Tag Archives: Horror

Book Review

Review: Salem’s Lot

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Salem's Lot

Salem’s Lot
By Stephen King
Anchor Books, Paperback, 9780345806796, September 2013, 672pp.

The Short of It:

A true, honest to goodness horror story about a creepy town and its inhabitants.

The Rest of It:

I first read Salem’s Lot in my late-teens, early twenties. At the time, I remember anxiously turning those pages but the details of what happened in the story did not stick.

This past October, a group of bloggers decided to read it together and since I could barely remember reading it at all, I thought it would be a good time to revisit it.

It started off really fun. I was totally into the story and loving it to pieces. I even proclaimed on Twitter that it might just be my favorite King novel ever. And then, the story slowed to a snail’s pace and I hit a rut. Actually, I’m not sure what came first but the final pages, the epilogue, those deleted scenes and the like really did me in.

Basically, for those who do not know, this is a vampire story. I don’t think that’s a secret but I do not mind stories that tip their hat to classics like Dracula, and I did feel that King, in his own way was honoring that classic when he wrote Salem’s Lot. How  a small, innocent town can be taken over by such evil, is what makes this book so readable.

My only real complaint is the pacing during the second half. Once the town realizes what is going on, the way they deal with it is dragged out and it became a little dull for me. Could just be me but it felt long and I don’t normally feel that way about King’s books.

Salem's Lot Read Along button.

I’ve never seen the movie so I can’t compare but even though I felt the book went long, I did enjoy reading it and since I took extra time with it, I do believe the details will stick this time around.

RIP X

I also read this for the R.I.P challenge which ended 10/31. Have you read it?

Source: Borrowed
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

Movie Talk

Movie Review: Young Frankenstein

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Young Frankenstein

I managed to sneak another movie in this weekend and it also counts for R.I.P X!

RIP X

Young Frankenstein came out in 1974 so it’s been out for awhile and includes such greats as Gene Wilder, Terri Garr, Marty Feldman, Peter Boyle, Madeline Kahn and Cloris Leachman.

Shot in B&W, it’s just gorgeous to watch. The lighting, the extreme close-ups and the subtle humor is what makes this film a fave. I’ve never seen it in its entirety so it was a pleasure to finally sit down to it this weekend.

Gene Wilder plays Dr. Frankenstein, the grandson of the famous doctor we all know. He inherits his grandfather’s castle and  repeats the experiments of the past with hilarious results. It’s a movie for the entire family, but it should be noted, that many of the jokes went over the nearly twelve-year-old’s head. As I said, the humor is quite subtle.

The film was directed by Mel Brooks and it’s a classic, must-see film. If you haven’t see it, you really should. It’s great that the entire family can watch it too. The Girl is at the age where she wants to be scared and watch all the Halloween movies we do, but I know her and this is definitely more her speed. Plus, classic movie buffs will eat this one up.