Doctor Sleep by Stephen King (Novel)

What I love about this book is that it’s very different than its predecessor; if you’re going to continue on a story here’s how to do it without repeating yourself while at the same time following similar themes and crafting something new and deserving of existence. What I didn’t love about it was how at the end it loses any real sense of danger for the main characters. Unlike the Shinning, it becomes clear it’s all going to work out although there are many chapters left to read. Still I have to give King a big thumbs-up here: taking one of his classics and making a sequel that is this fun to read as well as a nice ending for the character of Danny Torrance. It also feels like a genuine peek into the mind of a recovering alcoholic. King knows what it’s like to go to AA meetings and the demons of alcohol. It’s the core reason why Jack Torrance snaps in the Shining and here it’s the very thing that pushes Danny to find himself and ultimately save his family.

Spoilers: The villains in this story are really great. The True Knot and Rose the Hat are dangerous and evil and yet they are family and you can almost sympathize with their wish to live forever. That said, for how formidable they were at the beginning, they bumble about and never seem like they’re going to be a match to Abra Stone. After the True knot fails to kidnap Abra all suspense melts away and you’re left reading because you want to see if there are any surprises, and there really aren’t any. Still it’s a good book.