Kidnapped by his biggest fan tries to figure out how to escape the hell she's mad for him.
Paul Sheldon is a best-selling novelist who has woken up in a house he does not recognize, with injuries he barely remembers getting. Paul is the author of the Misery Chastain series, a character he has come to dislike. After finally finishing the series, and killing off Misery for good, he is ready to move on with his career.
When he decides to drive from NYC to Los Angeles, he sends up stuck in the mountains of Colorado during a snow storm. He wakes up after a car accident to find himself in a house he doesn't know. As the haze of the drugs he's been given start to fade, he realizes how dire his situation is.
Annie Wilkes is his nurse, but also his captor, keeping him on a steady stream of pain killers to help with his broken legs. When he finally gets a chance to assess the damage, he realizes how hard it will be to escape on his own and tries to strike up a deal with Annie. He will rewrite the ending of the last Misery book, if she agrees to let him go when he is done. The problem is what the more Paul learns about Annie's history, the more he realizes his chances for escape are dwindling.
Annie brings Paul an old typewriter and a wheelchair to help him in writing but still never lets him out of the guest room he's in. On a few occasions, Paul escapes while Annie is gone, learning more about her past and getting a better glimpse at what is happening inside her head. As the months pass, Annie seems to get more unhinged and Paul seems to loss more hope in anyone finding him here. Even after a failed attempt to alert someone of his presence, Paul tries to convince himself he might be able to get out.
Overall, this book was fine. I have never read a Stephen King book before, so this was my first dive into his writing. I sometimes found the prose boring, especially in between the more 'thrilling parts'. The story is told from Paul's perspective, meaning there are a lot of chapters in the middle where is is mostly feeling sorry for himself and hopeless, and there were many times where I kind of wish that was just skipped. When it came to the scenes with more 'thrill' I really enjoyed them. Learning more about Annie and what she had been through and caused in the past and the unhinged nature she has seemingly always had was interesting to me. When it came to some of the final scenes of the book I found those interesting as well, with the sort of last 'fight' between the characters and the police that were trying to save Paul.
Overall I gave the book a solid 3 out of 5 stars. It didn't waste my time, but I don't know if I'd pick up another King book soon.
Are there Stephen King books you like more? Any recommendations? Comment below!
Comments