwardly bad, depending on your point of view. Despite Richards' witticisms and snide remarks, I couldn't help becoming attached to his character and his struggle to come out of the game alive. His never-ending push forward through the throws of life was well-written by King. More than once it seemed as if Richards had been beaten, but then King added a new twist to the tale. I never really knew whether Richards was safe from the hunters or in danger of losing it all. This is one of the reasons why it is hard to put the book down -- you don't know what to expect will happen next.
The story progresses with increasing tension as time goes on for Richards. It reaches a climax at the very end of the novel that was unexpected by me, but also served as a suitable ending to Richards' plight. In a way, Richards had already decided the outcome of the game from the very start. This adds another element to the book that makes it even more interesting.
A lot of people who may not have read the book have likely seen the movie, made in 1987 and starring Arnold Schwarzeneggar. If you saw the movie, regardless of whether you liked or hated it, read the book! The movie is only remotely similar to the book with regard to the general scenario, but from there, the book takes over and makes the story far greater than the screenplay. The movie was interesting, but the book was astounding!
I am not a big-time fan of Stephen King, but I have to say that "The Running Man" is a great piece of literature from an author who is renowned for writing horror stories. The novel is about a struggle for survival and a story of one man's rebellion against the upper-class. Horror fans need not despair, however, because King throws in some of the guts that have made his horror stories spine-tingling. Overall, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is willing to let his/her imagination run wild on an adrenaline rush.
Book Review: A good read but....
Summary: 4 Stars
I really liked this book and I'm surprised it took me so long to read it. For some reason I thought I wouldn't like it. I was pleasantly surprised. The only thing I didn't like was the fact that the story didn't address the nose filters more though, the pollution angle.Book Review: A great book
Summary: 5 Stars
Now when I picked up this book, I realized it was a little short for a Stephen King novel, but when I opened up to the first page, it grabbed hold of me and didn't let go. It is so imaginative, I mean, the game shows that are fatal in a time when tv is called free-vee. I swear, when I finished I went to watch a movie and told my brother to pass the Free-Vee Remote! The main charachter, Ben Richards is the model of a normal guy trying to make a living in a tough society, just not the way you'd expect it done today. I mean, the day this novel becomes real is the day Regis takes a machine gun and chases you around the ABC studio! Anyway, I adored the book and didn't want the climactic final scene to end!