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Stephen King |OT| - Era Ka-Tet

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Dalek

Dalek

Member
Oct 25, 2017
38,887
Apple Lands Adaptation of Stephen King Novel 'Lisey's Story' With Julianne Moore Set to Star
https://www.thewrap.com/apple-lands...ing-liseys-story-with-julianne-moore-to-star/

Apple has given a straight-to-series order to an adaptation of Stephen King's "Lisey's Story," which will be written by King himself and will star Julianne Moore.

The series will be executive produced by J.J. Abrams, marking his third project with the tech giant. He also has "Little Voice" with Sara Bareilles and "My Glory Was I Had Such Friends" with Jennifer Garner. This also is the third collaboration between King and Abrams, who previously partnered on Hulu's "11.22.63" and "Castle Rock."

Apple gave the project an eight-episode order. King, Moore and Abrams will executive produce alongside Bad Robot's Ben Stephenson.
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uncleniccius

Member
Nov 3, 2017
1,082
Have never read a King book and am going on holiday next week so will be travelling a lot so will have a chance to read - any suggestions as to what to start with? The Stand seems a little long to start with.
 
Leo

Leo

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,546
I loved Stephen King when I was a teenager, but adult life happened and I find myself with less and less time to read. Doesn't help that the guy writes two or three books every year, I can't keep up.

Still own lots of his books that I haven't read yet, I have to catch up so I can buy his more recent stuff.

uncleniccius said:
Have never read a King book and am going on holiday next week so will be travelling a lot so will have a chance to read - any suggestions as to what to start with? The Stand seems a little long to start with.
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I think the Shining is a great place to start.
 

uncleniccius

Member
Nov 3, 2017
1,082
Yerffej said:
Unreal.
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vivftp said:
Hmm, a question regarding Stadia. Say for a moment that next gen consoles are much more powerful than most expect, say 15TF or so, if a multi-plat game is made for those consoles that pushes them to their limits how would that work on Stadia? Would it be more likely the game would be toned down to run on one 10.7TF Stadia instance or more likely they'll just toss it on there and let 2 instances run it? I guess it'd be up to the dev when porting it over, but I wonder if that might be something that crops up. Not to mention what if next gen consoles have 24 or 32GB of RAM, and even more powerful CPUs than a single Stadia instance? If the dev isn't willing to pay for 2 Stadia instances for their title does that mean Stadia will wind up with a lesser version of the game? Or if they are willing to pay for 2 instances does that mean the cost might be shifted to the consumer?
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Bradbury said:
I would recommend The Shining. Not that long and classic King
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ProfeOne said:
Try Salem's Lot. It was one of my first King books many years ago. Fantastic story.
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Leo said:
I loved Stephen King when I was a teenager, but adult life happened and I find myself with less and less time to read. Doesn't help that the guy writes two or three books every year, I can't keep up.

Still own lots of his books that I haven't read yet, I have to catch up so I can buy his more recent stuff.



I think the Shining is a great place to start.
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Thanks for the suggestions guys - the Shining in particular was one of a few that a search suggested I'll order them both and take them with me. Looking forward to starting!
 
Geek of Nature

Geek of Nature

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,367
BanetteAndBaguette said:
Everyone, please read The Long Walk. My second favorite with It being at first place
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Listen to this guy. The Long Walk is incredible. I love a premise that shouldn't work but does, especially when it works SO well. I also love King's writing in the novel - it's darker and tighter than most of his other books. It's quite apparent he wrote under a pseudonym because it's almost a different version of King.
 

Deleted member 14649

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Oct 27, 2017
3,524
I still think my favourite collection of short stories is the Bachman Books (not sure what it's proper title is, but here in the UK I think it is that?) It seems now though that Rage isn't included, which was a very interesting short story/novella written way before school shootings were as much a feature in people's lives.

Edit - Rage isn't there because King wanted it 'out of print' it seems, as it was too closely associated to school shootings that came after. Wow.
 
Kaswa101

Kaswa101

Member
Oct 28, 2017
17,741
Finished reading Pet Sematary the other day. Great book, one of my favourites of King so far. Also read Salem's Lot earlier in the year. Are the old movies worth watching for either of these two stories?

On another note, I ordered The Gunslinger novel today. Excited to finally jump into the Dark Tower series!
 

Deleted member 14649

User requested account closure
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Oct 27, 2017
3,524
Kaswa101 said:
Finished reading Pet Sematary the other day. Great book, one of my favourites of King so far. Also read Salem's Lot earlier in the year. Are the old movies worth watching for either of these two stories?

On another note, I ordered The Gunslinger novel today. Excited to finally jump into the Dark Tower series!
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Pet Semetary is pretty bad, but SL is definitely still worth a watch, for one scene alone. Still freaks me out.
 
CrichtonKicks

CrichtonKicks

Member
Oct 25, 2017
11,152
ProfeOne said:
Try Salem's Lot. It was one of my first King books many years ago. Fantastic story.
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One thing to be aware of- the digital edition of 'Salem's Lot has two short stories in the back of the book (don't know if the print version is the same). I say this because having the finale happen when it seems like you are only 85% of the way through the book makes the book feel even more anti-climactic than usual for King. Which is saying a lot.

Re-read the book about two months ago (last reading was literally almost 30 years ago so memory of it was hazy) and the ending just kind of came out of nowhere because I thought I had almost another 100 pages of the book left.
 
laminated

laminated

Member
Oct 28, 2017
1,283
Got Pet Sematary on audible. I'm going to give it a listen soon. For whatever reason, I've avoided reading that book.
 
TheBeardedOne

TheBeardedOne

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
22,189
Derry
Pet Sematary is a good one. I didn't find it scary, like many have said it is (even calling it his scariest), but it was disturbing and unsettling. And quite damned good.

I wanted to read it before seeing the new movie, and did, though I've seen the original movie 3 or 4 times. Not in a while, but it's seared into my memory.

I worry that I rushed it a bit to be ready to see the movie opening night, but I shivered a couple times while reading it and remember it all clearly.

I finally saw the movie tonight. It was alright. So much was changed or missing.
 
laminated

laminated

Member
Oct 28, 2017
1,283
TheBeardedOne said:
Pet Sematary is a good one. I didn't find it scary, like many have said it is (even calling it his scariest), but it was disturbing and unsettling. And quite damned good.

I wanted to read it before seeing the new movie, and did, though I've seen the original movie 3 or 4 times. Not in a while, but it's seared into my memory.

I worry that I rushed it a bit to be ready to see the movie opening night, but I shivered a couple times while reading it and remember it all clearly.

I finally saw the movie tonight. It was alright. So much was changed or missing.
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What to you is the scariest King book? I expected Salem's Lot to be the scariest based on what I heard, but while unsettling, i wasn't really scared. Maybe I just don't find vampires to be scary creatures.

I think IT was the scariest one for me.
 
TheBeardedOne

TheBeardedOne

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
22,189
Derry
laminated said:
What to you is the scariest King book? I expected Salem's Lot to be the scariest based on what I heard, but while unsettling, i wasn't really scared. Maybe I just don't find vampires to be scary creatures.

I think IT was the scariest one for me.
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I can't say. I'm still in my infancy in terms of reading King. I have many left to read.
 
laminated

laminated

Member
Oct 28, 2017
1,283
I have a lot of gaps in my King collection. I never finished the Dark Tower series. I gave up after book VI "Song of Susannah". Actually, I don't think I even read it. I do have it on my kindle, but I guess I got burned out on it after certain events happened that I thought were lame.

I've been a big fan of his crime novels and the way he blends in supernatural elements.
 
CrichtonKicks

CrichtonKicks

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Oct 25, 2017
11,152
laminated said:
What to you is the scariest King book? I expected Salem's Lot to be the scariest based on what I heard, but while unsettling, i wasn't really scared. Maybe I just don't find vampires to be scary creatures.

I think IT was the scariest one for me.
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Yeah, it comes down to what scares us individually. IT is my favorite book of his but I don't think it's scary at all. IT mostly takes the shape of extreme versions of '50s-era horror stuff and that really has no effect on me.

For me it would probably be Pet Sematary. I probably would have listed The Shining since haunted house stuff gets to me, but I saw the movie first which blunted the scariness of the book a bit.
 
laminated

laminated

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Oct 28, 2017
1,283
CrichtonKicks said:
Yeah, it comes down to what scares us individually. IT is my favorite book of his but I don't think it's scary at all. IT mostly takes the shape of extreme versions of '50s-era horror stuff and that really has no effect on me.

For me it would probably be Pet Sematary. I probably would have listed The Shining since haunted house stuff gets to me, but I saw the movie first which blunted the scariness of the book a bit.
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Very true. Even with IT, only certain parts of the story I found scary, but those parts were very scary to me. They were when we weren't quite sure what IT *was*. But the revelations that come at the books end I didn't find scary at all.
 
Fancy Clown

Fancy Clown

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Oct 25, 2017
5,406
laminated said:
What to you is the scariest King book? I expected Salem's Lot to be the scariest based on what I heard, but while unsettling, i wasn't really scared. Maybe I just don't find vampires to be scary creatures.

I think IT was the scariest one for me.
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Pet Semetary is the most unsettling one imo, it just has a thick atmosphere of dread and withholds the real freaky shit for so long which ends up making it all the creepier. And then there's all sorts of subtler creepy stuff like the main character thinking his buddy is lying to him and even though he can't see his face he thinks he has a malicious grin on his face. Creeps me out.

I'd say Salem's Lot is number two for me. I don't normally find vampires very scary but the way he described the town being taken over sort of got under my skin.
 
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Dalek

Dalek

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Oct 25, 2017
38,887
Fancy Clown said:
Pet Semetary is the most unsettling one imo, it just has a thick atmosphere of dread and withholds the real freaky shit for so long which ends up making it all the creepier. And then there's all sorts of subtler creepy stuff like the main character thinking his buddy is lying to him and even though he can't see his face he thinks he has a malicious grin on his face. Creeps me out.

I'd say Salem's Lot is number two for me. I don't normally find vampires very scary but the way he described the town being taken over sort of got under my skin.
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I feel the same way about Salem's Lot. It's so creepy that this stuff is happening but you're not being told about it in the course of the story. The scene in his house is so creepy.
 
AllThingsPurple

AllThingsPurple

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Oct 26, 2017
12,541
UK
Pet Semetary is definitely the grimmest book of his that I've read. It's not scary per se but the book has such a slow burn start that just creeps along slowly filled with dread and a sense of unavoidable doom. Then the last part of the book just explodes with horror. Really loved this book.

Salems Lot was scary too. I remember one chapter in particular that darts around the town throughout the day ending with the two brothers in the woods that creeped me out the first time I read it.
 
Border

Border

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
14,859
Just watched the new Pet Semetary movie. In the book, is it made explicit whether or not the resurrected people/animals are actually their former selves? Or are they just demons possessing the bodies of the dead? I kinda like to think that they really are their former selves, just twisted beyond belief by horrific afterlife experiences.
 
laminated

laminated

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Oct 28, 2017
1,283
I devoured the Pet Sematary audiobook in four days. Michael C Hall's narration was textured, varied, and engaging. I especially enjoyed his old man New England accents. It's probably one of the best audiobook narrations I've ever heard.

I agree with everyone who says its one of King's most unnerving books. King is a master at making ordinary, lifeless objects - like semi trucks - full of menace. And that road. And children playing close to the road. The sense of foreboding that come with Jud's cautionary advice hang over the whole story. I couldn't stop listening, even as I dreaded what I knew was about to come. WHAT AN AWESOME BOOK!!!!

These words stayed with me. And King knew they resonated because he'd go back to them throughout the story.

"But any woman who knows anything at all would tell you she's never really seen into any man's heart. The soil of a man's heart is stonier, Louis. Like the soil up there in the ol' Micmac burying ground. Bedrock's close. A man grows what he can...and he tends it. " - Jud
 
Venture

Venture

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,584
I've been on a little Stephen King kick the last month or so. I finally got around to 11/22/63, which made me want to read "IT" again. Then I had to check out the movie version of IT that I'd been putting off for so long, and right now I'm about half way through Pet Sematary.

11/22/63 was a really good read but not what I was expecting. It's a good story but not a particularly interesting time-travel story.
I was hoping the focus would be on some really horrific butterfly effect type stuff or on the forces working against him trying to change the past. But really that was all a pretty minor part of the story. And you just know right at the start the plan was a bad idea, and sure enough it ends up like you'd think.
Still, I did enjoy it and was really engrossed in Jake's day to day life in the past.

I don't know the last time I read IT but it's been a long time. I remembered only the barest outline of the plot going in. This one's just a straight up really fun read but not all that scary most of the time, as others have already mentioned here. The movie really updates and improves on that big time and is definitely one of the best horror movies I've seen in a while. Although I am kind of sorry too that we didn't get to see some of the classic monsters and stuff like the giant bird. Casting was great for the most part and I don't know if they could've depicted Pennywise any better. They even had the deadlights!
I also loved what they did with all his victims literally floating instead of the spiderweb stuff from the book. Such a haunting image. Overall they did a very good job fitting half of such a dense book into a little over 2 hours. On the negative side though, I didn't like the way Beverly was turned into a damsel in distress and used as a way to get them all into the sewers to fight IT. All of the research and planning, the ritual of Chüd, the silver slugs and Beverly with the slingshot was sorely lacking and could've been fleshed out at least a little with another 10 or 15 minutes of movie. The ending also lacked the emotional punch of the novel, as Bill watches his friends leave and he's left alone in the Barrens knowing they'll never be all together as friends like that again.
 
TheBeardedOne

TheBeardedOne

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
22,189
Derry
deftones r cool said:
How is it? I never hear anyone talk about this book
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I don't particularly like fantasy, but I picked it up for a dollar at a hospital and read part of it. I liked what I read, but didn't love it or anything. Always planned to finish it, but simply didn't. Got caught up in something else.

I'll go back to it and start over.

Truth be told I didn't know it existed until then.
 
CarpeDeezNutz

CarpeDeezNutz

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
2,732
Fat4all said:
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Oh man this takes me back.

Loved reading the Dark Tower series when I was in high school.
 
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