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Worst Stephen King Novels

eyez0nme

eyez0nme

New Member
What is your worst Stephen King novel? Here's mine:

From a Buick 8
The Colorado Kid
Insomnia
Rose Madder
Cell
TommyKnockers
Gerald's Game
DreamCatcher

Pretty much all his recent novels. His best works were done when he was coked up on caine and alcohol, and blazing--getting a hit--a puff--truly sad.
 
From a Buick 8
Rose Madder
Cell
DreamCatcher

I have never "hated" a King book...disappointed is a more appropriate word for me to use. Above is my “Kings Disappointments” list.
 
I used to read King regularly. Then came Desperation. I never finished it and I've never picked up a King book since.:mad:
 
eyez0nme said:
Pretty much all his recent novels. His best works were done when he was coked up on caine and alcohol, and blazing--getting a hit--a puff--truly sad.
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Speaking of, I remember an interview of him on Bill Maher's amazon show where he claimed that his best works were written when he was dead sober. The URL is somewhere on this site, just can't find it at the moment. He's probably just saying that because it isn't politically correct to admit the truth. If I'm not mistaken, Edgar Allen Poe had his own dalliances with the forbidden fruits that are drugs.
 
SFG75 said:
Speaking of, I remember an interview of him on Bill Maher's amazon show where he claimed that his best works were written when he was dead sober. The URL is somewhere on this site, just can't find it at the moment. He's probably just saying that because it isn't politically correct to admit the truth. If I'm not mistaken, Edgar Allen Poe had his own dalliances with the forbidden fruits that are drugs.
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What writer would want to admit they can't get it out without being high?

Edgar Allen Poe did apparently partake but he also read and wrote a lot by oil lamp in a poorly ventilated room. It's strongly theorized that carbon monoxide poisoning helped Edgar along.
 
SFG75 said:
If I'm not mistaken, Edgar Allen Poe had his own dalliances with the forbidden fruits that are drugs.
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Even though Edgar Allen Poe had his forbidden fruits, so does most everybody. It doesn't matter if it's drugs or chocolate. Something that we indulge on that makes us feel better is good (not that I'm saying drugs are good:rolleyes: ). Anyway, Edgar Allen Poe was one of the best American writers and poets that we have ever had the chance to read. He should be more praised then he is put down. Without his work, we never would have been able to start our craze with horror that would influence people like Stephen King and Dean Koontz.
 
The only two King novels I have liked are Salem's Lot and Hearts in Atlantis. All his other stories are too mysterious and never tie the story into a whole.
 
I am a huge King fan and truly like everything I have ever read by him. I am in the rare minority that in fact likes his newer books as much and sometime more than his older books. But if you put a gun to my head I would have to say Dreamcatcher was my least favorite, but it still had some very cool moments.
 
I didn't care for IT - way, way too long. There was no reason whatsoever he had to make that thing over a thousand pages.

And I didn't like Cujo that much either. It didn't even seem like a horror story, just a drawn-out drama with a few gruesome deaths thrown in to remind the reader that it is a King novel, after all.

The verdict's still out on Christine. I've started it twice and still haven't finished it. Don't know if I ever will.

I should also mention "Apt Pupil" in Different Seasons. That one went on way too long also and as a result I stopped reading the whole book.
 
Vespertilio91 said:
The only two King novels I have liked are Salem's Lot and Hearts in Atlantis. All his other stories are too mysterious and never tie the story into a whole.
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You need to read Carrie. Gotta love a freaky telekinetic teen covered in blood killing everyone in sight.
 
he claimed that his best works were written when he was dead sober. The URL is somewhere on this site, just can't find it at the moment. He's probably just saying that because it isn't politically correct to admit the truth
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Perhaps. Or maybe he really does think his best works were written without the aid of drugs and alcohol. Given that King's been honest about his literary skills before, I don't see why he would start lying now.

Back on topic: The only Stephen King novel I really hated was The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon. The ideas were okay, but they didn't make for a great story. The rest of his books range from fantastic to merely okay.
 
I haven't read enough of his works to give a qualified response, but I'm starting with The Wolves of Calla. So far, I'm in the early stages of the book where the community of farmers are holding a meeting and debating whether or not to let the wolves have one of the sets of twins or to fight it out. So far, it's holding my attention and having me regret putting it down temporarily.
 
I soppose there are 2 in particular I didn't care for. Insomnia and Hearts in Atlantis.

Oddly though I did enjoy the much hated From A Buick 8.
 
SFG75 said:
I haven't read enough of his works to give a qualified response, but I'm starting with The Wolves of Calla.
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SFG: You do know Wolves of the Calla is the fifth book in the series, don't you? :eek: Have you already read the first four?

Worst King novels for me are:

Tommyknockers
Cujo
Bag of Bones
Dreamcatcher
The Dark Half

Hearts in Atlantis wasn't brilliant either. Even though nothing much seemed to happen in From a Buick 8, it was well-written enough to keep my interest. I haven't yet read Cell, so I can't comment on that one.
 
I had about a ten year gap where I missed almost everything he wrote, but my list would be. . .
Dreamcatcher
Tommyknockers
From a Buick 8
 
Every Stephen King book I've read was good enough to keep me reading until the end, at least to see what happens to the characters. He always gets it right with the characters.

That said, the books I enjoyed the least include:
Desperation
The Regulators
Cycle of the Werewolf
The Tommyknockers
Carrie

I found all the others extremely absorbing.
 
I'm reading Carrie right now and lovin it. What should I watch out for? I have "The Gunslinger" ready to be read.

~Josh
 
Personally I thought Desperation was great. That's probably one of my favorites from King, actually.

I'm going to be slightly off-topic and mention that Nightmares and Dreamscapes was probably King's weakest collection of short stories. The quality of the stories was very uneven; some were great, others... were not :D. I couldn't even finish that baseball essay. Sorry, but not even Stephen King could make me become interested in sports.
 
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