The Gunslinger

Parenthesis_Liker reviewed The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger by Stephen King (The Dark Tower I)

Review of 'The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

I definitely enjoyed this book, but it is also definitely the start of a saga. Throughout the whole novel there's so, so many hints of a larger world, and bursts of rapid-fire world building. The world King is creating is strange and intriguing enough that I want to continue with this series just to see how deep the rabbit hole goes. There are also a fair few Stephen King-isms in here, to be sure, though I'm told not as many as the later entries. Really, it's a matter of how much you can tolerate the particular style. I'm writing this a long time after I read it so I apologize for the vagueness.

Anthony Burgess reviewed The Dark Tower by Stephen King (The Dark Tower, 1)

I don't get why people like this

2 stars

People say this is a good book and series but I can't agree to that. It's just chaotic and doesn't make any sense, the writing seems overly dramatic and "flowery", meaning he describes things so weird, with weird details and weird metaphors. I couldn't even read it to the end and stopped at like 80 or 90%. I have no interest in reading the other novels in the series, it's just not my type of writing I guess. I never liked any Stephen King books until this one and I read a bunch now. It's not getting any better, maybe I should just give up on trying to like his writing.

coral reviewed The Dark Tower I by Stephen King

None

3 stars

I read this (and several others in the series) as a middle or high schooler, and I remember liking it well enough.

But that's all I remember. (I'm lying. One scene from one of the sequels stuck with me. But my point is that I forgot the plot, entirely, as I do. It's a terrible super power.)

I wanted to re-read this first book, at least, before the upcoming movie. And then I learned that the movie will apparently take place after all of the books, which increased my todo list significantly.

Honestly? It's been a slog. I am out of practice at reading books entirely by, about, and (it seems to me) for men. I used to take it as a matter of course, but now I'm spoiled by books in universes where I could be a protagonist. It took up until the last few pages for me to …

I read this (and several others in the series) as a middle or high schooler, and I remember liking it well enough.

But that's all I remember. (I'm lying. One scene from one of the sequels stuck with me. But my point is that I forgot the plot, entirely, as I do. It's a terrible super power.)

I wanted to re-read this first book, at least, before the upcoming movie. And then I learned that the movie will apparently take place after all of the books, which increased my todo list significantly.

Honestly? It's been a slog. I am out of practice at reading books entirely by, about, and (it seems to me) for men. I used to take it as a matter of course, but now I'm spoiled by books in universes where I could be a protagonist. It took up until the last few pages for me to get really into this book, this time, even with the newfound freedom to imagine the Gunslinger as Idris Elba.

I remember that there's at least one woman whose viewpoint matters to the story in the upcoming books, and the last chapter did hook me; so I'll keep at it, with breaks for books in other genres.

Tamara Harpster

rated it

Sept. 2, 2013

anticonnor

rated it

Nov. 16, 2011

LC

rated it

Jan. 1, 2004

Delaenya

rated it

Oct. 13, 2023

Slyphic

rated it

March 6, 2012

alscx

rated it

Oct. 26, 2017

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