Stephen King Fans discussion

Let's discuss the new book here. Please mark all spoilers for those reading along.

Already have a copy. Just need to finish Wizard and Glass and then I’ll read along.

I just started.

This book wasn’t what I expected. It just wasn’t as gripping as it should have been in my opinion. Did anyone else feel that way besides me? Don’t get me wrong, I liked it. But it seemed to be missing something; and I can’t put my finger on it.

Just started this yesterday and not far into it yet but so far I think it's pretty good!

I just finished it and thought it was pretty good. I did kinda feel like there were some gaps or something was missing but, overall it was pretty good.

I have my copy of this and will get to it eventually, but I’m going to pass on the group read this month so I can continue playing catch up on the older reads. Hope everyone enjoys!

I'm 70% into Pet Sematary , will be finishing this to soak myside in the Institute

I finished this book and I enjoyed it,liked it,the characters were fascinating BUT..it just didn't wow me.I did give it a 4/5 but might yet put it down a notch..Im still thinking about it.

Yes finished this yesterday. It was a good read but as others have said maybe not spectacular. I did really enjoy it though.

I read this as soon as it was released, but unlike many of you, I found it very compelling. I love when King writes from the POV of a character other than a late middle aged man. He writes children so well, and I always find his books about them so gripping. Regardless of the subject.

This felt like a revisit to The Shop from Firestarter and a few of his other works. I've always wished he would revisit the idea and was thrilled he did so here.

I read this as soon as I could get my hands on it and honestly, I couldn't set it down. It gripped me in a way that I haven't experienced since Pet Sematary. It went straight into my top 5 books ever.

I loved this book it is my favourite King novel in years. Loved the "Human Evil" element and the great characters, something that has been missing in recent times from his work (in my opinion).

I know what you mean. I'm not into it very far but I find it slow going. Not like some of his others.

Does anyone else think that these kids have a variation of The Shining?

Finished reading The Institute last night. As always, King constructs deep and engaging characters. His ability as an author to find real horror in how people treat other people shines through.

No spoilers here, but advice to fans of the greater King universe... this book works fine on its own. Don’t waste a ton of mental processing power trying to link these characters into interrelationships with other novels (maybe a dotted line and 40 gap to Firestarter). I didn’t get the feeling King was trying to leave a ton of Easter Eggs in the story for us to puzzle over.

I just bought the Audible version and will start it tonight or tomorrow... very excited! :) I'm also about 75% through the Kindle version of Firestarter, but I only read it at bedtime. Hopefully I won't get confused reading both at the same time...LOL

Conor wrote: "Does anyone else think that these kids have a variation of The Shining?"

Yes, and they also bear striking resemblance to breakers, but like Mark said, I don't think it matters. I think King can't help but connect his worlds into one, so they cross over everywhere. It makes no never mind to the actual narrative, but gives us Constant Readers something to fan boy over.

Anyone else see parallels to The Institute and the group up to various kinds of chicanery in Everything's Eventual? And, yeah, Google was my friend trying to remember the name of the short story.

I found crossover concepts with Carrie, tying his first and his latest. (spoilers for both Carrie and The Institute): (view spoiler)[ in Carrie when she is fully raging with her TK she exhibits TP at the same time. Also there is speculation in one of the future sources cited in Carrie about "one day, we will have a test for these abilities that can be used to screen all children" (I am paraphrasing). (hide spoiler)]

I don't think there is meant to be any link between the worlds of the two books, just found it interesting that these ideas showed up >40 years apart.

Lauren wrote: "This book wasn’t what I expected. It just wasn’t as gripping as it should have been in my opinion. Did anyone else feel that way besides me? Don’t get me wrong, I liked it. But it seemed to be miss..." Completely! The first half (more like 60%) had good bones but was a lot of padding. The last couple hundred pages were good but I didn't get the satisfaction I normally expect from character development in a King novel. I felt like the cultural and intellectual themes invoked are mostly left unresolved.

Up to 'Hell is Waiting' now. I was wondering when the heck he was going to backtrack to the scenario of the first 40 pages--it seemed like a guest appearance from another book. :)

I don't consider this statement to be spoilery: it's funny how Stranger Things was so informed from SK, and now SK seems to be shooting back at it a little (just a tiny bit). I'm enjoying this thus far and can hardly wait to finish it later!

I read that there is a movie or maybe a TV show in the works?

Marian wrote: "I read that there is a movie or maybe a TV show in the works?"
https://ew.com/tv/2019/09/10/stephen-...

Hi Fellow Readers,

I have completed my read of the Institute and posted my review on the following link for those who are interested:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

To good reading,

Thanks, Scott

It's too depressing to be a TV show I would want to watch, personally. Similar shoes or movies such as XMen and Stranger Things have fun parts, where as this book is very dark and depressing. Anyone else get what I mean?

I'm way behind everyone. So far I like it a lot, and I don't mind the slow pace, especially the audiobook, which is well-read, but very slowly. On the other hand, the narrator seems to be doing the various different voices quite well. Gonna have to skip your review for now though Scott.

I just started this in between reading some other stuff.
So a "night knocker" is just sort of a towmwide security guard, right? Jeez, are there really towns like that anymore lol?

another great supernatural thriller from the master! the political nonsense at the very end was unnecessary, but the book was fantastic. I couldn't stop cheering for Luke Ellis.

i would have like to have read more about back half, but the little there was you could easily get a sense of how torturous it was for the children.

Book Nerd wrote: "I just started this in between reading some other stuff.
So a "night knocker" is just sort of a towmwide security guard, right? Jeez, are there really towns like that anymore lol?"

There are most definitely still towns like that!

Yep!! I've driven through South Carolina a few times and stopped in some of the towns in the Western portion of that state. Some realllly creepy small towns. King surely drove along I-85 and pulled off to spend time in a few of them to get an authentic, rural SC feel for the narrative.

I’m really enjoying this one, no surprise really, but I keep getting distracted by work. :(

Luke's been kidnapped, suspects his parents are dead, but he's amazed that kids have access to cigarettes and booze.

I'm almost finished and am loving it thus far...well, I did NOT like the fact that the first section of the book featuring Tim was well-written, sucked me in, and then -BAM!- totally different story with different characters and NO TIM for so so long...THAT I didn't like, but everything else feels like 'vintage King', to me. ---Jen from Quebec :0)

I haven't gotten back to Tim yet, but I'm not surprised that he's been gone for so long. Introducing a character and then keeping him or her out of the story for a long while is a standard King trick. I keep trying to imagine how he will come back into the story. I can't figure it out so far.

Just started it today. I am enjoying it so far.

Jen from Quebec :0) wrote: "I'm almost finished and am loving it thus far...well, I did NOT like the fact that the first section of the book featuring Tim was well-written, sucked me in, and then -BAM!- totally different stor..."
If you think about it, totally changing up the story was like being thrown into the institute and having your whole life disrupted.

Book Nerd wrote: "Jen from Quebec :0) wrote: "I'm almost finished and am loving it thus far...well, I did NOT like the fact that the first section of the book featuring Tim was well-written, sucked me in, and then -..."

Now THAT is a good observation!! Never thought of the story like this but you are so right.

I'm really enjoying this book! I'm getting an Xmen vibe from it. Like it's King's superhero book in a way. I'm about half way through and really enjoying the mystery behind the story. The lead up to whatever is happening is fantastic and I can't wait to find out more. This is what a good King book does.

Just completed Pet Semarang. Now to the institute

I really loved it! It was a bit different for King, sort of a simpler story. But I liked it a lot. I liked the characters. It was disturbing. the story was engaging. I really have no complaints.

I'm halfway through and so far I'm really enjoying it.
It feels simpler and engaging (felt the same with "the Outsider"), but it is still rich on what characters and story are concerned, as I would expect from SK.
Great read!

I would normally give this book a 5 star rating; loved the story...
BUT
he had to trash Trump in his book. There’s no reason for it. Leave politics out of the books Mr. King....I’m not saying I’m for or against trump. This is not the forum for that. I just wish the story could be the story without politics.....

Everyone has their opinion but I don’t agree with the assessment of keeping politics out of Kings work. Stephen King writing is in depth and real. I have this on my TRL and I’m looking forward to the Institute regardless of a political jab or not. For me I’m totally fine with giving jabs at Trump in his stories.

I’m just over halfway. Reminds me of the parts in firestarter when they’re in the facility. Sort of boring, but as with Firestarter, I can tell King is building up to something big.

I'm not buying Maureen's sob story.

Wyatt wrote: "I’m just over halfway. Reminds me of the parts in firestarter when they’re in the facility. Sort of boring, but as with Firestarter, I can tell King is building up to something big."
I was hoping he was building to something but I think you'll be disappointed. I think some readers are astute in the observation that it comes off feeling like a manufactured novel, not personal, and less robust than his best work.

I started it today. I read the first part and I see the old King in this book: the many descriptions of a little town, in a hot afternoon, with simple jobs in a common situation. What is missing is "the blow", a supernatural element that I think will come in the next parts. So far, a book I love!

I loved it! Here's my spoiler free review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I agree that it's a "simpler" story but that was a good thing!

I really enjoyed The Institute! That being said, some of it was a bit off to me. For one, upon initial realization that they've been kidnapped, these kids are WAY too calm. Second, Luke is ridiculously intelligent, but really doesn't seem to be a lot of the time. So overall, I loved the story, but some of it wasn't quite as seamless as I'm used to from King. As for any so-called political jabs, I didn't notice there being anything that was out of context for the story being told.