Sleeping Beauties
Published: 26, September 2017
Author: Stephen King & Owen King
Genre: American, Classic, Fiction, Ghost, Historical, Horror, Literary, Literature, Mystery, Post Apocalyptic, Psychic, Science Fiction, Supernatural, Suspense, Thriller
Check the summary of this book here:
The Review
Sleeping Beauties is a novel written by Stephen King and his son Owen King, who, according to Stephen King, gave him the concept for the book. The novel was first revealed in June 2016 and is set in a women's jail in West Virginia during a bizarre magical event that leads all of the world's women to fall asleep. On September 1, 2017, Entertainment Weekly released an excerpt in their special The Ultimate Guide to Stephen King edition.
An AMC series based on the book might be on the way, but it's been almost three years since the previous update, and I haven't heard anything about it. As always, I'll post any new information as soon as I get it.
This is a fantastic modernized fairy tale. I was scared they'd go down the women's good, men's evil road, and there was a little amount of that - I mean, raising the question "Is it possible that a woman has ever launched a war? I don't think so." (Or anything along those lines.)
Could I please present you to Margaret Thatcher? What about Golda Meir? What about Queen Elizabeth I? What about Queen Victoria? And so on and so on. But they didn't do it all that much. They were reasonable.
Stephen and Owen, a father and son literary duo, have effectively crafted a continuous narrative voice in the 700+ page novel that runs straight ahead at a terrific speed.
I've always admired Stephen King for moving out the inevitable King-style climactic and cinema-graphic confrontations between good and evil for much too long.
These noisy, brutal, and often confused passages, for example, in "Bag of Bones" and "The Stand," to name two, may occupy 10 minutes of screen time, but pages and pages and pages of text that I read and reread are still better than any movie.
Well, I'm pleased to report that the climax "showdown" sequences in "Sleeping Beauties" are considerably clearer but still noisy, gruesome, and well-paced.
I never liked to read an author who is the child of a famous author for obvious reasons: chances are, the book was never written by the child author, and the famous author actually wrote it for the kid to help him or her grow, but after reading Anne Rice and her son Christopher Rice's books, I changed my mind, and the same applies here.
And now I feel that these works were written by the children rather than the parents, with the exception of the later parts of Dune, which were released after the death of the mythological Frank Herbert, and I believe they were never written by him, as no scripts were discovered late after his death.
For me, the first three books were the best, but later they became different, and then after his death, it was entirely someone else writing those books, namely "Kevin J. Anderson and maybe Brian Herbert, but I doubt it," but I still read all the books in the series, and I always read the later parts with the clear mind that they were not written by Frank Herbert, so I don't get mad at the story or quality because, compared to the Dune, any quality will feel like a kid wrote the books.
Don't get me wrong, Kevin J. Anderson is a fantastic author, but I'm simply comparing the first novel to any other work in the same universe.
Let's get back to the book I'm meant to be reviewing... I admit that I was apprehensive when I learned that my favorite author, Stephen King, had collaborated on a novel with his son, Owen King.
I was curious if their writing styles would be comparable, and if they would complement one another.
I wasn't expecting such a gripping novel, part fantasy, half science fiction, all suspense. There are several characters, like in many of the elder King's writings.
At the beginning of the book, the writers graciously give a list of them, along with a one-line summary of their role in the plot.
Once again, King demonstrates his ability to conceive and bring to life a wide range of characters. Some generate more pity, while others arouse more disdain, yet they all fit together.
An excellent treatment of the topic of the sexes' interaction. From men's insensitivity to women to full-fledged misogynists, the novel delves into a conceivable scenario of a single-gender society.
Women's perspectives are strongly represented, particularly in the conclusions reached. As an open-minded individual, I believe I can connect to a variety of masculine views toward females, as well as female ones.
I remember thinking at first that the book couldn't have been written by a man, then changing my mind to honor this candid and accurate portrayal of reality.
A useful insight can be beneficial to both men and women. I know King is a fantastic writer who doesn't need his son's help to write all of this flawlessly, but I still like to envision them sitting together and weaving this magnificent masterpiece as a father and son team.
I've read a number of Owen King's works, and I believe he can write with his father and add the stuff in this book, but it's clear that he still needs a lot of time to break out of the shadow of his father, the divine literary giant Stephen King.
Final Thoughts
Stephen and Owen King have created an excellent story that delves into the minds of men and women with incredible authenticity and insight.
The universe they build is really fantastical, yet plausible since it encompasses all of the distinct characteristics of both sexes and presents them for the reader's perception.
The events that led to the female convicts' arrival in their different locations in this story reflect very vividly actual conditions in the lives of so many women.
There are several instances where "righteous" does not imply the right to liberty.
This tale made me think deeply and showed me how narrow the line is for males to walk while dealing with so many of life's events, and how men and women behave differently.
This is a narrative that will make you think about morals, society, and the roles of both sexes in society.
It will not provide you with solutions, but it will certainly get you thinking. There are plenty of story twists and flights into plausible fantasy, with just enough truth to please the most discerning readers.
This book is not a quick read, but it is rewarding and hopeful, and it is wonderful if you want to discover hope since we all need it.
This novel has some extremely moving passages. I don't want to provide any spoilers, so go ahead and buy it and find out for yourself!
Synopsis
“In this spectacular New York Times bestselling father/son collaboration that “barrels along like a freight train” (Publishers Weekly), Stephen King and Owen King tell the highest of high-stakes stories: what might happen if women disappeared from the world of men?
In a future so real and near it might be now, something happens when women go to sleep: they become shrouded in a cocoon-like gauze. If they are awakened, if the gauze wrapping their bodies is disturbed or violated, the women become feral and spectacularly violent. And while they sleep they go to another place, a better place, where harmony prevails and conflict is rare. One woman, the mysterious “Eve Black,” is immune to the blessing or curse of the sleeping disease. Is Eve a medical anomaly to be studied? Or is she a demon who must be slain?
Abandoned, left to their increasingly primal urges, the men divide into warring factions, some wanted to kill Eve, some to save her. Others exploit the chaos to wreak their own vengeance on new enemies. All turn to violence in a suddenly all-male world. Set in a small Appalachian town whose primary employer is a woman’s prison, Sleeping Beauties is a wildly provocative, gloriously dramatic father-son collaboration that feels particularly urgent and relevant today.”
Useful Search Related Words & Keywords
Character Development, Evie Black, Fall Asleep, Father And Son, Joe Hill, King Novel, Looking Forward, Many Characters, Page Turner, Son Owen
Rating: 85/100
Recommended: 90/100 Yes.
Buy the Kindle Version Here
Free With Free Audible Trial
Under The Dome - Season 1 (2013) (13+)
Dreamcatcher (2003) (R)
Cell (2016) (R)
Bag of Bones Season 1 (2012) (13+)
Dolores Claiborne (1995) (R)
It (1990) (R)
It (2017) (R)
It Chapter Two (2019) (R)
Needful Things (1993) (R)
Desperation (2006) (16+)
Silver Bullet (1985) (R)
The Tommyknockers (1993) (M)
Christine (1983) (R)
The Dead Zone (1983) (R)
Misery (1990) (R)
Carrie (1976) (R)
Firestarter (1984) (R)
Mr. Mercedes Season 01 (2017) (TV-MA)
Thinner (1996) (R)
The Running Man (1987) (R)
The Dark Half (1993) (R)
The Green Mile (1999) (16+)
Salem’s Lot (1979) (G)
Salem’s Lot: The Miniseries (2004) (NR)
The Dark Tower 8 Book Boxed Set (Paperback)
The Dark Tower (2017) (PG-13)
Compare Kindle E-readers on one page
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Any kind of support, even a simple 'like, thumbs up or a small comment' is enough and helps me grow, create and freely do more stuff and work on projects for the benefit of many.
Buy me a coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/namsu
Help me grow into a global force: https://www.patreon.com/namsu
Support with crypto coins/tokens: https://cointr.ee/namsu
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
