by Rena Sherwood

Created on: February 18, 2010   Last Updated: February 19, 2010

Although better than 99% of other fiction being published today, Lisey's Story (2006) is one of Stephen King's worst books.  King is still the master storyteller, so once you start "Lisey's Story", you will likely finish.  But at then end, you may wonder, "Is that it?"  Still, at the final page, after his usual post-story acknowledgements, that one page delivers quite a chill.  Just why is hard to define without giving away the story's ending, but it is this chill that shows just how King is the master wordsmith of popular fiction.

What Is This One About?

Lisey Landon has been a widow for two years.  Her late husband was the best-selling writer Scott Landon (who bears a remarkably strong resemblance to King himself.)  The fans of her late husband are going to try everything to get Lisey to clean out all of Scott's papers.  Also, Lisey's eldest sister tries to commit suicide … again.

That's the short version of the plot. It may not sound like much, but King is able to weave together many sun-plots and (of course) a look into insanity in this world and the possibility of travelling to parallel worlds where insanity rules the night.  This one won’t have you turn on all of the lights at night, but may sigh longingly for all the things taken way from you too soon in this life.

Need A New Plot, Please

If you've never read a Stephen King book before, then "Lisey's Story" isn’t a band one to start off on.  But if you've already read "Rose Madder" (1995) and "Misery" (1987), then your going to be in for a lot of déjà vu with "Lisey's Story."  The alternate world overlying this one described in "Lisey's Story" sounds an awful lot like the alternate world in "Rose Madder." 

And King once again looks at fans obsessed with celebrity authors.  The twist here is that the author is already dead, but the fans will not leave the widow alone.  Also, the dead author will not leave his widow alone (this is a King novel, after all.)  But we King fans have peered under this rock before and are fully familiar with what crawls out.  King has much more imagination than to return to the same plot devices.

500 Page Love Letter?

King writes in the Acknowledgements that his wife Tabitha and her four sisters were not Lisey and her four sisters.  Yeah, right, Stephen, pull the other one.  There are too many coincidences between Tabitha and Lisey and Scott and Stephen.  At times, this book reads like a 500 page love letter.  But one aspect which reader's hope is true is that love can carry on beyond death.

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