Post by Taika of Narfell on Jan 6, 2007 5:26:36 GMT 1
Once upon a time (like... 11 years ago) I read King's book of short stories called Night Shift. I remember liking it but that's about it. Thus, when I picked up Dreamcatcher it was with the knowledge that this would be the first King I ever read. (You know... really read) I've heard much about King. I've heard people say he's crap, and I've heard people say he's the god of horror novels, so it was with fairly mixed expectations I started reading. I suppose I expected a decent plot but mediocre writing and character description - as with so many other books in the genres that still rank as pulp fiction (fantasy, sci-fi, horror - to some degree still crime, though they've gained standing since the 80s). I was pleasantly surprised, though, King's writing is far better than I had expected it to be, so it was big plus right there.
The back cover blurb informs us that:
"In Derry, Maine, four young boys once stood together and did a brave thing. Something that chnaged them in ways they hardly understand.
A quarter of a century later, the boys are men who have gone their seperate ways. Though they still get together once a year to go hunting in the north woods of Maine. But this time is different. This time a man comes stumbling into their camp, lost, disoriented and muttering about lights in the sky.
Before long, these old friends will be plunged into the most remarkable events of their lives as they struggle with a terrible creature from another world. Their only chance of survival is locked in their shared past - and in the Dreamcatcher."
From the very beginning of the book it is clear that we're dealing with UFOs and stories of alien invaders. The books starts with a list of news headlines from the past 50+ years all concerning lights in the sky, UFO sightings and mysterious red grass. But it's more than just that. We're also dealing with four men who all have some sort of paranormal abilities - not strong ones, all of them are trying to deny that there's anything abnormal about them - be they pathfinding skills, premonitions, true seeing or the like.
When the four friends end up in the middle of an alien invasion, they must find out how to use their previously ignored skills to combat the telepathic aliens. The first third of the book is horror. True horror that makes you hold your breath and want to close your eyes, if you weren't too scared to take your eyes off... whatever might be sneaking up on you. I liked it a lot. It kept me reading well into the night (mind, I had a bad case of insomnia, I had nothing else to do
) King certainly does know how to put together a scary story. The second third of the book gives us some more answers and some solution models and more action. All in all it makes it seem less scary and the horror theme kinda goes whooosh with the wind. Now we know what they are and how we deal with them. The last third of the book goes more stress, more mystery and a bit of horror back into the mix. I'm not sure if I liked it all that much. There's half an explanation for why things work like they do, but never really the how of it. I suppose I'm a tad too inquisitive to just go with it, but if there's hints at an explanation there should be a proper one, I think. That may just be me, though.
Come to think of it the book bears some resemblance to the Alien movies in more than one way. The concept of having an alien growing inside your intestines is borrowed here, and King knows it's similar so he has his characters see the similarity as well, calling the red 'grass' Ripley Fungus and such references. But also in the plot structure. The first part being horror/thriller, the second part being action, the third part being race against time and generally mysterious - matches the three first Alien movies perfectly.
I liked the book overall, also because of its references. Alien first and foremost. Rolling Stones' Sympathy for the Devil plays a fairly big part in the story. There are several Poe references, to The Fall of the House of Usher and The Cask of Amontillado among others, a few to classical music pieces and to me these things simply provide flavour. It's a way of making the setting seem real; to have the characters draw parallels to things they've heard to read. I find that it makes them seem more credible, I do it myself all the time - being reminded of something that happened or was said in this or that book/song/movie.
I have precious little more to say about it. It's a simple sort of book, and being far better than I'd expected I don't really have anything to complain about. The plot is good, well-structured, with plenty of humour in all the horror, the characters surprisingly well-rounded. If you're into horror, or action filled books this is a recommendable read. I definitely don't consider my time wasted with this one.
The back cover blurb informs us that:
"In Derry, Maine, four young boys once stood together and did a brave thing. Something that chnaged them in ways they hardly understand.
A quarter of a century later, the boys are men who have gone their seperate ways. Though they still get together once a year to go hunting in the north woods of Maine. But this time is different. This time a man comes stumbling into their camp, lost, disoriented and muttering about lights in the sky.
Before long, these old friends will be plunged into the most remarkable events of their lives as they struggle with a terrible creature from another world. Their only chance of survival is locked in their shared past - and in the Dreamcatcher."
From the very beginning of the book it is clear that we're dealing with UFOs and stories of alien invaders. The books starts with a list of news headlines from the past 50+ years all concerning lights in the sky, UFO sightings and mysterious red grass. But it's more than just that. We're also dealing with four men who all have some sort of paranormal abilities - not strong ones, all of them are trying to deny that there's anything abnormal about them - be they pathfinding skills, premonitions, true seeing or the like.
When the four friends end up in the middle of an alien invasion, they must find out how to use their previously ignored skills to combat the telepathic aliens. The first third of the book is horror. True horror that makes you hold your breath and want to close your eyes, if you weren't too scared to take your eyes off... whatever might be sneaking up on you. I liked it a lot. It kept me reading well into the night (mind, I had a bad case of insomnia, I had nothing else to do
) King certainly does know how to put together a scary story. The second third of the book gives us some more answers and some solution models and more action. All in all it makes it seem less scary and the horror theme kinda goes whooosh with the wind. Now we know what they are and how we deal with them. The last third of the book goes more stress, more mystery and a bit of horror back into the mix. I'm not sure if I liked it all that much. There's half an explanation for why things work like they do, but never really the how of it. I suppose I'm a tad too inquisitive to just go with it, but if there's hints at an explanation there should be a proper one, I think. That may just be me, though.Come to think of it the book bears some resemblance to the Alien movies in more than one way. The concept of having an alien growing inside your intestines is borrowed here, and King knows it's similar so he has his characters see the similarity as well, calling the red 'grass' Ripley Fungus and such references. But also in the plot structure. The first part being horror/thriller, the second part being action, the third part being race against time and generally mysterious - matches the three first Alien movies perfectly.
I liked the book overall, also because of its references. Alien first and foremost. Rolling Stones' Sympathy for the Devil plays a fairly big part in the story. There are several Poe references, to The Fall of the House of Usher and The Cask of Amontillado among others, a few to classical music pieces and to me these things simply provide flavour. It's a way of making the setting seem real; to have the characters draw parallels to things they've heard to read. I find that it makes them seem more credible, I do it myself all the time - being reminded of something that happened or was said in this or that book/song/movie.
I have precious little more to say about it. It's a simple sort of book, and being far better than I'd expected I don't really have anything to complain about. The plot is good, well-structured, with plenty of humour in all the horror, the characters surprisingly well-rounded. If you're into horror, or action filled books this is a recommendable read. I definitely don't consider my time wasted with this one.
King brought me into the scene of the big, bad, thick books with sharp fangs, and I must say, I appreciate the affinity he instilled in me. I'm a horror kind of guy to this day.