The Regulators by Richard Bachman
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I have owned various copies of this book since it came out 26 years ago. I started reading a paperback back in the 90’s and never finished it. Then I owned a hardcover copy - never read it. Another paperback - never read it. And now I’ve finally forced myself to have another crack after hearing the Kingcast mention how wild it is.
And I kind of loved this book. It’s batshit crazy, but unlike some of King’s weirder books, he ties it altogether & makes it work. It’s violent, pulpy and has an adult cartoon like energy that propels the story along. I have to say he almost lost me at the end where the entire finale hinges on a kid taking a really long dump!
The strange environments King, sorry Bachman, conjures up give the book a surreal, almost cosmic quality. I’m looking forward to reading Desperation now, to complete this weird ass Tak saga.
4.5 hand drawn coyotes out of 5
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Joyland by Stephen King
This is the second of King’s Hard Case Crime books I’ve read after being pretty underwhelmed by Later last year. And while this is much more enjoyable with its immersion into carnival life and likeable characters, like Later, it also revolves around the ‘child with a supernatural gift’ trope which King arguably perfected with the Shining and has gone back to many times since (see The Regulators above).
Also, the label Hard Case Crime and the lurid artwork promises something much more pulpy and sleazy than the book delivers. But taken apart from this, Joyland is a gently meandering and involving tale of life in the carnival with a supernatural mystery that is more b-plot than A-plot.
4 carny from carnies out of 5