Book #24: The Dead Zone

Title of Book: The Dead Zone
Author: Stephen King
Pages: 402
Grade: C+
Buyability: 4/10
Status: Owned, but gave away in a book drive

Review: Ahhh another book for pop lit down, another day. The thing about Stephen King books, and many of the same genre, is they fail to really challenge the reader other than to try and retain certain clues and hints as to what might happen in the future of the plot. Why are we being introduced to a lightning rod salesman? Why do we see a blue and yellow filter in a vision? What is the significance of the main character's interest in meeting politicians?

Well for the most part, the big hints were pretty easy to pick up on in this wide-sprawling tale of a man who has a 'gift' for predicting the future when he touches someone. The gift remains dormant for most of his life until a near-fatal car crash puts him into a coma for four and a half years. When he wakes up he finds most of his old life - and his old self - has wasted away, except for this newfound gift that continually astounds people, but more importantly freaks them out.

I guess my beef with the book was how much of it felt like filler and fluff. Even the more exciting parts of the book didn't reallllly contribute to the so-called climax of the story. I guess in reflection the story is a lot about checks and balances - ironic since a good deal of it deals with politics. An eye for an eye and all that..the big twist kind of falls in line with other elements of the plot but I can't say it was a BIG twist like say, in Secret Window. The characters fell flat, the descriptions were tideous to get through (and were often skipped), and good portions of the book failed to ignite tension, while others forced it.

I know this is classic Stephen King and I'm sure for the time it was quite a remarkable, exciting book...but other pop lit books I have read, like Peyton place or Valley of the dolls, have really inspired me as a writer and a reader...but King's book just didn't. It felt flat and pulpy. Sorry dude.

Book #12: Two For The Dough

Book Title: Two for the Dough
Author: Janet Evanovich
Pages: About 320
Grade: B-
Buyability: 4/10
Status: Owned (bought)

Summary: After reading a fair bit of high-brow and chick lit lately I decided to finally read the second book in the quite popular (By my records) Stephanie Plum series. I surprisingly liked the first one, about a New Jersey thirty-something turned bounty hunter who is dealing with a flirty cop/childhood menace Joe Morelli, a crazy traditional family, and a bucket full of weird cases. Anyway this led me to pick up the second book and I was appalled by how awful a lot of the writing was! That being said, I'm still a fan of the series - they are fast-paced and interesting, just the kind of junk novel that passes by in a few hours.

I think the reason why I didn't like this book quite as much as the first was well for one, you have a better idea of what'll happen and when...the first book I'm like "bounty hunter eh?" and had no idea what was happening. This one I had a better idea of how to pick up clues and so on, but even then the story was kind of broken up and jarring, and there was a ridiculous amount of grossness in this book given a big portion of it revolved around a funeral home. Still the story was interesting, the relationship between Morelli and Stephanie was very well written, and the ending was exciting. All the good makings of a fluffy read for spring (and soon summer) days! Will I buy another one? Hmm only if I can find them for super cheap. Otherwise it's library time for me.