I really feel that this is one of King's most overlooked works. Especially for someone who's read dang near everything the man has written, this gives King fans the feel of one of Uncle Stevie's works... except not. Face it, when you read a great deal of any author you start to understand the way their mind works, and plots can become predictable. King steps outside the world you expect him to inhabit, while still remaining firmly in it somehow. There are references to other novels, but the places the plot head are not something you expect from one of the author's works. Instead he goes somewhere strange, unpredictable, and surreal, and tense.
I've seen quite a few bad reviews of this book, dismissing it as too strange, or running from surreal into merely laughable, but I think it may just be that it was simply not what his fans were expecting from him, which is not a bad thing by any means. Get outside of your expectations of King's work, be willing to indulge a different flavor of strange than he usually serves you and you might just find yourself liking this underrated work.
I really enjoyed Rose Madder as well. As you point out, the fact that it is not typical King, gives it something really fresh. I can see how a King fan might not find what they expected, but I thought this book was great, too.
ReplyDeleteWe, my friend, appear to be in the minority. Note how many King stories were made into movies. Note how this hasn't been made into a movie.
ReplyDeleteIt really is a great book, I'm not sure what all the hate is about.