Status
Available
Call number
Call number
F Kin
Genres
Collection
Publication
Viking (1996), 704 pages
Description
Stephen King's #1 national bestseller about a little mining town, Desperation, that many will enter on their way to somewhere else. But getting out is not easy as it would seem... "I see holes like eyes. My mind is full of them." For all intents and purposes, police officer Collie Entragian, chief law enforcement for the small mining town of Desperation, Nevada, appears to be completely insane. He's taken to stopping vehicles along the desolate Interstate 50 and abducting unwary travelers with various unusual ploys. There's something very wrong here in Desperation...and Officer Entragian is only at the surface of it. The secrets embedded in Desperation's landscape, and the horrifying evil that infects the town like some viral hot zone, are both awesome and terrifying. But one of Entragian's victims, young David Carver, seems to know--and it scares him nearly to death to realize this truth--that the forces being summoned to combat this frightful, maniacal aberration are of equal and opposite intensity...… (more)
Subjects
Original publication date
1996-09-24
Similar in this library
It by Stephen King
User reviews
LibraryThing member jeremytaylor
Review by Jeremy Taylor
Stephen King is in many ways the epitome of the modern American writer. He’s an author whose work people either love or love to hate. Prolific, commercial, and popular, he can also be deeply introspective, poetic, and literary. His works span the range from horrific
Desperation is in many ways classic Stephen King. It is violent, gory at times, and scary, but it is also tender and surprisingly religious. It explores themes like family relationships, alcoholism, heroism, and the nature of God, all set against a backdrop of a dusty Nevada mining town where something ancient and horrible has come out of the earth.
In typical King fashion, the cast of characters for Desperation seems to have come straight out of three or four different genres. There’s John Marinville, a burnt-out writer embarking on a cross-country motorcycle odyssey, hoping to rediscover himself. There’s Peter and Mary Jackson, a young married couple on a mission of love. There’s the Carvers, a vacationing family who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. There’s young David Carver, a fairly normal boy with an exceptional gift. There’s Tom Billingsley, a used-up drunk who remembers his town as it once was. And there’s Collie Entragian, a former nice-guy cop who has taken to enforcing his version of the law in some extremely unconventional ways.
As the hapless travelers converge on the town of Desperation, Nevada, they discover first terror, then a kind of grim resignation, and finally hope as they discover more about themselves and about the history of the place to which they have come.
Desperation is an interesting book. Readers who have not previously been introduced to King’s writing may find some scenes hard to stomach, and even seasoned King fans may find themselves grimacing from time to time. But readers are just as likely to find themselves wiping away a tear or two as the story unfolds. The drama, action, and emotion are all intense, as is the violence and language. As always, King manages to bring his characters to life in a way that leaves readers feeling like they’ve met some new friends when all is said and done.
It’s not hard to find God in Desperation; the story is infused with evidence of God’s work as well as conversations about his nature and motives. And while the God in Desperation is not exactly the God of the Bible (it is not necessarily clear, for example, that he is powerful enough to defeat the evil at work in the desert without human assistance), Christians will certainly be able to recognize elements of his character as the book unfolds. The underlying message seems to be that though God at times seems cruel, ultimately God is love. Both sentiments are true.
Like most Stephen King novels, Desperation needs to be approached with caution. It contains quite a bit of objectionable content, but it has a redemptive message as well. King obviously has a keen grasp of human nature, and books like this one are a good example of portraying universal human experience. As we know, human experience isn’t always wonderful; in fact, it’s often downright ugly. But it has moments of beauty and joy as well. Desperation presents both extremes.
Stephen King is in many ways the epitome of the modern American writer. He’s an author whose work people either love or love to hate. Prolific, commercial, and popular, he can also be deeply introspective, poetic, and literary. His works span the range from horrific
Show More
(Dreamcatcher) to literary (Bag of Bones), epic (the Dark Tower series and The Stand) to romantic (Lisey’s Story). Known for his rich characterizations and gritty prose, King displays an easy familiarity with a variety of genres and themes.Desperation is in many ways classic Stephen King. It is violent, gory at times, and scary, but it is also tender and surprisingly religious. It explores themes like family relationships, alcoholism, heroism, and the nature of God, all set against a backdrop of a dusty Nevada mining town where something ancient and horrible has come out of the earth.
In typical King fashion, the cast of characters for Desperation seems to have come straight out of three or four different genres. There’s John Marinville, a burnt-out writer embarking on a cross-country motorcycle odyssey, hoping to rediscover himself. There’s Peter and Mary Jackson, a young married couple on a mission of love. There’s the Carvers, a vacationing family who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. There’s young David Carver, a fairly normal boy with an exceptional gift. There’s Tom Billingsley, a used-up drunk who remembers his town as it once was. And there’s Collie Entragian, a former nice-guy cop who has taken to enforcing his version of the law in some extremely unconventional ways.
As the hapless travelers converge on the town of Desperation, Nevada, they discover first terror, then a kind of grim resignation, and finally hope as they discover more about themselves and about the history of the place to which they have come.
Desperation is an interesting book. Readers who have not previously been introduced to King’s writing may find some scenes hard to stomach, and even seasoned King fans may find themselves grimacing from time to time. But readers are just as likely to find themselves wiping away a tear or two as the story unfolds. The drama, action, and emotion are all intense, as is the violence and language. As always, King manages to bring his characters to life in a way that leaves readers feeling like they’ve met some new friends when all is said and done.
It’s not hard to find God in Desperation; the story is infused with evidence of God’s work as well as conversations about his nature and motives. And while the God in Desperation is not exactly the God of the Bible (it is not necessarily clear, for example, that he is powerful enough to defeat the evil at work in the desert without human assistance), Christians will certainly be able to recognize elements of his character as the book unfolds. The underlying message seems to be that though God at times seems cruel, ultimately God is love. Both sentiments are true.
Like most Stephen King novels, Desperation needs to be approached with caution. It contains quite a bit of objectionable content, but it has a redemptive message as well. King obviously has a keen grasp of human nature, and books like this one are a good example of portraying universal human experience. As we know, human experience isn’t always wonderful; in fact, it’s often downright ugly. But it has moments of beauty and joy as well. Desperation presents both extremes.
Show Less
LibraryThing member JGolomb
"In these silences something may rise."
Stephen King, "Desperation"
My only disappointment in Stephen King's "Desperation" is that it isn't longer. This book contains all that makes King so enjoyable to read: strong and believable character development; intuitive and subtle understanding of the
I won't bore you with another plot summary - plenty exist already in other reviews. I'd like to take a little bit of a deeper look at some of the elements of "Desperation" and share my thoughts on why I think this should rank right up with Kings' other non-epic tales (In truth, nothing of his can compare in breadth, depth and scope to "It" and "The Stand"; his "Gunslinger" series, to me, is of a different breed). And yes, this review has a plethora of spoilers.
One of the most fulfilling and satisfying elements of this story is the way King creates myth, and builds and exposes a legend he's created to flesh out the plot. Within the story itself, King writes that "legend-making" is when "truth and mistakes and outright lies are mixed up." King’s mythological evil comes in the form of Tak, a deep-earth spirit who’s been accidentally sprung free to spread unmitigated evil on the two-bit mining burg of Desperation, Nevada.
Very similar to Pennywise the Clown in "It", the evil presence in "Desperation" relies on transmogrification to perform its dastardly deeds. Its’ initial form is most memorable in the character of Sheriff Collie Entragian, who's big, creepy, violent, and has a dastardly sense of humor. In an example of King's ability to blend the grotesque with the ironic, Entragian "surveyed them from the melting ramparts of his face, and his mouth spread in a wide, lip-splitting grin. 'Look at us,' he said in a thick, sentimental voice. 'Look at us, would you? Gosh! Just one big happy family!'"
"The spiritual state of unbelief is desperation."
Faith and religion play a significant role in "Desperation". These themes provide the foundation for "Desperation's" back-story, and the propulsion of King's plot.
King explores god and religion, the role of logic and its' relationship to faith. He writes, "Sane men and women don't believe in God. That was all, that was flat. You can't say it from the pulpit, because the congregation'd run you out of town, but it's the truth. God isn't about reason; God is about faith and belief. God says, ‘Sure, take away the safety net. And when that's gone, take away the tightrope, too.’"
Kings’ mouthpiece for this thematic exploration is David Carver, a very unique and special 11-year old boy from Ohio; "There shall arise among you a prophet, and a dreamer of dreams."
A flashback describes David's thoughts on the day of his religious epiphany: "The day's simple unzipped loveliness stunned him, and for a moment he was very aware of himself as part of something whole --- a cell on the living skin of the world." And later on he hears "…the still, small voice of God." King creates a very powerful character in David Carver, as he's written with believable strength in his motivations and actions. And it's through David that King reveals, once again, his incredible ability draw to life a very genuine childhood experience and perspective, while under unimaginable circumstance. Carver reminds me of John Irving's Owen Meany, though not as brilliant in its' elegance and subtly.
Carver serves as a modern-day version of the biblical Jonah figure. He's forced to accept that "God is cruel," when within the span of a dramatic couple of days, God's "cruelty" continually bashes him like a hammer upon an anvil, and his unwavering belief becomes the driving force of the plot through the second half of the book.
King is known to write what he knows and what he's lived. He's fought his demons of alcoholism on the landscape of his novels for decades, and does so again in "Desperation", but on a smaller scale. John Marinville, former National Book Award winner and recovering alcoholic, serves as King's familiar in "Desperation." Through Marinville, "Desperation" becomes an exploration of King's faith and thoughts on religion. In a scene where Marinville ultimately comes to terms with his belief in god, King writes, "He was literally dividing himself in two. There was John Edward Marinville, who didn't believe in God and didn't want God to believe in him…And there was Johnny, who wanted to stay."
He writes, "People could make shadows that looked like animals, but they were still only shadows, minor tricks of light and projection. Wasn't it likely that God was the same kind of thing? Just another legendary shadow."
Written only a few years after being hit by a van and almost losing his life, it's not surprising that King was spending some grey matter on the existence and belief beyond the material world.
"Until Nevada, things had been fine."
The story comes down to good versus evil. The good is weighty and significant. The bad is historic and unrelenting. The Evil entity, Tak, comes from deep within the earth. It speaks in a "dead language" and is referred to as "unformed". Tak starts wreaking havoc in a dry, hot and sandy part of Nevada; released and unleashed through modern mining technology. Yes, there's an environmental message, but it's slight and obvious and King doesn't appear to be using it beyond a mechanism to build out his mythology and as a trigger for certain plot points.
Tak is ancient. He's from the earth; of nature and reliant on it. His transmogrification comes in the form of different human shells in which he inhabits. This gives him the ability to act away from his deep earthen home. But he's bound by biology and the human form, and his presence within the body overwhelms the body's weaknesses.
God uses David in a similar fashion. He uses him as an agent on earth. God on high; Tak deep below. God calls on his volunteers; while Tak takes his designees. It's through these people that they wage war.
Tak's domain and powers are at odds with technology and, as an extension, the modern world. Tak's minion run when they hear a cell phone. While they don't fear the automobile, they're clearly more comfortable in the dark and at night. In a very old-school vampiric way, Tak can call wildlife to act as his agents, or his eyes, or in one case, his early warning radar.
King explores modern v. ancient; old v. new. In modern days the past is only a shadow; only a distant memory, glimpsed out of the corner of your eye. Even the ancient words used by the evil presence is called the 'language of the dead'…old is past is history is gone and dead.
I found myself complete wrapped up in "Desperation". The elements of horror aren't terrifying. There were no evenings when I found myself second guessing those sounds in the night. But the themes stuck with me, and the characters engaged me. If you like Stephen King then this is an unqualified recommended read. If you like your horror with a good helping of psychological reflection, believable supernatural evil powers, and blood and gore, then you'll like this book.
Stephen King, "Desperation"
My only disappointment in Stephen King's "Desperation" is that it isn't longer. This book contains all that makes King so enjoyable to read: strong and believable character development; intuitive and subtle understanding of the
Show More
childhood psyche; horror as defined by what's creepy, intense, psychological and sometimes gothic; mythological back-story that superbly connects past and present; and the believably supernatural.I won't bore you with another plot summary - plenty exist already in other reviews. I'd like to take a little bit of a deeper look at some of the elements of "Desperation" and share my thoughts on why I think this should rank right up with Kings' other non-epic tales (In truth, nothing of his can compare in breadth, depth and scope to "It" and "The Stand"; his "Gunslinger" series, to me, is of a different breed). And yes, this review has a plethora of spoilers.
One of the most fulfilling and satisfying elements of this story is the way King creates myth, and builds and exposes a legend he's created to flesh out the plot. Within the story itself, King writes that "legend-making" is when "truth and mistakes and outright lies are mixed up." King’s mythological evil comes in the form of Tak, a deep-earth spirit who’s been accidentally sprung free to spread unmitigated evil on the two-bit mining burg of Desperation, Nevada.
Very similar to Pennywise the Clown in "It", the evil presence in "Desperation" relies on transmogrification to perform its dastardly deeds. Its’ initial form is most memorable in the character of Sheriff Collie Entragian, who's big, creepy, violent, and has a dastardly sense of humor. In an example of King's ability to blend the grotesque with the ironic, Entragian "surveyed them from the melting ramparts of his face, and his mouth spread in a wide, lip-splitting grin. 'Look at us,' he said in a thick, sentimental voice. 'Look at us, would you? Gosh! Just one big happy family!'"
"The spiritual state of unbelief is desperation."
Faith and religion play a significant role in "Desperation". These themes provide the foundation for "Desperation's" back-story, and the propulsion of King's plot.
King explores god and religion, the role of logic and its' relationship to faith. He writes, "Sane men and women don't believe in God. That was all, that was flat. You can't say it from the pulpit, because the congregation'd run you out of town, but it's the truth. God isn't about reason; God is about faith and belief. God says, ‘Sure, take away the safety net. And when that's gone, take away the tightrope, too.’"
Kings’ mouthpiece for this thematic exploration is David Carver, a very unique and special 11-year old boy from Ohio; "There shall arise among you a prophet, and a dreamer of dreams."
A flashback describes David's thoughts on the day of his religious epiphany: "The day's simple unzipped loveliness stunned him, and for a moment he was very aware of himself as part of something whole --- a cell on the living skin of the world." And later on he hears "…the still, small voice of God." King creates a very powerful character in David Carver, as he's written with believable strength in his motivations and actions. And it's through David that King reveals, once again, his incredible ability draw to life a very genuine childhood experience and perspective, while under unimaginable circumstance. Carver reminds me of John Irving's Owen Meany, though not as brilliant in its' elegance and subtly.
Carver serves as a modern-day version of the biblical Jonah figure. He's forced to accept that "God is cruel," when within the span of a dramatic couple of days, God's "cruelty" continually bashes him like a hammer upon an anvil, and his unwavering belief becomes the driving force of the plot through the second half of the book.
King is known to write what he knows and what he's lived. He's fought his demons of alcoholism on the landscape of his novels for decades, and does so again in "Desperation", but on a smaller scale. John Marinville, former National Book Award winner and recovering alcoholic, serves as King's familiar in "Desperation." Through Marinville, "Desperation" becomes an exploration of King's faith and thoughts on religion. In a scene where Marinville ultimately comes to terms with his belief in god, King writes, "He was literally dividing himself in two. There was John Edward Marinville, who didn't believe in God and didn't want God to believe in him…And there was Johnny, who wanted to stay."
He writes, "People could make shadows that looked like animals, but they were still only shadows, minor tricks of light and projection. Wasn't it likely that God was the same kind of thing? Just another legendary shadow."
Written only a few years after being hit by a van and almost losing his life, it's not surprising that King was spending some grey matter on the existence and belief beyond the material world.
"Until Nevada, things had been fine."
The story comes down to good versus evil. The good is weighty and significant. The bad is historic and unrelenting. The Evil entity, Tak, comes from deep within the earth. It speaks in a "dead language" and is referred to as "unformed". Tak starts wreaking havoc in a dry, hot and sandy part of Nevada; released and unleashed through modern mining technology. Yes, there's an environmental message, but it's slight and obvious and King doesn't appear to be using it beyond a mechanism to build out his mythology and as a trigger for certain plot points.
Tak is ancient. He's from the earth; of nature and reliant on it. His transmogrification comes in the form of different human shells in which he inhabits. This gives him the ability to act away from his deep earthen home. But he's bound by biology and the human form, and his presence within the body overwhelms the body's weaknesses.
God uses David in a similar fashion. He uses him as an agent on earth. God on high; Tak deep below. God calls on his volunteers; while Tak takes his designees. It's through these people that they wage war.
Tak's domain and powers are at odds with technology and, as an extension, the modern world. Tak's minion run when they hear a cell phone. While they don't fear the automobile, they're clearly more comfortable in the dark and at night. In a very old-school vampiric way, Tak can call wildlife to act as his agents, or his eyes, or in one case, his early warning radar.
King explores modern v. ancient; old v. new. In modern days the past is only a shadow; only a distant memory, glimpsed out of the corner of your eye. Even the ancient words used by the evil presence is called the 'language of the dead'…old is past is history is gone and dead.
I found myself complete wrapped up in "Desperation". The elements of horror aren't terrifying. There were no evenings when I found myself second guessing those sounds in the night. But the themes stuck with me, and the characters engaged me. If you like Stephen King then this is an unqualified recommended read. If you like your horror with a good helping of psychological reflection, believable supernatural evil powers, and blood and gore, then you'll like this book.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Urthwild
1996 - The Regulators by Richard Bachman
1996 - Desperation by Stephen King
These 2 were meant to be companion books by King using as they did the same character names, in a similar sort of peril from the same monster. A lot of reviewers said it was lazy writing at the time but I personally loved it.
Good Times.
1996 - Desperation by Stephen King
These 2 were meant to be companion books by King using as they did the same character names, in a similar sort of peril from the same monster. A lot of reviewers said it was lazy writing at the time but I personally loved it.
Show More
It added rather to my enjoyment of both rather than detracting.Good Times.
Show Less
LibraryThing member hardyr4
The first Stephen King book I read. During the summer between my junior and senior years of high school, we were required to read a couple books. I found this one and thought it would be interesting because it takes place in Nevada, my home state. I was instantly hooked by the story and finished
Show More
the book in two days; I couldn't put it down. This is a great read. Show Less
LibraryThing member kingfreak432
amazing book, great detail, gruesome.. i loved it!!!
LibraryThing member KathyWoodall
Desperation by Stephen King
The Carver family, Ralph, Ellen, David and Kristen, are on a fun filled vacation trip. They are enjoying the trip until they have a blow-out of one of the tires on the R.V. Their lives are suddenly turned up-side down when they meet up with a police officer who takes them
Peter and Mary are on their way home to New York when they are stopped by a police officer. Things go from bad to worse when the police officer finds a bag of pot in the trunk of their car. They take a ride with the officer into the town of Desperation.
Several others have the misfortune of meeting the cop from hell. They soon figure out that this is not a simply case of a cop gone bad. They have little time to figure out what is going on and get out of the town of Desperation.
The book holds my attention through most of the book but falters some close to the end. I don't think this is one of Mr. Kings better novels but I still enjoyed it.
The Carver family, Ralph, Ellen, David and Kristen, are on a fun filled vacation trip. They are enjoying the trip until they have a blow-out of one of the tires on the R.V. Their lives are suddenly turned up-side down when they meet up with a police officer who takes them
Show More
into the town of Desperation.Peter and Mary are on their way home to New York when they are stopped by a police officer. Things go from bad to worse when the police officer finds a bag of pot in the trunk of their car. They take a ride with the officer into the town of Desperation.
Several others have the misfortune of meeting the cop from hell. They soon figure out that this is not a simply case of a cop gone bad. They have little time to figure out what is going on and get out of the town of Desperation.
The book holds my attention through most of the book but falters some close to the end. I don't think this is one of Mr. Kings better novels but I still enjoyed it.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Daedalus18
Mr. King prides himself on not being a writer who plots his books. He counts some of the books he has approached with an outline or predetermined structure as among his least favorite projects (Insomnia is an example - which I take exception with, because I really like Insomnia).
Desperation is
A good opening - cartoonish, but intentionally so - fast pace, some promise of brutality, very foreign to his typical New England digs. In opening chapters, the hills literally and figuratively have eyes (throughout, as well - but the direct references dwindled as the book moved on) - something I think set the stage for a drama comparable to The Hills Have Eyes. Senseless, ugly, "What are you going to do about it?" brutality that strikes at fragile family members and lovers alike.
It moved on to become a story about whether God is love, or cruelty. The Christian God, of course - this is mainstream pop-culture American writing, don't you know? When you say God in the US, you best not mean any of the hundreds of gods it is okay to be atheistic towards, and instead be referring to John 3:16 fanatical sign-waving-in-a-stadium God. An SK book is no place to pay lip service to diversity, at the end of the day. Mostly white, nearly always straight folks - the ones who don't shy away from shopping their local Rite Aid for books to read on the beach.
I didn't hate it. I've come out the other end of some of SK's books hating them for their poor endings and untied loose ends - this ties up fairly neatly.
I don't think SK liked it all that much, about 4/5ths of the way through he gives this description of a writer who feels too old to care about what he's offering his publishers:
"He was getting on, and if he wanted to take himself a little less seriously, surely he had that right. There was no need to shoulder each book like a backpack filled with rocks and then sprint uphill with it. That might be okay for the kids, the bootcamp recruits, but those days were behind him now. And it was sort of a relief that they were."
I can't read that and not think of it as other than self-referential. I'm grateful that he changed his tune after his brush with death in '99, though - some really mature writing has come since this book - seemingly from the mind of a man who realized that he couldn't really retire if he wanted too. He needs to do this - and if you are going to do it, you should give a better effort than what Desperation is made of.
Little cursed statues, demons in rotting dead flesh, supernatural communication, faux religious significance, stormy backdrop (the crux of other books he's written before and after - Duma Key, Pet Semetary, The Shining, The Stand, on and on). Most of his staples are here. Gunslingers are here (with more than one DT reference). It is a decent read for people who already like SK a lot. Not a great example of his work, though, at the end of the day.
A saving grace could be its relationship to The Regulators, a 'mirror-book' released by his long-known/embraced pseudonym and released simultaneously. I haven't read it yet, though - so I can't comment on whether it gives more pleasure to the reader to have both books under their belt.
Desperation is
Show More
ultimately what I think is a good example of how that free-flowing, go-where-it-takes-you style can flop. A good opening - cartoonish, but intentionally so - fast pace, some promise of brutality, very foreign to his typical New England digs. In opening chapters, the hills literally and figuratively have eyes (throughout, as well - but the direct references dwindled as the book moved on) - something I think set the stage for a drama comparable to The Hills Have Eyes. Senseless, ugly, "What are you going to do about it?" brutality that strikes at fragile family members and lovers alike.
It moved on to become a story about whether God is love, or cruelty. The Christian God, of course - this is mainstream pop-culture American writing, don't you know? When you say God in the US, you best not mean any of the hundreds of gods it is okay to be atheistic towards, and instead be referring to John 3:16 fanatical sign-waving-in-a-stadium God. An SK book is no place to pay lip service to diversity, at the end of the day. Mostly white, nearly always straight folks - the ones who don't shy away from shopping their local Rite Aid for books to read on the beach.
I didn't hate it. I've come out the other end of some of SK's books hating them for their poor endings and untied loose ends - this ties up fairly neatly.
I don't think SK liked it all that much, about 4/5ths of the way through he gives this description of a writer who feels too old to care about what he's offering his publishers:
"He was getting on, and if he wanted to take himself a little less seriously, surely he had that right. There was no need to shoulder each book like a backpack filled with rocks and then sprint uphill with it. That might be okay for the kids, the bootcamp recruits, but those days were behind him now. And it was sort of a relief that they were."
I can't read that and not think of it as other than self-referential. I'm grateful that he changed his tune after his brush with death in '99, though - some really mature writing has come since this book - seemingly from the mind of a man who realized that he couldn't really retire if he wanted too. He needs to do this - and if you are going to do it, you should give a better effort than what Desperation is made of.
Little cursed statues, demons in rotting dead flesh, supernatural communication, faux religious significance, stormy backdrop (the crux of other books he's written before and after - Duma Key, Pet Semetary, The Shining, The Stand, on and on). Most of his staples are here. Gunslingers are here (with more than one DT reference). It is a decent read for people who already like SK a lot. Not a great example of his work, though, at the end of the day.
A saving grace could be its relationship to The Regulators, a 'mirror-book' released by his long-known/embraced pseudonym and released simultaneously. I haven't read it yet, though - so I can't comment on whether it gives more pleasure to the reader to have both books under their belt.
Show Less
LibraryThing member davidabrams
I'd almost given up on Stephen King. When I was a teenager, he scared me half to death and back again with books like "'Salem's Lot," "The Shining" and "The Dead Zone." But then he entered a sloppy period--a literary wasteland with books like "The Tommyknockers," "Insomnia" and "Rose Madder;" books
Then along came "Desperation," a masterpiece of bite-your-nails-to-the-quick terror.
All hail the return of the King!
This is the Stephen King of the early years, where he built his reputation on burrowing under the reader's skin with finely-detailed, cleanly-written tales of ordinary men and women suddenly thrust in horrible, extraordinary circumstances. The horror grew out the way King twisted the familiar sights and sounds of our contemporary world into the very real possibility of the supernatural threat. In "The Stand," a global plague starts off innocently enough with the common cold and flu. What reader hasn't had the sniffles at least once a year? I don't know about you, but for a month after reading "The Stand," I was paralyzed with fear every time I sneezed.
In "Desperation," King once again plays and preys on our universal paranoia. This time, it's our fear of law enforcement. Again, the dread starts quietly enough. A good-ole-boy lawman named Collie Entragian is pulling motorists over on a lonely stretch of deserted highway in Nevada. Entragian issues tickets for minor things--missing taillights, parking by the side of the road--but as the characters soon learn, there's more madness than method to his citations. You see, what they don't realize is that Entragian is one of the scariest characters to be brewed up inside King's head since Randall Flagg, the unforgettable villain of "The Stand."
In less time than it takes to say, "There must be some mistake, officer; I was only going 60 mph," Entragian has corralled a small group of tourists traveling the backroads of Nevada and jailed them back in Desperation, a nearly deserted mining town. Nearly deserted. There's an evil that looms even larger than the out-of-control cop, but to say more would be to ruin some of King's most effective "boos" in this novel.
"Desperation" works so well as page-turning terror primarily because King knows what really scares us--and it's not gorefests like Freddy Krueger and company; it's closer to the unseen horror of "The Blair Witch Project." In "Desperation," he draws on creepy pop classics--books like "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," movies like "The Stepford Wives" and "Westworld," songs like "Hotel California." These aren't leap-out-and-go-boo frighteners. These are filled with slow chills that creep up your spine in broad daylight; the unease you can't shake even if you put on some happy bubblegum music like Hanson or watch a carefree Gene Kelly movie. It's the dread you can't get out of your head.
This is not to say that King doesn't occasionally take the easy way out with excessive and needless violence. Blood and guts? Sure, there's plenty of those here. What else would you expect from a novel whose opening line is "Oh! Oh, Jesus! Gross!"? And then there's problems with the third act where the supernatural events careen wildly out of control and characters perform unbelievable acts that don't really keep with the rest of the book's subtle tone.
But even in the midst of excess, King knows how to tighten the screws. I read the last one hundred pages in one jittery, all-the-lights-on sitting. I hadn't been this scared since "'Salem's Lot."
Show More
that were aimed more to turn your stomach than to whiten your knuckles.Then along came "Desperation," a masterpiece of bite-your-nails-to-the-quick terror.
All hail the return of the King!
This is the Stephen King of the early years, where he built his reputation on burrowing under the reader's skin with finely-detailed, cleanly-written tales of ordinary men and women suddenly thrust in horrible, extraordinary circumstances. The horror grew out the way King twisted the familiar sights and sounds of our contemporary world into the very real possibility of the supernatural threat. In "The Stand," a global plague starts off innocently enough with the common cold and flu. What reader hasn't had the sniffles at least once a year? I don't know about you, but for a month after reading "The Stand," I was paralyzed with fear every time I sneezed.
In "Desperation," King once again plays and preys on our universal paranoia. This time, it's our fear of law enforcement. Again, the dread starts quietly enough. A good-ole-boy lawman named Collie Entragian is pulling motorists over on a lonely stretch of deserted highway in Nevada. Entragian issues tickets for minor things--missing taillights, parking by the side of the road--but as the characters soon learn, there's more madness than method to his citations. You see, what they don't realize is that Entragian is one of the scariest characters to be brewed up inside King's head since Randall Flagg, the unforgettable villain of "The Stand."
In less time than it takes to say, "There must be some mistake, officer; I was only going 60 mph," Entragian has corralled a small group of tourists traveling the backroads of Nevada and jailed them back in Desperation, a nearly deserted mining town. Nearly deserted. There's an evil that looms even larger than the out-of-control cop, but to say more would be to ruin some of King's most effective "boos" in this novel.
"Desperation" works so well as page-turning terror primarily because King knows what really scares us--and it's not gorefests like Freddy Krueger and company; it's closer to the unseen horror of "The Blair Witch Project." In "Desperation," he draws on creepy pop classics--books like "Invasion of the Body Snatchers," movies like "The Stepford Wives" and "Westworld," songs like "Hotel California." These aren't leap-out-and-go-boo frighteners. These are filled with slow chills that creep up your spine in broad daylight; the unease you can't shake even if you put on some happy bubblegum music like Hanson or watch a carefree Gene Kelly movie. It's the dread you can't get out of your head.
This is not to say that King doesn't occasionally take the easy way out with excessive and needless violence. Blood and guts? Sure, there's plenty of those here. What else would you expect from a novel whose opening line is "Oh! Oh, Jesus! Gross!"? And then there's problems with the third act where the supernatural events careen wildly out of control and characters perform unbelievable acts that don't really keep with the rest of the book's subtle tone.
But even in the midst of excess, King knows how to tighten the screws. I read the last one hundred pages in one jittery, all-the-lights-on sitting. I hadn't been this scared since "'Salem's Lot."
Show Less
LibraryThing member wispywillow
Like Insomnia, this one started out amazing and then began to peter out. When it at first looked like everyone was being held captive by a psychotic cop, that was creepy because it is in the realm of possibility. (This is what makes Cujo a favorite of mine.) Not to say that I don't like the
The most annoying part to me is the strong current of prayer and God and whatnot. And even worse is that when a character prays for something, voila--it happens. *sigh*
A friend told me that The Regulators is this story's twin, and I remember hearing Stephen King talking about it. He wrote Desperation as Stephen King, then wrote the same story as Richard Bachman. I'm rather looking forward to reading The Regulators. The story is good, it's just overwhelmed by the annoying religious bits. Perhaps writing as Bachman, King can bring the true grit out in this story.
Show More
paranormal or supernatural--because I do. But it has to be done in a certain way for me to really like it. Stephen King can do it at times, but Desperation fell a little flat for me.The most annoying part to me is the strong current of prayer and God and whatnot. And even worse is that when a character prays for something, voila--it happens. *sigh*
A friend told me that The Regulators is this story's twin, and I remember hearing Stephen King talking about it. He wrote Desperation as Stephen King, then wrote the same story as Richard Bachman. I'm rather looking forward to reading The Regulators. The story is good, it's just overwhelmed by the annoying religious bits. Perhaps writing as Bachman, King can bring the true grit out in this story.
Show Less
LibraryThing member truebrewfan11
Very good book. similar to regulators with different plot
LibraryThing member jefware
Another evil man in charge of a small isolated town. Yawn...
LibraryThing member RDexter
I couldn't put it down. Lost lots of sleep reading this deep into the night. Another excellent story by Mr. King!
LibraryThing member oxlena
I think this has to be my favorite SK book (right alongside Rose Madder). It wasn't all that hard to follow like some King novels can be, and it was weird in a way that's good but totally disgusting at the same time. I think everyone has a different impression of every SK book, so reviews don't
Show More
usually mean much. However, I appreciated this book very much. 5/5 very impressive kills. Show Less
LibraryThing member HvyMetalMG
I really enjoyed this book for the typical King reasons. The whole premise behind the horror, which is often left untold, is hit on and I really enjoyed the details explanation and eerie details that closed the book.
LibraryThing member ursula
Quite creepy, in the style of Salem's Lot.
LibraryThing member rhohnholt
Probably my least favorite King book. Depressing, grim and confusing.
LibraryThing member klarsenmd
As always, I thoroughly enjoyed another good Stephen King story. When read in conjucntion with The Regulators, this is a very interesting experience.
LibraryThing member ctmsalve
Demon possession is no new topic in the world of literature, hundreds if not thousands of books have been written about exorcisms and human "hosts". The way Stephen King artfully crafts Desperation is entirely new and creative.
Desperation, Nevada in the middle of a barren desert on the edge of
Stephen King incorporating a largely theological story-line greatly enhanced the plot. The idea of both a cruel but just God allowed David to continue and lead the others from a certain doom. This also allowed a point for which the characters could unify in a higher belief, both the readers and the characters knowing that without such a point much of the book would have been even more unbelievable. God vs a god is also an aspect unique to this book and made it much more interesting by having humans almost as pawns in a much larger and more important game.
Multiple point of views gave a much more in-depth description of the events occurring in the story. Since there is no "fly on the wall" narrator, events are in a real world perspective. However no specific character is telling the story either but every character speaks for themselves, which may seem confusing but greatly enhances the story.
It is no surprise that this story is so incredible being that Stephen King is completely surrounded by literature, meeting his wife, and fellow author, Tabitha Spruce inside a University library. This is why I rate Desperation 5 out of 5 stars.
Desperation, Nevada in the middle of a barren desert on the edge of
Show More
abandoned Highway 50, something is very different about this small town. From the very beginning those traveling along this rural highway knew something was very very wrong, with a dead cat nailed to the speed limit sign. It only got worse for the 9 traveling into the town. Each one was framed, arrested, held captive, and then many were executed by a crazed cop possessed by an evil demon, Tak, their only hope being a child savior David Carver. They all suffer great loses throughout but David's perseverance keeps them all together in a common goal of survival.Stephen King incorporating a largely theological story-line greatly enhanced the plot. The idea of both a cruel but just God allowed David to continue and lead the others from a certain doom. This also allowed a point for which the characters could unify in a higher belief, both the readers and the characters knowing that without such a point much of the book would have been even more unbelievable. God vs a god is also an aspect unique to this book and made it much more interesting by having humans almost as pawns in a much larger and more important game.
Multiple point of views gave a much more in-depth description of the events occurring in the story. Since there is no "fly on the wall" narrator, events are in a real world perspective. However no specific character is telling the story either but every character speaks for themselves, which may seem confusing but greatly enhances the story.
It is no surprise that this story is so incredible being that Stephen King is completely surrounded by literature, meeting his wife, and fellow author, Tabitha Spruce inside a University library. This is why I rate Desperation 5 out of 5 stars.
Show Less
LibraryThing member andyray
This dry story is part of a Lovecraftian universe SK works with throiugh several pieces. Tak! Desperation is a town in Arizona or one of those sunny states where the cow bones bleach in the sun and we KNOW there's something wrong from the first time our normees are stopped by this big ole
Show More
po-leesh-man. Show Less
LibraryThing member watertiger
Stephen King had a brain fart. It turned out to be this book. Even if you are a die-hard fan... this will be disappointing.
LibraryThing member ctmsludu
Desperation was a book full of blood, gore, and God. This book is a great read but not recommended to children and those with a weak stomach. Overall the book is full of action and suspense that also gives you a fright. This book is an utter gore-fest or even sea of blood but a great book anyway.
LibraryThing member Bridgey
Desperation - Stephen King ****
Another offering from King that follows brilliantly in the Stands shadow of showcasing Good vs Evil. However, Desperation does not have the arduous journey across desolate and ruined lands. Instead it all takes place in a small town just off the loneliest highway in
The theme of Good vs Evil runs throughout the novel but as usual, nothing is entirely clean cut, as a number of the characters agree 'God is Cruel'. King treats us to what he does best, assembling a rag tag bunch of characters and throwing them into a life or death situation. I won't go into the storyline any more than that as I wouldn't want to spoil any of the twists and turns of the plot.
In my opinion this ranks up there with his best works such as the Shining and Salem's Lot. The way the story starts makes the reader feel that this could easily happen to them, and when the supernatural side kicks in you just get sucked into turning every page until you reach the end. A large book, but the pages just disappear.
TAK!
Another offering from King that follows brilliantly in the Stands shadow of showcasing Good vs Evil. However, Desperation does not have the arduous journey across desolate and ruined lands. Instead it all takes place in a small town just off the loneliest highway in
Show More
America. The theme of Good vs Evil runs throughout the novel but as usual, nothing is entirely clean cut, as a number of the characters agree 'God is Cruel'. King treats us to what he does best, assembling a rag tag bunch of characters and throwing them into a life or death situation. I won't go into the storyline any more than that as I wouldn't want to spoil any of the twists and turns of the plot.
In my opinion this ranks up there with his best works such as the Shining and Salem's Lot. The way the story starts makes the reader feel that this could easily happen to them, and when the supernatural side kicks in you just get sucked into turning every page until you reach the end. A large book, but the pages just disappear.
TAK!
Show Less
LibraryThing member thessaly
Not bad, not great. I don't mind King's characters, but sometimes the way he phrases things can be a bit repetitive and by the end I was skimming.
LibraryThing member ChromiumDomium
Very enjoyable, but somehow predictable. I enjoy Stephen Kings writing very much but struggled to complete this book for some reason. Nonetheless, it's a good read and quite the page turner. I wonder if it's just me beginning to predict endings too easily, that made me get a little jaded with this
Show More
one! Show Less
LibraryThing member barpurple
Not going to be one of all time favourites, but not a terrible book. There's something about the setting of a desert and long roads that forces a horror writer into a certain type of story. The problem with that is it gets a little dull for the readers. This tale of an acient evil lucking in an old
Show More
mine should have been creepy, but it fell short for me. Show Less
Pages
704