On highways across America, a tribe of people called the True Knot travel in search of sustenance. They look harmless—mostly old, lots of polyester, and married to their RVs. But as Dan Torrance knows, and spunky twelve-year-old Abra Stone learns, the True Knot are quasi-immortal, living off the steam that children with the shining produce when they are slowly tortured to death.
Haunted by the inhabitants of the Overlook Hotel, where he spent one horrific childhood year, Dan has been drifting for decades, desperate to shed his father’s legacy of despair, alcoholism, and violence. Finally, he settles in a New Hampshire town, an AA community that sustains him, and a job at a nursing home where his remnant shining power provides the crucial final comfort to the dying. Aided by a prescient cat, he becomes “Doctor Sleep.”
Then Dan meets the evanescent Abra Stone, and it is her spectacular gift, the brightest shining ever seen, that reignites Dan’s own demons and summons him to a battle for Abra’s soul and survival. This is an epic war between good and evil, a gory, glorious story that will thrill the millions of devoted readers of The Shining and satisfy anyone new to this icon in the King canon. @goodreads
MY REVIEW:
5 STARS
THIS BOOK IS FREAKING AWESOME!
I love this is a sequel to The Shining and in the beginning of the book it goes into some things from when Danny was young.
Even though Danny, his mom and Dick Halloram survived from the tragic and (scary-as-hell) events that happened at the Overlook Hotel, some of the ghosties come back to haunt Danny.
As an adult Dan is traveling around, he's an alcoholic, and he finally lands in a nice little town. He's also trying to get sober. What I found in reading the book is that not only did Dan inherit the alcoholism from his father, he started drinking to stop the shining and the bad things it put in his head. But, from time to time his friend Dick's words would come back to him.
--->EXCERPTS<---
It will never stop, Danny thought. The Overlook burned and the most terrible revenants went into the lockboxes, but I can't lock away the shining, because it isn't just inside me, it is me. Without booze to at least stun it, these visions will go on until they drive me insane.
Then, like a flashlight beam in the dark, Hallorann's voice: Son, you may see things, but they're like pictures in a book. You weren't helpless in the Overlook when you were a child, and you're not helpless now. Far from it. Close your eyes and when you open them, all this crap will be gone.
So Danny now Dan lives in the town of Frazier and is a groundskeeper for a little village called Teeny Town. He works with a man that turns out to be a good friend and fellow shiner named Billy Freeman. Billy doesn't have the shining as strong as Dan but it's still there. He gets him the job and the man that runs most of the town gets Dan in AA and it's all going good.
Meanwhile, down the way little Abra Stone is born and she is born with a powerful shining. I just love her. She starts contacting Dan when she gets a little older. They are more connected than they know at first, but I'm not telling you what that is :-)
A little bit later Dan starts working at Rivington House, it's an elderly home and he helps them when they are going to pass over. He's so very kind to these people and I love this about him.
Then.... there are these evil bastards that call themselves the True Knot. They have been around for years, they pray on the deaths of kids with the shining. They suck in their steam. Yeah, it's a little crazy but I like this story line. I don't like these people and couldn't wait to see them strung up in their own knot. They also go to major disasters and stand around sucking in the steam of what I'm guessing anyone with the shining in them that were in the disaster.
They have a leader that is the most evil of them all and she's coming after Abra. Beware Rosie the Hat, until she meets her match!
I loved this book so much. Just to be taken back into the world of The Shining, I know it's not the same, but to have a book that continued The Shining was so wonderful. It turned out that the True Knot owned a campground that was set up where the Overlook used to be, that opened up a whole new can of worms. There IS something that happened there that brought a tear to my eye :-(
I might have to go and watch The Shining today :-) I wish this one was a movie too!!
GOODREADS REVIEW:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1545324290
AMAZON LINK TO THE BOOK:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1451698852?keywords=doctor%20sleep&qid=1455373150&ref_=sr_1_1&sr=8-1
I'm glad you loved this one! I did too, almost as much as The Shining. :D
ReplyDeleteThat is so awesome! I loved it almost as much as The Shining too. Everyone had to keep saying it's not as good as The Shining. I wasn't comparing it to The Shining, it's a sequel and a damn good one :-) ♥
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