Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King

I first read this book when i was around 12. My dad gave me it to shut me up, and it worked! I then went on to try some of his other SK novels (without his knowledge!) and fell into a wonderful, scary world of which I still have nightmares about almost 15 years later. I kept that original copy of Eyes of the Dragon, and gone back to it on numerous occasions, and each time I have appreciated it in a different way, picking up on new nuances which keep it fresh. I know some people were deeply disappointed with this story, but I don't understand why. Yes, it is a sort of fairytale, but is that such a bad thing? SK has written lots of different stories in lots of different ways, and not everyone will like it (I can think of a couple of his novels which I didn't like), but each to their own! I would recommend this book if you would like a fun, easy read which doesn't tax you too much, and also as an introduction to SK in general as it eases you into his wonderful imagination without scaring you off. x

one of the worst books I've ever read. The book felt like a four year old had tried to combine Harry Potter with the Lord of the Rings. The plot was slow and uneventful. The characters were all given names that I could have surpassed in creativity. I'll be honest, I love Stephen King. He's my favorite author. But this book was so bad I would prefer to eat another habanero pepper, then reread five pages of this book. DO NOT READ IT!!!

Ok so here is my first ever book review, at least since any grade school book report about a million years ago. First though, a Confession! I haven't actually completed reading Duma Key. I've made it a good deal of the way thru, and some good things are happening, so I wanted to put down my thoughts on this novel so far as I am enjoying it very much.

Duma Key, a novel by Stephen King

If you are a fan of Stephen King and have read a lot of his prior work, you will find this type of story somewhat familiar. The book starts off kind of slow, and revolves primarily around one character. It is told mostly in a first person point of view and reminded me a lot of the novel Bag of Bones, in both the feel of it and length. Without getting into specifics and spoilers, the main character Edgar Freemantle goes thru a life altering experience; suffering a debilatating injury, and has to learn to cope with the changes brought about by it. On advice from his doctor, Edgar, who is about 50, decides a change of scenery might do him well, and leaves his home in Minnesota for the warmth and semi isolation of Duma Key off the western coast of Florida.
There begins a new passion in the arts, as well as recovery and healing. Soon Edgar befriends Duma Key's other two full time inhabitants, who he finds out have also suffered a injuries in their past. He begins to suspect his arrival and stay on Duma is more than accidental, and he also begins to sense a dark history to the island when his new found artistic abilities bring out the macabre.

For me, this book was just what the doctor ordered. Slow and methodical, at over halfway thru, it's not overly exciting, but it is building towards something and the pace is starting to pick up. There have been some mysteries created along the way and I'm looking forward to seeing how things are resolved. The characterizations, as usual with King's stories, are very good, and there is just enough of a touch of supernatural to keep things rolling and wondering what is going to happen next. The south Florida island setting also makes for good escapism during the colder months as you can picture the sunsets and waves and tropical beaches.