Stephen King retired a year or so ago. It wasn't the traditional retirement that we associate with the world in that a party wasn't thrown and a watch wasn't presented. He was just free of his contractual obligations. I knew that he was going to publish again at some point as he said so. He just didn't want to HAVE to publish again.
nKing's new book is an example of what happens to those who wait for something.
The Cell focusses on a world that has been zombified by a pulse sent out through cell phones/satellite devices. There are ... of course... a few survivors in the same vein as a George Romero movie. The survivors look to save themselves and the world from these monsters.
The real tale is deeper than the disturbing narrative that King paints. It is written in a world where the world is afraid of destruction and natural disasters like the 9/11 attacks and Hurrican Katrina... King taps into these fears and writes an extremely visceral story.
The basic review is simple. The beginning is amazing...and it slows down a bit but once the pack of survivors reach the private school, the train ride begins again. King usually starts his novels VERY strongly and the disappears into a dream world that is both distracting and intriguing. The novels that are "good" are the ones where he finds his voice and message and ENDS his books satisfactorily.
I needed to share with you my favorite quote of the book that I have been careful to copy for you. I think it exemplifies everything I have mentioned.
"Three days ago we not only ruled the earth, we had survivor's guilt about all the other species we'd wiped out in our climb to the nirvana of round-the-clock cable news and microwave popcorn," Clay observes. "Now we're the Flashlight People."
King is back... relaxed... and writing for fun again.
Next Up -- The 5th Horseman by James Patterson
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