I have a Stephen King addiction I'm trying to feed, and need advice.

Yeah, stuff all the negative bashing of him, not interested.

Lately I've gotten into Stephen King for audiobooks, for a few reasons. First, he writes long books, and I listen on long drives. Second, I like his character development--not cutouts, but genuine characters I can develop an emotional reaction to. I've never liked horror stories in general because the characters seemed like mannequins set up for the slash, but King has moved away from that (although his earlier works struck me that way). Third, his tales are unusual and not completely predictable, and often border on metaphorical or even allegorical themes. I just finished "Lisey's Story," which wanders into an alternate world that seems Jungian and dreamlike. Even the monsters have an archetypal feel, almost like Lovecraft, without feeling like they were constructed for didactic purposes. Fourth, he just writes well, for a popular writer. I've read a little Dan Brown and Gregory Iles and James Patterson, and a few other bestsellers, and they tend to be rather literal at writing. King, while not being Dickens exactly, has a little more eloquence to him.

Can you give me ideas of other writers I might like? I'm keeping with light pop fiction only because I listen to these things while driving or working, so I have to be able to drift a little and still keep up. If I wanted a total intellectual immersion I'd read books instead. Long, interesting, strong charactered, and emotive fiction. Doesn't have to be horror, or whatever you'd call King's later works, but I do like the otherworldly nature of his work.

:)

"Neverwhere," and "American Gods." That's a good suggestion. I had forgotten him. His characters aren't as genuine, but they are odd, and his writing is far above average. He also fits the mythological feel. What're your favorites of his works?

:)

Of course, the Sandman Graphic Novels, too. :)

:shrug:

Anne Rice used to be part of my "brain candy" reading for pure entertainment. Now it's almost depressing to re-read her stuff--it just reminds me that she's now a crazy religious nut. *sigh*

And I was one who snorted at the people waiting in line for the next book. I confess I read three of the four books in 5 days and spent 85 dollars on the boxed set after reading the first one so I wouldn't have to go back to the book store. Are they highbrow literature? No, but they are fun, fast paced and engaging... and looooonnnggg.

...of "The Talisman." Damn. One of the best books of all time.

I love Jack Sawyer. :-)

write horror fiction every bit as good as King. Dan Simmons is another.

I read that when it came out, and labeled it the worst book I'd ever read. I've since seen people that liked it, so I wonder what I didn't like about it. All I remember is an Elvis impersonator, a deformed Siamese twin, and a dog that gets eaten. I wonder if that was my mood at the time, or if something turned me off--being from that area, maybe I found something insulting. I don't remember. What did you think about it? Is it better than I remember?

They were in a swamp or something. They Thirst and Swan Song are two of his better ones.

sometimes not. When he's good, he's VERY good...when he's not...

I haven't read him for a long time, though.

:shrug:

If not, that oughta keep you busy for...well...a loooooooooong time. I wouldn't recommend Buick 8. The Everything's Eventual short story collection is very good, though. OR you might want to look for the Bachman stuff. The Long Walk is a good one.

Other than that...you might like Ann Rice (her older stuff -- not the *ahem* 'romances'). Dean Koontz's more recent stuff -- very character driven. I particularly like his Odd Thomas books.

:rofl: ;)

I'm being nice.

O8)

Your secret is safe with me O8)

because I have no idea what the secret is.

Long ago I read a fantasy book by Stephen King, about a prince stuck in a tower who got out by making a rope from napkins. I didn't get into it much, and never read the sequels. Every time I heard of "The Dark Tower" series, I thought it was the same series, but now I'm not sure.

I've got clear favorites with him, and some I'm not so keen on. I loved "Bag of Bones" (I think you and I mentioned that one in passing before), and just finished "Lisey's Story" (Didn't think of you, but now I just did!), and liked it. I also loved "Duma Key," which is one of his latest, and is what got me into this. Those all had skillful readers, too, which helped. Actually, King himself read "Bag of Bones." "Dreamcatcher," "Talisman," and "Black House" were okay, but I didn't like them as much. What I've noticed is that his style can be enchanting when he's on, and repetitive when he's not, and I found "Dreamcatcher" and "Talisman" to be very repetitive. "Black House" was better, maybe because the characters were more mature.

What is the "Backman stuff?" I'm new to this pop fiction stuff, for the most part. :)

He's written several things using it. Rage was excellent but it's out of print now...he pulled it after Columbine. The Long Walk was another good one. Thinner. There are several more, and he's written one or two more recently as Bachman...I didn't care much for them, though. I know I didn't like The Regulators.

And you're thinking of "Eyes of the Dragon". The Dark Tower series is completely different...it's a long series (I think he released them over a 15-18 year period) and there are seven of them. Like any series, some are better than others but, as a whole, I enjoyed them.

I loved Duma Key and Bag of Bones and Lisey's story...much more character-driven yet still with that 'King' element.

You really ought to give Koontz's Odd Thomas a shot. I think you'll enjoy them.

You're good! :)

and that was one of my favorites. :D

and it was long, addictive and did I say long? I'd never read any other Steven King, because I don't care for horror.

The gunslinger followed.




Rumor is they're going to ruin it, though. They're talking about making it into a movie.

Chuck Palahniuk. Not really that long of a writer, but his books are very much character-driven by strange and memorable strong narrators and possess otherworldly scenarios.

Also, Joe Hill. Stephen King's son, is a writer of horror fiction in his own right and his work has been compared on several occasions to his father. The apple did not fall far from the tree.

examination of the culture of horror, "Danse Macabre".

My hobby is collecting autographed first editions of Ellison's books. Phenomenal writer. Even better than King. And not a "popular" writer (in that sense) at all.

I've known his name since I was a kid, and since I grew up reading fantasy and sci-fi, I really don't know why I've never read him.

Recommend either Harlan Ellison's Hornbook or The Essential Ellison. If you read only one of his short stories, "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream".

That is an amazing book.

Scott Smith's books have stuck with me in ways that most novels never do. I'll never forget the sheer starkness of A Simple Plan, particularly the excellent use of snowy ground to represent actions that cannot be taken away.

The Ruins is wonderful as well. A study on humans' propensity to doubt one another masquerading as a throw away horror novel. I could've done without the epilogue, but that ending gives me chills when I think about it. The book is almost a sneak attack in that the characters are initially presented as bland archetypical characters but silently work their way under your skin until you realize, "Holy shit, I really care about these people."

As far as King goes, Lisey's Story, The Stand, and It are my favorite stand-alone titles (not necessarily in that order). Duma Key is excellent as well, though it does fall apart quite a bit towards the end. The Dark Tower series is King's crowning achievement.

and I don't know if you like women authors or a female lead character but, Diana Gabaldon, wrote a series starting with the, 'Outlander'. Claire, is hurled back in time from 1945 to 1743 via a boulder in one of the ancient stone circles that dot the British Isles. It is entertaining and loosely historical.

Which may be one reason I'm somewhat ignorant of mainstream fiction like King and Patterson and such. Thanks for the rec.

She writes mysteries, but they're different, ya know?

:) Does the brocolli return now?

:shrug:

I can't believe how much better my mood is now than it was Monday. I want to see smiling food! :rofl:

His "Island of the Sequined Love Nun" was pretty good,
and "LAMB: the Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal"
was frickin great!

I'd especially recommend 'Imajica'.

"Imajica" is a tough cut of meat to work through without some experience in Barker's writing. I'd recommend reading "Weaveworld," "Everville," and "Galilee" before delving into "Imajica." Just so you can exercise your Clive Barker brain muscles before doing the heavy lifting.

I love nearly everything of Barker's that I've ever read, and I *own* most of his novels, too.

I also second the Neil Gaiman recommendation. Try "American Gods" first, and see if that's to your liking. Then maybe "Neverwhere."

:hi:

another one. Both are fiction writers, great story tellers.Both write great characters and very good prose, especially Burke, who can write poetic passages.
Dean Koontz is a hack junk writer, always was, always will be.
Steven King started out pretty good, but really evolved into a great writer.

mark

Given your opinion of King and Koontz, I'm inclined to listen to you. :thumbsup:

it might be Ann without the "e

Interview with the Vampire

and

The Vampire Lestat



were amazing books.


Her writing is a little more lush than King's, but it's quite good.

:rofl: Couldn't resist.

worth reading, tho. start with her first- cry to heaven. and amazing book.
i liked the witch stories better than the vampire ones. read until you don't like them, but i recommend you read them more or less in order. quite when you don't like them any more. afaik, they didn't get any better. i think the last one i read was lasher.

it might be Ann without the "e"

Interview with the Vampire

and

The Vampire Lestat



were amazing books.


Her writing is a little more lush than King's, but it's quite good.

,

The Man in the High Castle, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, and many of his short stories are incredible. Their focus on character and people, strong prose and imagination as opposed to whiz-bang sci-fi nonsense should be much appreciated by you.

Good stories and funny too. Just read "A Dirty Job" and it still has me laughing.

http://www.dangerousdwarf.com/

Not very well known and his books can be hard to find unless ordering them off the web but good stuff. If you decide to give him a try, start with the Mongo books. Unless you become a fan, skip the Veil and Chant books, the stories are summarized in the Mongo books (they are spin offs). Bone is a stand alone book that is wicked awesome.