Duma Key by Stephen King

Stephen King is BACK!!!! with his latest "Duma Key". I used to be a big fan but his most recent efforts(before the accident) were disappointing after his early books ....see "The Stand, IT, Dead Zone"....great reads! I wasn't a big fan of the Tower series, although many were, so I opened "Duma Key" with some reservations, especially viewing the sheer weight of the thing.

Anyway, once I got stuck in I couldn't put it down....right back to his early "good stuff". It combines the usual creepiness, way out there special effects with a very warm humanity. No doubt King's own travails had much to do with casting his main character as a man who survives a shattering accident, long painful rehabilitation and the finding of a second life painting strange and disturbing pictures, very far removed from his first career as a builder and developer. The story is set on the West Coast of Florida, an area that I'm somewhat familiar with so it was easy to picture, although King, as always, does a good job of setting the scene. There's the usual cast of characters, some lovable and some, not so much. A creepy house, strange goings on at the beach, people getting sucked into "they know not what!" etc. etc. all the wonderful stuff we loved about King's early work.

Read it and see.
--Review by Pauline Brady

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