What is your favorite thing about the start of winter? Perhaps it’s the nutty smell of coffee and the inherent coziness that comes only with a warm, toasted cinnamon roll on a chilly night. Or maybe you enjoy sitting by the fireplace, listening to your favorite indie playlist as you tune out your thoughts, and stare outside the window. For me, it has and will always be curling up under the covers with a Stephen King thriller that fills me with dread.
It’s late-October. We are all psyched to officially welcome the spooky season with a cold, dark Halloween. And, what better way to get in the mood for that other than a fast-paced, terrifying thriller novel. If that sounds like your cup of coffee, allow me to introduce you to Misery by Stephen King.
Before we launch into a complete review of the book, let’s first talk about King. King, the ultimate maverick of horror literature, the man who can steal your sleep and peace for years to come, with just a few words. He has written at least 87 books; some of his more notable works include The Shining, Salem’s Lot, Pet Sematary, and The Dark Tower series. And each book goes on to prove that King has the ability to terrify you to the core and leave you wanting more. King – who has been rightfully named that, because indeed he rules over not only the Land of Horror but also our hearts.
Okay, this is beginning to sound more and more like a crazy fan-post. But trust me, I’m just setting the right tone for you to get the most out of this Misery book review. So let’s go; let’s fall the rabbit hole.
A Stephen King Thriller – The Basics
Misery is a psychological horror/thriller by Stephen King. On June 8th, 1987, the book won Bram Stoker Award for Novel in the same year and the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1988. To this date, Misery remains one of King’s most loved books. It was adapted into a film by the same name starring Kathy Bates and James Caan. It has also been adapted into multiple plays, for example, the stage production by William Goldman in 2015. Recently, Netflix’s Castle Rock also featured a nod to King’s Misery in the form of its own version of Annie Wilkes
Ah, Annie. It’s time to meet her.
Meet the Characters
Paul Sheldon: The writer of historical romances. Best-selling novelist. The creator of a beloved Victorian character, Misery Chastain. The survivor of a ghastly accident that leaves him immobile.
Annie Wilkes: Paul’s newfound, self-decided nurse. And unfortunately for him, also his number one fan.
The Story
“Paul used to write for a living. Now he’s writing to stay alive.”
Paul is ready to make the big transition in his career. He has just completed his popular, Victorian-era romance series by killing the main character, Misery. As hard as it was, Paul has moved on for the sake of branching into other genres. He pours blood and sweat into his new novel “Fast Cars,” finishes it, and is on his way to share it with his publisher when he gets into a ghastly accident. After that, it’s solid darkness – followed by “the haze.”
Paul wakes up to find that the accident has left both his legs shattered. To his surprise, a nurse called Annie Wilkes has taken him and is already tending to him. She feeds him, taking care of every little thing as carefully as possible. She also gives him the only thing that keeps away the excruciating pain in his legs; painkillers. On top of being his savior and his sole care-giver, Annie is also Paul’s self-proclaimed number one fan. What she actually is, though, is a psychopath.
Very upset, frustrated, and angry that Paul killed off Misery Chastain in the last book, she demands him to rewrite the entire novel. She decided to hold him captive until he is done, and any struggle from the writer is met with grave punishment. Until Paul brings her beloved Misery back to life, Annie will do anything and everything to keep him under her control. She is equipped with controlled substances, knives, a shotgun, an ax, and a blowtorch. And rest assured, she is not afraid to use any of them.
At the mercy of his severely unhinged captor, Paul fights for life with only a typewriter and his ability to spin a story.
The Rating
A Thrilling 5 Stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
For me, Misery is the perfect 5/5 star read. It just ticks all the boxes!
The Review
Where to start? I have read Misery a total of six times since I first stumbled across it in an old book shop. The edition I own was in pristine condition when I bought it, and now it looks like this:
Clearly, the book has been read to pieces. I have worshipped it day in and day out, so I certainly have quite a lot to add to say.
The Writing
At the outlook, Misery is an impeccable thriller. It is fast-paced, ridden with heart-stopping suspense that is bound to fill even the strong-hearted with anxiety. King weaves his unparalleled magic with writing that consistently captivates, keeps, and twists the reader’s attention within its grasp. With rich imagery, he expertly sets the story in the eerie, snow-covered heart of Colorado. King’s vivid descriptions of the physical, psychological, and emotional turmoil that Paul goes through are a true and eternal example of literary art.
The Villain
My favorite part of this Stephen King thriller, though, is Annie. By creating Annie, King proves that he is one of the absolute best horror writers, if not the best writers, of all time.
Speaking as an avid reader, Annie is one of the most developed characters I have had the privilege of getting to know. King encapsulates every aspect of her deranged being in less than 400 hundred pages – we get to know the tender Annie, the scared Annie, the mental, baby-killer Annie, and the terrifying, nasty, scary Annie. Unlike most authors that are quick to create a crazy, two-dimensional villain merely to check a particular box off their to-do list, King paints a larger than life, a real human being in his narration of Annie Wilkes.
Annie is not just a character but a person; a person with a past that connects to her present, a person with problems that have found an inherent place in her existence, a person that contains a thousand paradoxes within herself – just like the rest of us. That’s the thing. King makes a person like Annie – a killer and a torturous murderer – so real that the reader can’t help but relate to her. I mean, we have all wanted to kill our favorite author every once in a while.
The Backstory
Shrouded under the cloak of being the best thriller of all time, Misery is also a nuanced study of the fan-celebrity relationship. It closely reflects King’s own experiences with overly passionate fans and is a beautiful insight into how closely a writer’s life is intertwined with his work, stories, and characters.
In fact, King has even related Paul’s story with the backlash he faced after attempting epic-fantasy writing in The Eyes of the Dragon. This book is deeply personal to King, and the amount of effort and skill that has gone into it shows that making it an even more enjoyable experience.
The End
Misery is the perfect Stephen King thriller that serves as evidence of King’s eternal, remarkable writing talent. So, if there’s one thriller novel that you’re going to read this spooky season, it should be Misery by Stephen King.
