Submitted by zooey  (Mar 21, 2006)My main criticism of Stephen King's books is that his characters ultimately don't have souls. King has a great talent for describing an addiction, a fear, a sexual desire, or a physical attribute, but somehow the whole taken together doesn't come alive. Almost, but not quite. Consequently, I'm left with a feeling that his characters exist and were created solely to undergo the horrors and plots that drive his books.
This is true for Eyes of the Dragon as well, but it does not bother me as much. I think the reason is that it takes the form of a fairy tale like Hansel and Gretel or Snow White. In those tales, the characters are not so much people as they are etchings or types. Thus, King can get away with characters who lack human souls.
Eyes of the Dragon is a good tale, and like other King books, makes me want to find out what happens next. But, it suffers from this lack of human feeling which is why I consider it good reading, but not great.
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