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Misery
Note du bibliothécaire: Ceci est une couverture alternative pour: 9782253151371
Misery, c'est le nom de l'héroïne populaire qui a rapporté des millions de dollars au romancier Paul Sheldon. Après quoi il en eu assez et il a fait mourir Misery pour écrire enfin le "vrai" roman dont il rêvait. Mais il suffit de quelques verres de trop et d'une route enneigée, dans un coin perdu, pour que tout bascule... Lorsqu'il reprend conscience, Paul est allongé sur un lit, les jambes broyées dans l'accident.
Sauvé par une femme, Annie. Une admiratrice fervente qui ne lui pardonne pas d'avoir tué Misery.
Et le supplice va commencer.
Sans monstres ni fantômes, Stephen King, au sommet de sa puissance, nous enferme ici dans le plus terrifiant huis clos qu'on puisse imaginer.
Misery, c'est le nom de l'héroïne populaire qui a rapporté des millions de dollars au romancier Paul Sheldon. Après quoi il en eu assez et il a fait mourir Misery pour écrire enfin le "vrai" roman dont il rêvait. Mais il suffit de quelques verres de trop et d'une route enneigée, dans un coin perdu, pour que tout bascule... Lorsqu'il reprend conscience, Paul est allongé sur un lit, les jambes broyées dans l'accident.
Sauvé par une femme, Annie. Une admiratrice fervente qui ne lui pardonne pas d'avoir tué Misery.
Et le supplice va commencer.
Sans monstres ni fantômes, Stephen King, au sommet de sa puissance, nous enferme ici dans le plus terrifiant huis clos qu'on puisse imaginer.
391 pages, Paperback
First published June 8, 1987
3920 people are currently reading
18784 people want to read
About the author
Stephen King
2,289 books892k followersStephen Edwin King was born the second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. After his father left them when Stephen was two, he and his older brother, David, were raised by his mother. Parts of his childhood were spent in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where his father's family was at the time, and in Stratford, Connecticut. When Stephen was eleven, his mother brought her children back to Durham, Maine, for good. Her parents, Guy and Nellie Pillsbury, had become incapacitated with old age, and Ruth King was persuaded by her sisters to take over the physical care of them. Other family members provided a small house in Durham and financial support. After Stephen's grandparents passed away, Mrs. King found work in the kitchens of Pineland, a nearby residential facility for the mentally challenged.
Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.
He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.
Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.
In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.
Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.
He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.
Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.
In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.
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November 22, 2016
Honestly, who among us hasn’t gotten frustrated with their favorite writer and felt like holding them prisoner while forcing them to write the exact book that we want?
Well, don’t do that because it would be wrong! What kind of twisted freaks are you people?!?
Paul Sheldon is a best selling author who just ended his popular series of romance/adventure novels by killing off the lead character, Misery Chastain. After finishing a new novel at a Colorado resort Paul has a car accident and awakes to find that his legs have been shattered, but that he’s been saved by his self-proclaimed number one fan, Annie Wilkes.
Unfortunately, Annie turns out to be more than just a little crazy, and when she learns that Paul killed Misery in the latest book she demands that he write a new one that brings back her favorite character. Held captive by a madwoman, Paul is almost helpless to resist the physical and psychological tortures she uses to get her way while insisting that it’s really for his own good.
This book seems eerily prophetic of King’s career in some ways. Uncle Stevie hadn’t yet frustrated readers of his Dark Tower series with long delays between books, and yet he absolutely nailed the self-righteous fury of a fan who feels somehow cheated out of what they deserve. You gotta think that later on King worried that he had some version of Annie out there just waiting to chain him to typewriter to finish DT. He was also years away from suffering his own enormous physical trauma after being hit by a car, but he still makes you feel every agonizing moment that Paul suffers from his accident and at Annie’s hands. Like Paul, King would also have the experience of returning to writing being a matter of overcoming physical pain but also finding it to be a way to escape it.
One of King’s biggest strengths is that he knows the power of a good story, and this plot serves him well by really letting him dig into that. Annie’s obsession with Misery is something that probably almost every reader can relate to, but what’s really interesting is how Paul’s need to tell the story becomes just as compelling as Annie’s threats. The set-up lets Uncle Stevie explore the whole notion of just why we gotta know what happens next as well as the rules that make it a satisfying resolution or a cheat.
I could make a pretty solid argument that this is King’s best book. He was very much at the peak of his powers here, and either the simple two person structure of the story or good editing kept this at a normal novel length. That’d become a rarity in his bloated books after this, and it does feel like King at his most disciplined. In Annie Wilkes he crafted a character worthy of being included in a Villain’s Hall of Fame, and he makes good use of her as a figure who can be terrifying, sometimes tragic, and weirdly humorous at times.
However, I’m not saying it’s my favorite King book. (Probably The Stand or the last Dark Tower hold that honor.) Why wouldn’t his best book be the one I enjoy most? Because he did just too good of job on making us feel Paul’s pain. Sure, this is a book about a man who suffered a terrible accident and then found himself brutalized at the hands of a psychopath so it makes perfect sense that Uncle Stevie would want us to ache along with Paul. Yet, it’s very hard to spend an entire book with a main character who is almost always at some level of agony without feeling worn down by it. It’s necessary for the plot, but it also makes it a slog at times.
So it's definitely among King’s best, but it's also one I haven’t read it nearly as many times as some of his others because it’s simply too damn tough to get through at times. Still it’s a 5 star ride if you grit your teeth and keep reading as Paul keeps on writing.
Well, don’t do that because it would be wrong! What kind of twisted freaks are you people?!?
Paul Sheldon is a best selling author who just ended his popular series of romance/adventure novels by killing off the lead character, Misery Chastain. After finishing a new novel at a Colorado resort Paul has a car accident and awakes to find that his legs have been shattered, but that he’s been saved by his self-proclaimed number one fan, Annie Wilkes.
Unfortunately, Annie turns out to be more than just a little crazy, and when she learns that Paul killed Misery in the latest book she demands that he write a new one that brings back her favorite character. Held captive by a madwoman, Paul is almost helpless to resist the physical and psychological tortures she uses to get her way while insisting that it’s really for his own good.
This book seems eerily prophetic of King’s career in some ways. Uncle Stevie hadn’t yet frustrated readers of his Dark Tower series with long delays between books, and yet he absolutely nailed the self-righteous fury of a fan who feels somehow cheated out of what they deserve. You gotta think that later on King worried that he had some version of Annie out there just waiting to chain him to typewriter to finish DT. He was also years away from suffering his own enormous physical trauma after being hit by a car, but he still makes you feel every agonizing moment that Paul suffers from his accident and at Annie’s hands. Like Paul, King would also have the experience of returning to writing being a matter of overcoming physical pain but also finding it to be a way to escape it.
One of King’s biggest strengths is that he knows the power of a good story, and this plot serves him well by really letting him dig into that. Annie’s obsession with Misery is something that probably almost every reader can relate to, but what’s really interesting is how Paul’s need to tell the story becomes just as compelling as Annie’s threats. The set-up lets Uncle Stevie explore the whole notion of just why we gotta know what happens next as well as the rules that make it a satisfying resolution or a cheat.
I could make a pretty solid argument that this is King’s best book. He was very much at the peak of his powers here, and either the simple two person structure of the story or good editing kept this at a normal novel length. That’d become a rarity in his bloated books after this, and it does feel like King at his most disciplined. In Annie Wilkes he crafted a character worthy of being included in a Villain’s Hall of Fame, and he makes good use of her as a figure who can be terrifying, sometimes tragic, and weirdly humorous at times.
However, I’m not saying it’s my favorite King book. (Probably The Stand or the last Dark Tower hold that honor.) Why wouldn’t his best book be the one I enjoy most? Because he did just too good of job on making us feel Paul’s pain. Sure, this is a book about a man who suffered a terrible accident and then found himself brutalized at the hands of a psychopath so it makes perfect sense that Uncle Stevie would want us to ache along with Paul. Yet, it’s very hard to spend an entire book with a main character who is almost always at some level of agony without feeling worn down by it. It’s necessary for the plot, but it also makes it a slog at times.
So it's definitely among King’s best, but it's also one I haven’t read it nearly as many times as some of his others because it’s simply too damn tough to get through at times. Still it’s a 5 star ride if you grit your teeth and keep reading as Paul keeps on writing.
November 24, 2021
El mejor libro que he leído de Stephen King. ¡Una genialidad! Me perturba, me encanta.
Audio reseña aquí
La mayor parte de los secuestros que se generan en el mundo son realizados para obtener dinero a cambio, para prostituir a sus víctimas, por venganzas, o simplemente por psicopatía del criminal. Ser secuestrado es sinónimo de vivir en una condición indigna y deplorable, y es algo que no debería ocurrir en ningún país del mundo. Pero, ¿qué pasaría si te encontraras un libro con este tema principal, y en vez de sentir compasión por el rehén, te recorriera por tu mente una extraña sensación de morbo por seguir conociendo más y más atrocidades realizadas por la antagonista de esta historia? Aunque parezca un disparate, no lo es. Eso, exactamente, es lo que viví y sentí tras leer esta maravillosa obra de Stephen King. Tiene escenas tan macabras, pero a la vez tan extraordinarias, que es inevitable no confundir la maldad con la genialidad. Soy consciente de que lo que voy a escribir es imprudente, teniendo en cuenta que me falta leer muchas obras muy distinguidas de este autor, como It, El resplandor o la saga de La Torre Oscura, pero sinceramente, teniendo en cuenta la calidad de esta obra, me atrevería a decir que acabo de leer la mejor obra de Stephen King. ¡Alucinante!
Todo comenzó hace unos meses cuando intentaba decidir mi próxima lectura. Mis opciones eran El padrino de Mario Puzo, El nombre de la rosa de Umberto Eco y, justamente, El resplandor de Stephen King. Tres nóvelas muy famosas, con un número de páginas similar, que observaba con detenimiento y titubeo porque sentía una gran ansiedad por leer esas historias en ese mismo instante, pero no lograba decidir cuál leer primero. Eso es algo que me ocurre frecuentemente y por ello intento premeditar mis próximas lecturas con anterioridad, pero en esa ocasión lo olvidé, mi cerebro se bloqueó y la elección esperada nunca apareció. Esa noche tanto sería mi coraje por culpa de mi indecisión que finalmente decidí no leer absolutamente nada. Sin embargo, la vida y los libros siempre tienen hermosas sorpresas en el momento más inesperado. Esto, porque aquella noche cuando guardaba aquellas obras, mis ojos se ubicaron en Misery y entonces minutos más tarde desaparecieron mis penas, y todo porque sin darme cuenta empezaría a leer esta historia con muchísima avidez. Curiosamente, en este mismo instante que estoy haciendo esta reseña, recuerdo que aún no leo aquellas obras que pensaba leer primero. Así son los libros, así es la vida de un lector.
Fue una historia que desde el inicio me atrapó. En estas primeras páginas se cuenta sobre el estado en trance que vive el protagonista de la historia, Paul Sheldon, después de sufrir un grave accidente de tránsito. Paul, siente que se está muriendo, y desde su estado delicado de salud, empieza a narrar de una manera increíble exactamente lo que está viendo y sintiendo en aquellos momentos. Desde ese preámbulo, el libro se ganó completamente mi atención porque descubrí que este personaje que usa Stephen, que por cierto es un escritor, tenía vida propia. Y sí, lo sé, Stephen King es un genio para crear personajes y hacerlos parecer reales en todas sus historias, pero este personaje es muy diferente, es único. Una cosa es que Stephen te narre desde el personaje las acciones que él realiza y combinándolo con sus conversaciones consiga armonizar su prosa para no hacerla pesada, pero otra muy diferente es que el personaje piense por sí mismo, imagine, deduzca lo que está ocurriendo, saque sus propias conclusiones y además transmita de una forma tétrica el dolor, el sufrimiento, el miedo, la angustia y el amor por su trabajo de una manera increíble. Paul Sheldon no es un personaje con frases épicas para rememorar, pero sí es uno que logra interpretar perfectamente el rol de escritor, ayudando a que el lector comprenda todo lo que tiene que esforzarse y vivir un autor para crear tan solo una sola obra. Como lectores muchas veces ignoramos y olvidamos que escribir no es fácil, por ello, libros como este nos sirven para comprender a esas personas que se dedican horas, semanas, meses y años intentando crear con lógica y con muchísima imaginación, una historia que pueda gustarle a sus lectores. Sí, el libro es de horror, pero incluso en la oscuridad hay luz, en la pobreza hay bondad, y en una historia de un secuestro hay belleza por el amor hacia nuestros amigos de papel.
¿Pero saben que es lo mejor? Que Paul Sheldon no es lo más sobresaliente de este libro. A pesar de que hay tanto por destacar de este personaje, lo mejor —sin duda alguna— se llama Annie Wilkes. Ella, es una de las mejores antagonistas que he conocido en mi vida. Es una mujer desquiciada, cruel, fría, sanguinaria y torturadora, pero a pesar de todo —y como pasa con muchísimos villanos— su comportamiento y proceder tiene una razón de ser. Aunque parezca un disparate, en el cerebro de Annie asesinar no es sinónimo de maldad, es ayudar a los demás a que puedan descansar del horrible mundo en el que vivimos. ¿Y saben qué? Por momentos no puedo negar que a veces sí le doy la razón a ella. Aun así, no es lo mismo asesinar por un código moral, que torturar física y mentalmente a tus presas; por lo tanto, la mejor frase que puede describir a Annie Wilkes es “Esa maldita perra está loca”. Espero no encontrarme nunca una persona como ella en mi vida, ¡Qué miedo daría tan solo conversar con alguien así!
Ahora bien, dos excelentes personajes con pensamientos tan diferentes ¿qué tienen en común? Esa respuesta se llama Misery. Misery, es un personaje femenino de una serie de libros que crea Paul Sheldon y que son muy populares en todo el mundo. El problema, es que Paul —al igual que Arthur Conan Doyle con su famosísimo Sherlock Holmes— está cansado de su personaje, y no soporta escribir más sobre ella por lo que ha decidido acabar con su personaje más popular. Su desagrado se debe a que las obras donde Misery no tiene aparición no son tenidas en cuenta, y Paul quiere ser reconocido por algo más que ser el creador de aquella emblemática mujer. Pero, Paul tiene un problema mucho más grande, y ese problema es que después de su accidente de tránsito aparece en casa de Annie Wilkes, quien dice ser su fan número uno, justamente por crear Misery. ¿Cómo se llevarán ellos dos? Eso es lo interesante del libro, descubrirlo. Quizás pueden sospecharlo, pero ni se imaginan las locuras que ocurren en aquella casa.
En cuanto a la prosa también me gustó demasiado. Aquí, Stephen usa capítulos cortos —como en 22/11/63— por lo que resulta muy atractivo para que el lector no detenga su lectura nunca. Pasa una hora y no lo notas, pasan dos y te emocionas, pasan tres y pierdes el control: Es una locura. Además, escribir una historia con capítulos cortos por lo general convierte un libro que puede ser denso, en uno ligero y muy adictivo, por lo que esta historia se lee rapidísimo a pesar de sus 400 páginas. Otro aspecto interesante de la prosa, son las secciones donde se presentan fragmentos de las nóvelas de Paul Sheldon. Estos capítulos son muy especiales, porque allí Stephen cambia completamente su estilo literario, e incluso no parecen escritas esas páginas por él, sino por el mismísimo Paul Sheldon. Hacer algo así es muy difícil, pero aquí, este autor, demuestra su verdadero don para escribir. Es un verdadero genio.
Debo reconocer que en algunos capítulos creí que la historia venía de más a menos, y que la obra se había transformado de un libro de terror a uno de misterio. Pero, una vez seguí avanzando, entendí que solo eran páginas de transición porque más adelante, en el último tercio, todo vuelve a ser tan impactante y terrorífico como en capítulos pasados. Asimismo, también confieso que en las primeras páginas no sabía si pensar que Paul era un visionario, o si realmente esa era su manera de analizar la situación. Inicialmente, creí que esa actitud de Paul sería una falla, pero después me quedó claro que no. Son pequeños detalles que podrían considerarse como «defectos», pero son tan insignificantes que me parece increíble que no haya logrado encontrar un desperfecto importante en algún aspecto de esta novela. Realmente Stephen ha hecho un trabajo de otro nivel, obras así son muy difíciles de igualar o superar.
A veces pienso que es más difícil dar una opinión neutral, y sin ofender, sobre un libro que no me ha gustado, pero luego, en ocasiones como esta, reflexiono y comprendo que no siempre es así. Esta novela me ha encantado, pero he sufrido muchísimo, pero muchísimo intentando escribir sobre este libro tan espectacular, y todo porque la sola mención de esta historia —o de alguno de los personajes— me hace sentir la necesidad de empezar a decir spoilers sin control. Créanme, es muy difícil controlarme, intentar reprimir palabras es una gran tortura; es tan difícil, que dos días después de terminar de leerlo intenté recomendárselo a mi hermano, pero sin querer resulté contándoselo todo: Lo siento querido hermano. Sé que Misery es una película muy famosa de 1990 y que quizás muchos conocen la historia por aquella cinta, pero ni así hay justificación para hacerle spoilers a aquellos (as) que por diferentes motivos nunca vieron la película y que no conocen absolutamente nada de esta novela. Por lo tanto, para aquellas personas quiero recomendarles que no vean la película, no sin antes leer este libro. En mi caso, yo nunca vi la película porque de pequeño en mi hogar solo teníamos un televisor y no solíamos observar películas de terror/horror por el miedo a soñarnos pesadillas. Pero, inmediatamente cuando finalicé esta lectura, busqué la película por internet, la descargué, la vi y aunque no puedo negar que es una gran adaptación, sinceramente no tiene comparación con este libro: El libro es mil veces mejor, así de simple. La otra recomendación es para aquellos que jamás han leído a Stephen King, pero que sienten interés por hacerlo para conocer al “amo del terror”. Sé que este autor tiene bastantes obras, y ante un catálogo tan grande es muy difícil elegir cuál leer, pero, si lo que buscan es una historia que los atrape, que los impacte, y que sea fácil y adictiva de leer, entonces este libro es lo que están buscando. No se arrepentirán, se los prometo, no se arrepentirán ni un solo segundo.
Termino completamente satisfecho, lo releeré en el futuro un sinfín de veces, y naturalmente seguiré leyendo muchas de las obras de Stephen King. Sé que muy probablemente ninguna de sus obras me hará sentir lo que he vivido con esta lectura, pero aún hay un camino largo por explorar y sé que voy a disfrutar sus demás obras. Libro súper recomendado.
Audio reseña aquí
La mayor parte de los secuestros que se generan en el mundo son realizados para obtener dinero a cambio, para prostituir a sus víctimas, por venganzas, o simplemente por psicopatía del criminal. Ser secuestrado es sinónimo de vivir en una condición indigna y deplorable, y es algo que no debería ocurrir en ningún país del mundo. Pero, ¿qué pasaría si te encontraras un libro con este tema principal, y en vez de sentir compasión por el rehén, te recorriera por tu mente una extraña sensación de morbo por seguir conociendo más y más atrocidades realizadas por la antagonista de esta historia? Aunque parezca un disparate, no lo es. Eso, exactamente, es lo que viví y sentí tras leer esta maravillosa obra de Stephen King. Tiene escenas tan macabras, pero a la vez tan extraordinarias, que es inevitable no confundir la maldad con la genialidad. Soy consciente de que lo que voy a escribir es imprudente, teniendo en cuenta que me falta leer muchas obras muy distinguidas de este autor, como It, El resplandor o la saga de La Torre Oscura, pero sinceramente, teniendo en cuenta la calidad de esta obra, me atrevería a decir que acabo de leer la mejor obra de Stephen King. ¡Alucinante!
Todo comenzó hace unos meses cuando intentaba decidir mi próxima lectura. Mis opciones eran El padrino de Mario Puzo, El nombre de la rosa de Umberto Eco y, justamente, El resplandor de Stephen King. Tres nóvelas muy famosas, con un número de páginas similar, que observaba con detenimiento y titubeo porque sentía una gran ansiedad por leer esas historias en ese mismo instante, pero no lograba decidir cuál leer primero. Eso es algo que me ocurre frecuentemente y por ello intento premeditar mis próximas lecturas con anterioridad, pero en esa ocasión lo olvidé, mi cerebro se bloqueó y la elección esperada nunca apareció. Esa noche tanto sería mi coraje por culpa de mi indecisión que finalmente decidí no leer absolutamente nada. Sin embargo, la vida y los libros siempre tienen hermosas sorpresas en el momento más inesperado. Esto, porque aquella noche cuando guardaba aquellas obras, mis ojos se ubicaron en Misery y entonces minutos más tarde desaparecieron mis penas, y todo porque sin darme cuenta empezaría a leer esta historia con muchísima avidez. Curiosamente, en este mismo instante que estoy haciendo esta reseña, recuerdo que aún no leo aquellas obras que pensaba leer primero. Así son los libros, así es la vida de un lector.
Fue una historia que desde el inicio me atrapó. En estas primeras páginas se cuenta sobre el estado en trance que vive el protagonista de la historia, Paul Sheldon, después de sufrir un grave accidente de tránsito. Paul, siente que se está muriendo, y desde su estado delicado de salud, empieza a narrar de una manera increíble exactamente lo que está viendo y sintiendo en aquellos momentos. Desde ese preámbulo, el libro se ganó completamente mi atención porque descubrí que este personaje que usa Stephen, que por cierto es un escritor, tenía vida propia. Y sí, lo sé, Stephen King es un genio para crear personajes y hacerlos parecer reales en todas sus historias, pero este personaje es muy diferente, es único. Una cosa es que Stephen te narre desde el personaje las acciones que él realiza y combinándolo con sus conversaciones consiga armonizar su prosa para no hacerla pesada, pero otra muy diferente es que el personaje piense por sí mismo, imagine, deduzca lo que está ocurriendo, saque sus propias conclusiones y además transmita de una forma tétrica el dolor, el sufrimiento, el miedo, la angustia y el amor por su trabajo de una manera increíble. Paul Sheldon no es un personaje con frases épicas para rememorar, pero sí es uno que logra interpretar perfectamente el rol de escritor, ayudando a que el lector comprenda todo lo que tiene que esforzarse y vivir un autor para crear tan solo una sola obra. Como lectores muchas veces ignoramos y olvidamos que escribir no es fácil, por ello, libros como este nos sirven para comprender a esas personas que se dedican horas, semanas, meses y años intentando crear con lógica y con muchísima imaginación, una historia que pueda gustarle a sus lectores. Sí, el libro es de horror, pero incluso en la oscuridad hay luz, en la pobreza hay bondad, y en una historia de un secuestro hay belleza por el amor hacia nuestros amigos de papel.
¿Pero saben que es lo mejor? Que Paul Sheldon no es lo más sobresaliente de este libro. A pesar de que hay tanto por destacar de este personaje, lo mejor —sin duda alguna— se llama Annie Wilkes. Ella, es una de las mejores antagonistas que he conocido en mi vida. Es una mujer desquiciada, cruel, fría, sanguinaria y torturadora, pero a pesar de todo —y como pasa con muchísimos villanos— su comportamiento y proceder tiene una razón de ser. Aunque parezca un disparate, en el cerebro de Annie asesinar no es sinónimo de maldad, es ayudar a los demás a que puedan descansar del horrible mundo en el que vivimos. ¿Y saben qué? Por momentos no puedo negar que a veces sí le doy la razón a ella. Aun así, no es lo mismo asesinar por un código moral, que torturar física y mentalmente a tus presas; por lo tanto, la mejor frase que puede describir a Annie Wilkes es “Esa maldita perra está loca”. Espero no encontrarme nunca una persona como ella en mi vida, ¡Qué miedo daría tan solo conversar con alguien así!
Ahora bien, dos excelentes personajes con pensamientos tan diferentes ¿qué tienen en común? Esa respuesta se llama Misery. Misery, es un personaje femenino de una serie de libros que crea Paul Sheldon y que son muy populares en todo el mundo. El problema, es que Paul —al igual que Arthur Conan Doyle con su famosísimo Sherlock Holmes— está cansado de su personaje, y no soporta escribir más sobre ella por lo que ha decidido acabar con su personaje más popular. Su desagrado se debe a que las obras donde Misery no tiene aparición no son tenidas en cuenta, y Paul quiere ser reconocido por algo más que ser el creador de aquella emblemática mujer. Pero, Paul tiene un problema mucho más grande, y ese problema es que después de su accidente de tránsito aparece en casa de Annie Wilkes, quien dice ser su fan número uno, justamente por crear Misery. ¿Cómo se llevarán ellos dos? Eso es lo interesante del libro, descubrirlo. Quizás pueden sospecharlo, pero ni se imaginan las locuras que ocurren en aquella casa.
En cuanto a la prosa también me gustó demasiado. Aquí, Stephen usa capítulos cortos —como en 22/11/63— por lo que resulta muy atractivo para que el lector no detenga su lectura nunca. Pasa una hora y no lo notas, pasan dos y te emocionas, pasan tres y pierdes el control: Es una locura. Además, escribir una historia con capítulos cortos por lo general convierte un libro que puede ser denso, en uno ligero y muy adictivo, por lo que esta historia se lee rapidísimo a pesar de sus 400 páginas. Otro aspecto interesante de la prosa, son las secciones donde se presentan fragmentos de las nóvelas de Paul Sheldon. Estos capítulos son muy especiales, porque allí Stephen cambia completamente su estilo literario, e incluso no parecen escritas esas páginas por él, sino por el mismísimo Paul Sheldon. Hacer algo así es muy difícil, pero aquí, este autor, demuestra su verdadero don para escribir. Es un verdadero genio.
Debo reconocer que en algunos capítulos creí que la historia venía de más a menos, y que la obra se había transformado de un libro de terror a uno de misterio. Pero, una vez seguí avanzando, entendí que solo eran páginas de transición porque más adelante, en el último tercio, todo vuelve a ser tan impactante y terrorífico como en capítulos pasados. Asimismo, también confieso que en las primeras páginas no sabía si pensar que Paul era un visionario, o si realmente esa era su manera de analizar la situación. Inicialmente, creí que esa actitud de Paul sería una falla, pero después me quedó claro que no. Son pequeños detalles que podrían considerarse como «defectos», pero son tan insignificantes que me parece increíble que no haya logrado encontrar un desperfecto importante en algún aspecto de esta novela. Realmente Stephen ha hecho un trabajo de otro nivel, obras así son muy difíciles de igualar o superar.
A veces pienso que es más difícil dar una opinión neutral, y sin ofender, sobre un libro que no me ha gustado, pero luego, en ocasiones como esta, reflexiono y comprendo que no siempre es así. Esta novela me ha encantado, pero he sufrido muchísimo, pero muchísimo intentando escribir sobre este libro tan espectacular, y todo porque la sola mención de esta historia —o de alguno de los personajes— me hace sentir la necesidad de empezar a decir spoilers sin control. Créanme, es muy difícil controlarme, intentar reprimir palabras es una gran tortura; es tan difícil, que dos días después de terminar de leerlo intenté recomendárselo a mi hermano, pero sin querer resulté contándoselo todo: Lo siento querido hermano. Sé que Misery es una película muy famosa de 1990 y que quizás muchos conocen la historia por aquella cinta, pero ni así hay justificación para hacerle spoilers a aquellos (as) que por diferentes motivos nunca vieron la película y que no conocen absolutamente nada de esta novela. Por lo tanto, para aquellas personas quiero recomendarles que no vean la película, no sin antes leer este libro. En mi caso, yo nunca vi la película porque de pequeño en mi hogar solo teníamos un televisor y no solíamos observar películas de terror/horror por el miedo a soñarnos pesadillas. Pero, inmediatamente cuando finalicé esta lectura, busqué la película por internet, la descargué, la vi y aunque no puedo negar que es una gran adaptación, sinceramente no tiene comparación con este libro: El libro es mil veces mejor, así de simple. La otra recomendación es para aquellos que jamás han leído a Stephen King, pero que sienten interés por hacerlo para conocer al “amo del terror”. Sé que este autor tiene bastantes obras, y ante un catálogo tan grande es muy difícil elegir cuál leer, pero, si lo que buscan es una historia que los atrape, que los impacte, y que sea fácil y adictiva de leer, entonces este libro es lo que están buscando. No se arrepentirán, se los prometo, no se arrepentirán ni un solo segundo.
Termino completamente satisfecho, lo releeré en el futuro un sinfín de veces, y naturalmente seguiré leyendo muchas de las obras de Stephen King. Sé que muy probablemente ninguna de sus obras me hará sentir lo que he vivido con esta lectura, pero aún hay un camino largo por explorar y sé que voy a disfrutar sus demás obras. Libro súper recomendado.
August 14, 2019
a list of things this book was:
- disgusting
- disturbing
- a quick read, surprisingly
- really fond of using sexual assault as a metaphor (cool cool cool)
- harmfully stereotypical in terms of race (the Africa references/setting)
- harmfully stereotypical in terms of gender (so much man-goes-to-work woman-stays-home)
- honestly just pretty hateful toward women??
- all for using the n word without blinking, apparently
a list of things this book was not:
- scary
- all that great of a read for me
bottom line: i guess i get the stephen king appeal. but, uh. NOT A FAN.
note from future me: if you're a stephen king fan and you feel like writing at length in the comments of this about why i'm wrong and you're a Correct Intellectual, consider, instead, writing me a letter and then throwing that letter right in the garbage (either way, i'm not going to read it)
-----------
PRE-REVIEW
okay, stephen king. time to show me what all the fuss is about.
(in other words: this is my first stephen king book and i'm ready to scream in fear)
- disgusting
- disturbing
- a quick read, surprisingly
- really fond of using sexual assault as a metaphor (cool cool cool)
- harmfully stereotypical in terms of race (the Africa references/setting)
- harmfully stereotypical in terms of gender (so much man-goes-to-work woman-stays-home)
- honestly just pretty hateful toward women??
- all for using the n word without blinking, apparently
a list of things this book was not:
- scary
- all that great of a read for me
bottom line: i guess i get the stephen king appeal. but, uh. NOT A FAN.
note from future me: if you're a stephen king fan and you feel like writing at length in the comments of this about why i'm wrong and you're a Correct Intellectual, consider, instead, writing me a letter and then throwing that letter right in the garbage (either way, i'm not going to read it)
-----------
PRE-REVIEW
okay, stephen king. time to show me what all the fuss is about.
(in other words: this is my first stephen king book and i'm ready to scream in fear)
October 20, 2020
Reread
Damn, I can never get over that one scene!!! She's bat sh•t crazy!
Happy Reading! 🎃👻
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
October 27, 2025
و لماذا لم نخطف د.تامر ابراهيم ليكمل لنا ثلاثية"الذي لم يمت؟فالاعوام تمر وتمر
و لماذا لم نخطف د.احمد خالدتوفيق لنعيد رفعت اسماعيل للحياة؟فقد كان يؤنسنا حقا
و لماذا لم يخطفوا د.ارثر دويل ليعيد شرلوك هولمز للحياة؟فهو قتله لمزاجه الخاص؟ لاننا عاقلين طبعا
منذ ان افاق بول شيلدون على انفاس تقتحم جهازه التنفسي قسرا برائحة الفانيليا و الشيكولاته ..أدرك ان احلى ايامه قد مضت إلى غير رجعة ..فهل من الممكن ان تعيش بسلام بعد ان قابلت" انى ويلكوكس "؟
فلتتامل جيدا تلك الممرضة الممتلئة البشوشة و ركز في لون السائل الذي تحقنك به..فقد تكون حقنتك الأخيرة 💉
ميزرى هي رعب دفين لدى كل مؤلف شهير تغريه الاجزاء المتعددة..احذر فقد تودي بك إلى حتفك ..ستصبح كلمة: اكتب هي كابوسك المقيم
ستظل اني ويلكوكس اغرب بطلات كينج و تتربع مع مهرج"الشيء"على القمة فهي : المعجبة رقم واحد. .لقب ساحر لولا اصرارها المرعب على أن يعيد كاتبها بطلتها المفضلة للحياة
.و لو بخطفه و احتجازه و تكسير ساقه مرارا🙈 و ما خفي أكثر بكثير..
من السهل ان يتحول هذا النمط من الروايات ثنائية الشخصيات إلى مسرحية مملة و لكن ليس هذه المرة
..جاءت الرواية كمطاردات مرعبة لن تنشر ابدا لتوم و جيري🐱🐀ا
ابي رجل علم رزين لا يهوى السينما و لكن يكفي "فيلم ميزري "فخرا انه الفيلم الوحيد الذي تابعه بحماس تفاعلى لم يتكرر ابدا..و هو بالفعل في جودة الرواية
و لماذا لم نخطف د.احمد خالدتوفيق لنعيد رفعت اسماعيل للحياة؟فقد كان يؤنسنا حقا
و لماذا لم يخطفوا د.ارثر دويل ليعيد شرلوك هولمز للحياة؟فهو قتله لمزاجه الخاص؟ لاننا عاقلين طبعا
منذ ان افاق بول شيلدون على انفاس تقتحم جهازه التنفسي قسرا برائحة الفانيليا و الشيكولاته ..أدرك ان احلى ايامه قد مضت إلى غير رجعة ..فهل من الممكن ان تعيش بسلام بعد ان قابلت" انى ويلكوكس "؟
فلتتامل جيدا تلك الممرضة الممتلئة البشوشة و ركز في لون السائل الذي تحقنك به..فقد تكون حقنتك الأخيرة 💉
ميزرى هي رعب دفين لدى كل مؤلف شهير تغريه الاجزاء المتعددة..احذر فقد تودي بك إلى حتفك ..ستصبح كلمة: اكتب هي كابوسك المقيم
ستظل اني ويلكوكس اغرب بطلات كينج و تتربع مع مهرج"الشيء"على القمة فهي : المعجبة رقم واحد. .لقب ساحر لولا اصرارها المرعب على أن يعيد كاتبها بطلتها المفضلة للحياة
.و لو بخطفه و احتجازه و تكسير ساقه مرارا🙈 و ما خفي أكثر بكثير..
من السهل ان يتحول هذا النمط من الروايات ثنائية الشخصيات إلى مسرحية مملة و لكن ليس هذه المرة
..جاءت الرواية كمطاردات مرعبة لن تنشر ابدا لتوم و جيري🐱🐀ا
ابي رجل علم رزين لا يهوى السينما و لكن يكفي "فيلم ميزري "فخرا انه الفيلم الوحيد الذي تابعه بحماس تفاعلى لم يتكرر ابدا..و هو بالفعل في جودة الرواية
October 28, 2022
The name of the man who had written the book was Paul Sheldon. He recognized it as his own with no surprise. ‘Sidewinder, Colorado,’ she said when he was finally able to ask the question. ‘My name is Annie Wilkes. And I am -‘
‘I know,’ he said. ‘You’re my number-one fan’
‘Yes,’ she said, smiling. ‘That’s just what I am’
Successful author Paul Sheldon has decided to transition from writing his popular romance series featuring Misery Chastain to publishing a crime fiction novel. After completing the manuscript, Paul, drunk and elated makes a snap decision to drive, instead of fly, back to New York City. Unfortunately for Paul the severe snow storm heading his way has other plans and Paul ends up in a serious car accident.
On her way home from purchasing livestock feed, Annie Wilkes (Paul’s number one fan!) rescues Paul from the scene of the accident. Annie takes Paul back to her remote home, feeds him copious amounts of pain medication and refuses to take him to the hospital despite his broken and mangled legs.
Days pass and Annie finally gets her hands on the latest installment in the Misery Chastain series. But when Annie discovers that Paul has killed off her beloved Misery she becomes blind with rage. She holds Paul prisoner while forcing him to write a new book. One that brings Misery back to life.
I don’t know how to describe what I’m feeling right now. The closest I can get, is how I imagine one would feel being run over by a truck and then dragged 5 kilometers down the road…..but in a good way??
This is an explosive novel, there is no denying that. The reason I believe this story is so powerful, is because of its plausibility. The concrete certainty that the acts narrated, can, and do, happen in real life. Stephen King has painted a deeply disturbing picture with captivating characters whose psychology is so deeply analyzed throughout the course of the book, that I felt 100% inside their heads. This is why I love Stephen King. No other author can do that to me.
I loved every second of this book. F’ing brilliant!
‘I know,’ he said. ‘You’re my number-one fan’
‘Yes,’ she said, smiling. ‘That’s just what I am’
Successful author Paul Sheldon has decided to transition from writing his popular romance series featuring Misery Chastain to publishing a crime fiction novel. After completing the manuscript, Paul, drunk and elated makes a snap decision to drive, instead of fly, back to New York City. Unfortunately for Paul the severe snow storm heading his way has other plans and Paul ends up in a serious car accident.
On her way home from purchasing livestock feed, Annie Wilkes (Paul’s number one fan!) rescues Paul from the scene of the accident. Annie takes Paul back to her remote home, feeds him copious amounts of pain medication and refuses to take him to the hospital despite his broken and mangled legs.
Days pass and Annie finally gets her hands on the latest installment in the Misery Chastain series. But when Annie discovers that Paul has killed off her beloved Misery she becomes blind with rage. She holds Paul prisoner while forcing him to write a new book. One that brings Misery back to life.
I don’t know how to describe what I’m feeling right now. The closest I can get, is how I imagine one would feel being run over by a truck and then dragged 5 kilometers down the road…..but in a good way??
This is an explosive novel, there is no denying that. The reason I believe this story is so powerful, is because of its plausibility. The concrete certainty that the acts narrated, can, and do, happen in real life. Stephen King has painted a deeply disturbing picture with captivating characters whose psychology is so deeply analyzed throughout the course of the book, that I felt 100% inside their heads. This is why I love Stephen King. No other author can do that to me.
I loved every second of this book. F’ing brilliant!
August 25, 2023
Novela muy recomendada por los lectores de Stephen King.
Empieza con una premisa original: un escritor de renombre está postrado con las piernas rotas en casa de una admiradora, después de haber sufrido un accidente de coche.
Lo que en principio parece algo bueno, se convierte poco a poco en una pesadilla para el escritor.
Me ha gustado bastante la novela. Los dos personajes son muy potentes, sobre todo, Annie Wilkes, la fanática admiradora de Paul Sheldon. El principio me ha resultado algo lento y repetitivo, pero he devorado la última parte con ansia.
Es la segunda novela que leo de King y no me arrepiento de haber empezado con este autor. Muy entretenido y bien escrito. A veces, estos adjetivos no siempre van juntos.
Mucho se ha escrito de esta novela, que tiene, también, su versión fílmica.
--------------------------------
A highly recommended novel for readers of Stephen King.
It begins with an original premise: a renowned writer is bedridden with broken legs at the home of an admirer, after having suffered a car accident.
What at first seems like a good thing gradually turns into a nightmare for the writer.
I quite enjoyed the novel. The two characters are very powerful, especially Annie Wilkes, Paul Sheldon's fanatical fan. I found the beginning a bit slow and repetitive, but I devoured the last part with eagerness.
This is the second novel I've read by King and I don't regret having started with this author. Very entertaining and well written. Sometimes these adjectives don't always go together.
Much has been written about this novel, which also has a film version.
Empieza con una premisa original: un escritor de renombre está postrado con las piernas rotas en casa de una admiradora, después de haber sufrido un accidente de coche.
Lo que en principio parece algo bueno, se convierte poco a poco en una pesadilla para el escritor.
Me ha gustado bastante la novela. Los dos personajes son muy potentes, sobre todo, Annie Wilkes, la fanática admiradora de Paul Sheldon. El principio me ha resultado algo lento y repetitivo, pero he devorado la última parte con ansia.
Es la segunda novela que leo de King y no me arrepiento de haber empezado con este autor. Muy entretenido y bien escrito. A veces, estos adjetivos no siempre van juntos.
Mucho se ha escrito de esta novela, que tiene, también, su versión fílmica.
--------------------------------
A highly recommended novel for readers of Stephen King.
It begins with an original premise: a renowned writer is bedridden with broken legs at the home of an admirer, after having suffered a car accident.
What at first seems like a good thing gradually turns into a nightmare for the writer.
I quite enjoyed the novel. The two characters are very powerful, especially Annie Wilkes, Paul Sheldon's fanatical fan. I found the beginning a bit slow and repetitive, but I devoured the last part with eagerness.
This is the second novel I've read by King and I don't regret having started with this author. Very entertaining and well written. Sometimes these adjectives don't always go together.
Much has been written about this novel, which also has a film version.
December 2, 2022
لماذا لم نخطف د.تامر ابراهيم ليكمل لنا ثلاثية "الذي لم يمت"؟ فالاعوام تمر و تمر
و لماذا لم نخطف د.احمد خالد توفيق لنعيد رفعت اسماعيل للحياة؟..فقد كان يؤنسنا حقا
و لماذا لم يخطفوا ارثر كونان دويل ليعيد شرلوك هولمز للحياة؟ فهو من قتله لمزاجه الخاص😈لاننا عاقلين طبعا
منذ ان افاق بول شيلدون على انفاس تقتحم جهازه التنفسي قسرا برائحة الفانيليا و الشيكولاته ..أدرك ان احلى ايامه قد مضت إلى غير رجعة ..فهل من الممكن ان تعيش بسلام بعد ان قابلت" انى ويلكوكس "؟
فلتتامل جيدا تلك الممرضة الممتلئة البشوشة و ركز في لون السائل الذي تحقنك به..فقد تكون حقنتك الأخيرة 💉
ميزرى هي رعب دفين لدى كل مؤلف شهير تغريه الاجزاء المتعددة..احذر فقد تودي بك إلى حتفك..ستصبح كلمة: اكتب هي كابوسك المقيم
ستظل اني ويلكوكس اغرب بطلات كينج و تتربع مع مهرج"الشيء"على القمة فهي : المعجبة رقم واحد. .لقب ساحر لولا اصرارها المرعب على أن يعيد كاتبها بطلتها المفضلة للحياة
.و لو بخطفه و احتجازه و تكسير ساقه مرارا🙈 و ما خفي أكثر بكثير
من السهل ان يتحول هذا النمط من الروايات ثنائية الشخصيات إلى مسرحية مملة و لكن ليس هذه المرة
..جاءت الرواية كمطاردات مرعبة لن تنشر ابدا لتوم و جيري🐱🐀ا
ابي رجل علم رزين لا يهوى السينما و لكن يكفي "فيلم ميزري"فخرا انه الفيلم الوحيد الذي تابعه بحماس تفاعلى لم يتكرر ابدا و هو بالفعل في جودة الرواية
و لا انصح بقراءة كينج مترجما ابدا
May 28, 2022
Full Video Review Here: https://youtu.be/0ga-N-iMnXI
When I read Stephen King's "Misery" for the first time, it was a couple of years before the movie was released. Most people that have both seen the movie and read the book tend to recall the movie first when the subject of this now-classic story comes up. I was guilty of this, too, since Kathy Bates took a terrifying role and gave an Oscar-winning performance in doing so. While embarking on this long Stephen King re-read I started last year, it has been completely gratifying as I read most of his classics while a very young teenager who hadn't really experienced much of the world yet. Reading his stories in my late 30's gives them a new meaning now and Misery is no exception. Every bit as terrifying now as it was then, I found myself this time wondering what I would do if in Paul's situation with Annie. Truth is, I didn't have an answer, but this was okay. The gripping sense of desperation and will to live are what makes this story so powerful. To overcome when any sane human being would beg for death is the real crux of the story here. Annie, while not the supernatural monster King has been famous for, is every bit as evil as Pennywise, The Man in Black, or Kurt Barlow. An absolutely gripping thrill ride that will have you on the edge of your seat the entire book. This is, simply, Stephen King at his best.
When I read Stephen King's "Misery" for the first time, it was a couple of years before the movie was released. Most people that have both seen the movie and read the book tend to recall the movie first when the subject of this now-classic story comes up. I was guilty of this, too, since Kathy Bates took a terrifying role and gave an Oscar-winning performance in doing so. While embarking on this long Stephen King re-read I started last year, it has been completely gratifying as I read most of his classics while a very young teenager who hadn't really experienced much of the world yet. Reading his stories in my late 30's gives them a new meaning now and Misery is no exception. Every bit as terrifying now as it was then, I found myself this time wondering what I would do if in Paul's situation with Annie. Truth is, I didn't have an answer, but this was okay. The gripping sense of desperation and will to live are what makes this story so powerful. To overcome when any sane human being would beg for death is the real crux of the story here. Annie, while not the supernatural monster King has been famous for, is every bit as evil as Pennywise, The Man in Black, or Kurt Barlow. An absolutely gripping thrill ride that will have you on the edge of your seat the entire book. This is, simply, Stephen King at his best.
March 14, 2022
“Misery” by Stephen King is a staple in the horror genre for being an in-your-face experience introducing you to yet another iconic character from his library, Annie Wilkes. My goodness, talk about a protagonist that sends chills down your spine for all the wrong reasons.
As a fellow writer, I can only imagine what kind of a terrifying ordeal this could be since it’s so creepy and well, could possibly happen in real life. No ghosts, zombies, or aliens here, just straight-up psychotic madness that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Yes, it’s that scary and King hits the nail right on the head capturing everything that makes Annie a villain that a reader will never forget until the end of time.
This novel is a genuine page-turner and even though I won’t ruin anything for you, my goodness, what an ending! The kind of ending that is built up to the point of perfection where you can’t put it down for anything at all because you will cling to every single word until it’s completely over.
This is a no-brainer for me as I give “Misery” a perfect 5/5 and I’d give it a 10/5 if I could because it’s simply a novel every horror fan needs to read at least once in their lives. It’s even worth re-reading every few years as it still holds up to this very day for being a masterpiece. I highly recommend this to readers that either love horror or want to read an epic novel that proves why King is the best of the best.
As a fellow writer, I can only imagine what kind of a terrifying ordeal this could be since it’s so creepy and well, could possibly happen in real life. No ghosts, zombies, or aliens here, just straight-up psychotic madness that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Yes, it’s that scary and King hits the nail right on the head capturing everything that makes Annie a villain that a reader will never forget until the end of time.
This novel is a genuine page-turner and even though I won’t ruin anything for you, my goodness, what an ending! The kind of ending that is built up to the point of perfection where you can’t put it down for anything at all because you will cling to every single word until it’s completely over.
This is a no-brainer for me as I give “Misery” a perfect 5/5 and I’d give it a 10/5 if I could because it’s simply a novel every horror fan needs to read at least once in their lives. It’s even worth re-reading every few years as it still holds up to this very day for being a masterpiece. I highly recommend this to readers that either love horror or want to read an epic novel that proves why King is the best of the best.
February 12, 2023
3.5 rounded down
It took me a while to get through this, particularly the first half. Which suggests I wasn’t enjoying as much as I could have been. It gained momentum during the second half for sure.
Although the book is called Misery, I didn’t enjoy the experts of the Misery novel being written. I found them dull and could have done without them.
However I did love the references to The collector by John Fowler, as I read that book fairly recently. Some parts were definitely a bit graphic and hard to read but added to the overall sinister atmosphere of the novel.
It took me a while to get through this, particularly the first half. Which suggests I wasn’t enjoying as much as I could have been. It gained momentum during the second half for sure.
Although the book is called Misery, I didn’t enjoy the experts of the Misery novel being written. I found them dull and could have done without them.
However I did love the references to The collector by John Fowler, as I read that book fairly recently. Some parts were definitely a bit graphic and hard to read but added to the overall sinister atmosphere of the novel.
April 24, 2020
As dispensers of TLC, nurses can shine. As with any other particular group of people, there are going to be some rotten apples in the barrel. Meet Annie Wilkes. Sly, cunning, and quite mad. In her care, author Paul Sheldon, who has been grievously injured in a car accident. The thing is, no one knows he is there in her house. This is what true horror is made of, and it is accomplished without a smidge of the supernatural. Insanity and its machinations are in full bloom. Speaking in singsong baby voice (dirty birdie, cockadoodie, kaka), Annie cleans up oogy messes and refers to Paul as Mister Man, sometimes Mister Smart Guy. Oh, and she's his Number One Fan. Her attentive ministrations notwithstanding, it won't do to make her mad. Terrifying.
August 23, 2023
3⭐book
2⭐audio
Dreadful monotone performance with scary music here and there.
I love Misery movie so much and it creeps me out the first time I saw it decades ago. Finally, my chance to check out the book but this narrator's voice made this book exceptionally boring. It wasn't easy to pay attention to the story.
Without chapter headings and the same flat tone throughout, I found it difficult to tell if it was Annie's, the book or Paul's part. Lindsay Crouse isn't bad as Annie, a miserable intonation fits the character but this audiobook would've been greatly enhanced with additional narrators. Probably better to read this one than to listen or just see the movie, glad this was a library loan.
2⭐audio
Dreadful monotone performance with scary music here and there.
I love Misery movie so much and it creeps me out the first time I saw it decades ago. Finally, my chance to check out the book but this narrator's voice made this book exceptionally boring. It wasn't easy to pay attention to the story.
Without chapter headings and the same flat tone throughout, I found it difficult to tell if it was Annie's, the book or Paul's part. Lindsay Crouse isn't bad as Annie, a miserable intonation fits the character but this audiobook would've been greatly enhanced with additional narrators. Probably better to read this one than to listen or just see the movie, glad this was a library loan.
March 16, 2021
يظل حلم أي كاتب أن يبتكر شخصية تنال شغف واهتمام القارئ، لكن بطل العمل الحالي لم يتصور أن يصل الشغف بأحدهم إلى حد الهوس والجنون، وأن يدفع ثمن ذلك الهوس غاليا
القصة رائعة ومبتكرة، ربما أفضل أعمال ستيفن كنج والتي فتحت له باب الشهرة خاصة مع تحويلها إلى عمل سينمائي مبدع مازال يحافظ على مكانته ضمن قوائم أفضل الأعمال السينمائية، ترجمة أحمد خالد توفيق جيدة لكنه اختصر الكثير من التفاصيل مما افقد العمل الكثير من جاذبيته، حتى أنه غير اسم الرواية دون مبرر قوي
القصة رائعة ومبتكرة، ربما أفضل أعمال ستيفن كنج والتي فتحت له باب الشهرة خاصة مع تحويلها إلى عمل سينمائي مبدع مازال يحافظ على مكانته ضمن قوائم أفضل الأعمال السينمائية، ترجمة أحمد خالد توفيق جيدة لكنه اختصر الكثير من التفاصيل مما افقد العمل الكثير من جاذبيته، حتى أنه غير اسم الرواية دون مبرر قوي
August 15, 2021
This is my first Stephen King book. I have been a little apprehensive of running into nauseating violence & gore. Till about 60%, I was pleasantly surprised, but it did get quite rough after that. This is a unique story with some very creative writing.
Paul Sheldon is a bestselling novelist who has a recent string of successful books to his credit featuring the lady Misery. He intends to move on to the next novel now and has completed the script and is due to discuss it with publishers. He is caught in a storm and as he regains consciousness, he finds himself in the house of his biggest fan Annie Wilkes, with battered legs. Annie has just got hold of his last Misery novel and the end drives her into a rage. She is adamant that the series cannot end the way Paul had planned it.
The first half of the book is absolutely brilliant. The interplay and dialogues between Paul and Annie are exceptionally well written. . The violence in the second half being bad is one thing – which was to be expected, however, in my opinion the creative element also goes down. There are not too many ways for the story to proceed beyond a point. That said, the story still manages to keep you engaged right till the end.
My rating: 4.25 / 5.
Paul Sheldon is a bestselling novelist who has a recent string of successful books to his credit featuring the lady Misery. He intends to move on to the next novel now and has completed the script and is due to discuss it with publishers. He is caught in a storm and as he regains consciousness, he finds himself in the house of his biggest fan Annie Wilkes, with battered legs. Annie has just got hold of his last Misery novel and the end drives her into a rage. She is adamant that the series cannot end the way Paul had planned it.
The first half of the book is absolutely brilliant. The interplay and dialogues between Paul and Annie are exceptionally well written. . The violence in the second half being bad is one thing – which was to be expected, however, in my opinion the creative element also goes down. There are not too many ways for the story to proceed beyond a point. That said, the story still manages to keep you engaged right till the end.
My rating: 4.25 / 5.
June 11, 2015
*I just watched the movie and I can safely say that the book was 100x more enjoyable for me. I didn't like the changes that they did, but the cast was spot on. Couldn't ask for a better Paul and Annie.
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After the two month hiatus from Stephen King, I promised myself that I'm not going to let the fact that he's my favorite author, affect my rating of whatever book of his I'm reading next. I think I've proven myself before by giving Wizard and Glass a 2-star rating, even if it was damn hard. I'm very straightforward when it comes to wasted time because of reading a horrible book. Misery is not one of those books. Misery is one of those I'd recommend it to everybody I know kind of books.
I'm not going to dwell much on the summary, because it sucks when spoilers ruin one's book experience. I've had a few encounters with spoilers, and honestly that's the real reason why I haven't read Stephen King's "It" yet. I already know the secret/mystery to it, but I'm getting a first edition hardbound copy of it though, so I'm reading it soon. Anyway, back to Misery. To keep it short, it's all about Paul Sheldon, the writer, being held captive of the crazy psycho Annie. She's obsessed with him, but that's not the only reason why she did those crazy things. She's just normally cock-a-doodie in the head.
Just like most of the King novels I've read, the main epitome of greatness lies on the characters. King has the gift of creating characters that would leave a mark. They're just so well developed that you'd learn to love them one way or another. Paul was quite similar to Louis Creed from Pet Sematary. His writer characters are quite similar in a few manners but they still have great qualities of their own. Paul exuded a genuine personality in this novel. It was hard not to like him because his panicky behavior right from the first ten chapters already made me like him a lot. Right till the end, he remained true to his character. Annie on the other hand was completely terrifying. I love psychological thrillers, but Stephen King managed to incorporate a huge amount of horror in the genre. Annie was not just scary, but she gave me a phobia. A phobia of crazy psychos capable of doing what she did in the novel. I liked her, despite all the craziness, because she delivered what she was supposed to in the first place. In the psycho thriller genre, the crazier and scarier the better. King can write anything he wants.
Aside from the characters, I really liked the violence. Annie didn't hold back, she did crazy gut wrenching things. I've read and seen worse of course, but the things she did were still quite scary. Because it seems to fit the situation well, and hopefully you guys reading this used to watch spongebob, all I can say is "MY LEEEEEG".
5/5 stars. Like I said in the first part of my review, I was not biased when I rated this a 5. This novel deserves no less. It was amazing and I can't believe I've only read this now. I'm highly recommending this, but be warned that you might lose a few nights sleep. Pet Sematary was still a bit scarier that this, but Misery gave a different kind of scare because it didn't have that supernatural element that I knew was not going to happen in Sematary. Misery felt real because there might be an Annie waiting to kidnap me like that. King can give you different kinds of scare, and all of them are equally terrifying. One of those King novels I plan on reading again in the future.
-------------
After the two month hiatus from Stephen King, I promised myself that I'm not going to let the fact that he's my favorite author, affect my rating of whatever book of his I'm reading next. I think I've proven myself before by giving Wizard and Glass a 2-star rating, even if it was damn hard. I'm very straightforward when it comes to wasted time because of reading a horrible book. Misery is not one of those books. Misery is one of those I'd recommend it to everybody I know kind of books.
I'm not going to dwell much on the summary, because it sucks when spoilers ruin one's book experience. I've had a few encounters with spoilers, and honestly that's the real reason why I haven't read Stephen King's "It" yet. I already know the secret/mystery to it, but I'm getting a first edition hardbound copy of it though, so I'm reading it soon. Anyway, back to Misery. To keep it short, it's all about Paul Sheldon, the writer, being held captive of the crazy psycho Annie. She's obsessed with him, but that's not the only reason why she did those crazy things. She's just normally cock-a-doodie in the head.
Just like most of the King novels I've read, the main epitome of greatness lies on the characters. King has the gift of creating characters that would leave a mark. They're just so well developed that you'd learn to love them one way or another. Paul was quite similar to Louis Creed from Pet Sematary. His writer characters are quite similar in a few manners but they still have great qualities of their own. Paul exuded a genuine personality in this novel. It was hard not to like him because his panicky behavior right from the first ten chapters already made me like him a lot. Right till the end, he remained true to his character. Annie on the other hand was completely terrifying. I love psychological thrillers, but Stephen King managed to incorporate a huge amount of horror in the genre. Annie was not just scary, but she gave me a phobia. A phobia of crazy psychos capable of doing what she did in the novel. I liked her, despite all the craziness, because she delivered what she was supposed to in the first place. In the psycho thriller genre, the crazier and scarier the better. King can write anything he wants.
Aside from the characters, I really liked the violence. Annie didn't hold back, she did crazy gut wrenching things. I've read and seen worse of course, but the things she did were still quite scary. Because it seems to fit the situation well, and hopefully you guys reading this used to watch spongebob, all I can say is "MY LEEEEEG".
5/5 stars. Like I said in the first part of my review, I was not biased when I rated this a 5. This novel deserves no less. It was amazing and I can't believe I've only read this now. I'm highly recommending this, but be warned that you might lose a few nights sleep. Pet Sematary was still a bit scarier that this, but Misery gave a different kind of scare because it didn't have that supernatural element that I knew was not going to happen in Sematary. Misery felt real because there might be an Annie waiting to kidnap me like that. King can give you different kinds of scare, and all of them are equally terrifying. One of those King novels I plan on reading again in the future.
October 12, 2021
Reading Vlog/Review: https://youtu.be/OfkfnkeksdI
4.5⭐
Pro tip: Skip every chapter about the book-within-the-book. It doesn't serve the plot. It's boring, sometimes handwritten and impossible to read. Save yourself the extra time.
I equally recommend the audio and physical book experience. Both give their unique spin.
While I did not give a single shit about Misery or her dumbass love interest, I adored Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilkes. What deeply developed characters.
If you had told me before starting this that Paul Sheldon would become one of my favorite MC's I'd ever read, I would have shown you a picture of Kathy Bates and laughed in your face. But, alas, here we are.
Paul Sheldon vs. Annie Wilkes is a beautiful and gut-punching depiction of Stephen King vs. Addiction. It is so vividly told. It is relentless, never-tiring, sadistic, illogical, sad and somehow sweet.
Though I have never given a Stephen King book a full 5 stars, I adore the man/author. This look into his brain was such a delight. The warped way his mind creates a story was so entertaining to read. There are not many minds like King.
I did dock it half a star for the following reasons:
1. The N-word. King, just stop.
2. "Raped him full of her breath" excuse me, what?
3. The story-within-the-story.
There are two paragraphs in this book that had me reeling. I read them multiple times back to back and later came back to the pages to do it all again. I want to document them here for later reference...
"Can you, Paul?
Yeah. That's how I survive. Because I can, and it's not something to apologize for, goddammit. There are lots of guys out there who write a better prose line than I do and who have a better understanding of what people are really like and what humanity is supposed to mean - hell, I know that. But when counsellor asks 'Did he?' about those guys, sometimes only a few people raise their hands. But they raise their hands for me...or for Misery...and in the end I guess they're both the same. Can I? Yeah. You bet I can. There's a million things in this world I can't do. Couldn't hit a curve ball, even back in high school. Can't fix a leaky faucet. Can't roller-skate or make an F-chord on the guitar that sounds like anything but shit. I have tried twice to be married and couldn't do it either time. But if you want me to take you away, to scare you or involve you or make you cry or grin, yeah. I can. I can bring it to you and keep bringing it until you holler uncle. I am able. I CAN."
"So he promised to be good because he didn't want to be forced to eat any of the special candle but also because mostly because surely because Annie was great Annie was good let us thank her for our food including that we don't have to eat girls just wanna have fun but something wicked this way comes please don't make me eat my thumb Annie the mom Annie the goddess when Annie's around you better stay honest she knows when you've been sleeping she knows when you're awake she knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goddess' sake you better not cry you better not pout but most of all you better not scream don't scream don't scream don't..."
4.5⭐
Pro tip: Skip every chapter about the book-within-the-book. It doesn't serve the plot. It's boring, sometimes handwritten and impossible to read. Save yourself the extra time.
I equally recommend the audio and physical book experience. Both give their unique spin.
While I did not give a single shit about Misery or her dumbass love interest, I adored Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilkes. What deeply developed characters.
If you had told me before starting this that Paul Sheldon would become one of my favorite MC's I'd ever read, I would have shown you a picture of Kathy Bates and laughed in your face. But, alas, here we are.
Paul Sheldon vs. Annie Wilkes is a beautiful and gut-punching depiction of Stephen King vs. Addiction. It is so vividly told. It is relentless, never-tiring, sadistic, illogical, sad and somehow sweet.
Though I have never given a Stephen King book a full 5 stars, I adore the man/author. This look into his brain was such a delight. The warped way his mind creates a story was so entertaining to read. There are not many minds like King.
I did dock it half a star for the following reasons:
1. The N-word. King, just stop.
2. "Raped him full of her breath" excuse me, what?
3. The story-within-the-story.
There are two paragraphs in this book that had me reeling. I read them multiple times back to back and later came back to the pages to do it all again. I want to document them here for later reference...
"Can you, Paul?
Yeah. That's how I survive. Because I can, and it's not something to apologize for, goddammit. There are lots of guys out there who write a better prose line than I do and who have a better understanding of what people are really like and what humanity is supposed to mean - hell, I know that. But when counsellor asks 'Did he?' about those guys, sometimes only a few people raise their hands. But they raise their hands for me...or for Misery...and in the end I guess they're both the same. Can I? Yeah. You bet I can. There's a million things in this world I can't do. Couldn't hit a curve ball, even back in high school. Can't fix a leaky faucet. Can't roller-skate or make an F-chord on the guitar that sounds like anything but shit. I have tried twice to be married and couldn't do it either time. But if you want me to take you away, to scare you or involve you or make you cry or grin, yeah. I can. I can bring it to you and keep bringing it until you holler uncle. I am able. I CAN."
"So he promised to be good because he didn't want to be forced to eat any of the special candle but also because mostly because surely because Annie was great Annie was good let us thank her for our food including that we don't have to eat girls just wanna have fun but something wicked this way comes please don't make me eat my thumb Annie the mom Annie the goddess when Annie's around you better stay honest she knows when you've been sleeping she knows when you're awake she knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goddess' sake you better not cry you better not pout but most of all you better not scream don't scream don't scream don't..."
September 15, 2018
Llevo años sabiendo de sobra que esto iba a pasar. Sabía que cuando leyera Misery iba a gustarme tanto que iba a empatar con It en el primero puesto de libros favoritos de Stephen King. Y es que es BRUTAL.
La novela nos narrá la historia de Paul Sheldon. Un famoso escritor conocido por la exitosa saga de Misery. Este buen hombre se encuentra retirado acabando la que será su nueva obra, y de regreso a casa en coche tendrá un terrible accidente. Despertará en casa de Annie Wilkes, una mujer que lo ha recogido y está curando sus heridas. Annie resultará ser la fan número uno de las historias de Misery.
Y bueno, hasta aquí puedo contar. La historia es archiconocida y el que conozca a King, sabrá por donde podrá ir. Es un libro increíblemente adictivo. Enlaza perfectamente los capítulos de paranoia que sufre Paul con los de la vida real. Me gustó mucho sobre todo el deterioro mental que sufre Paul durante la novela, mucha más apremiante que el físico, lo cual es sorprendente, teniendo en cuenta a la buena de Annie xD. Creo que Annie Wilkes es la mejor villana que he visto en mucho tiempo, si no la mejor que he visto nunca. Maravillosa.
En definitiva, va a compartir el puesto número uno junto a It. No puedo decidirme por ninguno aún. Y yo me pregunto: ¿este hombre cómo puede haber escrito tantos libros y tener ideas tan buenas?
La novela nos narrá la historia de Paul Sheldon. Un famoso escritor conocido por la exitosa saga de Misery. Este buen hombre se encuentra retirado acabando la que será su nueva obra, y de regreso a casa en coche tendrá un terrible accidente. Despertará en casa de Annie Wilkes, una mujer que lo ha recogido y está curando sus heridas. Annie resultará ser la fan número uno de las historias de Misery.
Y bueno, hasta aquí puedo contar. La historia es archiconocida y el que conozca a King, sabrá por donde podrá ir. Es un libro increíblemente adictivo. Enlaza perfectamente los capítulos de paranoia que sufre Paul con los de la vida real. Me gustó mucho sobre todo el deterioro mental que sufre Paul durante la novela, mucha más apremiante que el físico, lo cual es sorprendente, teniendo en cuenta a la buena de Annie xD. Creo que Annie Wilkes es la mejor villana que he visto en mucho tiempo, si no la mejor que he visto nunca. Maravillosa.
En definitiva, va a compartir el puesto número uno junto a It. No puedo decidirme por ninguno aún. Y yo me pregunto: ¿este hombre cómo puede haber escrito tantos libros y tener ideas tan buenas?
October 16, 2017
Horrorosamente GENIAL.!! 😱😱😱
Directo a la lista de mis libros favoritos .!!
Me ha encantado y a la vez me ha hecho sufrir de miedo, angustia y tensión desde el primer capítulo hasta el último.
Tuve pesadillas dos noches seguidas...
Estoy convencida de que los libros que generan tantos sentimientos en el lector merecen muchas estrellas.!!
Me gustó mucho el guiño que hace el autor a “El resplandor”.
Stephen describe tan bien a los dos personajes de esta novela, que por momentos me olvidaba que estaba leyendo y me sentía igual de atrapada que Paul en la habitación de huéspedes.
En cuanto a la villana, Annie Wilkes ha despertado en mi un odio infinito y va a ser muy difícil que la olvide.
Espero que si no lo han leído se animen y que lo disfruten tanto como yo .!
Saludos.!!
Directo a la lista de mis libros favoritos .!!
Me ha encantado y a la vez me ha hecho sufrir de miedo, angustia y tensión desde el primer capítulo hasta el último.
Tuve pesadillas dos noches seguidas...
Estoy convencida de que los libros que generan tantos sentimientos en el lector merecen muchas estrellas.!!
Me gustó mucho el guiño que hace el autor a “El resplandor”.
Stephen describe tan bien a los dos personajes de esta novela, que por momentos me olvidaba que estaba leyendo y me sentía igual de atrapada que Paul en la habitación de huéspedes.
En cuanto a la villana, Annie Wilkes ha despertado en mi un odio infinito y va a ser muy difícil que la olvide.
Espero que si no lo han leído se animen y que lo disfruten tanto como yo .!
Saludos.!!
October 3, 2025
Якби я прочитала «Мізері» років пʼятнадцять тому вона б перевернула мене зсередини! Це Кінг у найкращій формі - безжальний, моторошний і той, який майстерно створює таку напругу, що ми, читачі, забуваємо дихати.
Зараз ця історія «не торкнула» мене так сильно, не знаю, з чим це повʼязано: з теперішнім станом, питанням віку чи просто тим, що історія потрапила до рук не в правильний момент.
Проте я всеодно ціную «Мізері» як класичний роман Кінга, який точно займатиме почесне місце в моїй домашній бібліотеці. Тому від мене дуже упереджені 4 зірки ⭐️
Зараз ця історія «не торкнула» мене так сильно, не знаю, з чим це повʼязано: з теперішнім станом, питанням віку чи просто тим, що історія потрапила до рук не в правильний момент.
Проте я всеодно ціную «Мізері» як класичний роман Кінга, який точно займатиме почесне місце в моїй домашній бібліотеці. Тому від мене дуже упереджені 4 зірки ⭐️
September 4, 2021
¿Quién no habrá escuchado tan siquiera una sola vez sobre Misery a estas alturas del partido? Me imagino que pocos tendrán el lujo de decir que no, porque estamos ante un libro que se merece toda la popularidad que tiene.
Este libro es una genialidad. Una trama llena de suspenso, tensionante en todo momento y con una carga constante que pesa sobre los hombros del protagonista haciendo de su vida una miseria, caminando entre los hilos de la resignación y la esperanza de salir con vida. Con una atmósfera muy agobiante y demente. Es TREMENDO. Y más aún cuando solo tenemos únicamente a dos personajes que interactúan a lo largo del libro y guardan muchas cosas dentro de la cabeza.
Esta historia es una caza discreta y luego salvaje donde la presa intenta salir con vida (o al menos completo) mientras la depredadora se encuentra siempre al acecho, jugando y debatiéndose si comerse o no al pobre animalillo. Es por eso que esta vez quiero hablar de los personajes, que son fantásticos y en conjunto, el corazón de la historia.
A partir de aquí habrán ligeros spoilers, la verdad no hay cosas muy importantes que arruinen la lectura pero no está de más la advertencia.
Empecemos por Paul Sheldon. Me encanta como este al principio sabe qué decir con tal de enaltecer a Annie para poder suplir su adicción al Novril y calmar el dolor que siente, aún sabiendo que a ella le faltan unos cuantos tornillos; y como luego todo se retuerce y ya no la agasaja con cumplidos solo por interés, sino por el mero instinto de supervivencia ante el peligro que supone estar encerrado en aquella casa con esa mujer. Ese proceso de concientización que va sufriendo con respecto a la persona con la que convive diariamente es una maravilla. Porque también nos ayuda a ponernos más en su lugar y sentir el terror continuo de compartir casa con alguien tan inestablemente peligrosa.
Paul es muy imaginativo (claro, es escritor) pero el poder de su mente es mucho más grande y sensible, por lo que tenerlo a él de narrador es perfecto; ya que nos mantiene siempre con la incertidumbre al recrear posibles escenarios donde él nunca termina bien parado o donde Annie hace siempre de las suyas. A veces hasta haciéndote dudar como lector si lo que pasa es real o imaginario.
Y en el otro costado está Annie Wilkes, quien es aterradora. No hay nada peor (para mí) que enfrentarte a la realidad, a seres humanos de carne y hueso que están allí para torturarte física y mentalmente; con el simple propósito de hacer de tu vida un infierno. Esta mujer neurótica/psicótica y demasiado decorosa para decir malas palabras, que por breves momentos es tonta ante las mentiras de Paul Sheldon, pero inteligentísima para saber de qué hilos tirar y hacer del pobre escritor un ratón indefenso; es, sin duda alguna, una villana en todas sus letras. Y de las mejores.
Annie lo tiene todo: una imponente figura que atemoriza, es manipuladora, detallista, muy desconfiada, paranoica en exceso y amenazante todo el tiempo con lo que dice y hace; monstruosa en todos los sentidos. La odias pero sobre todo le temes, te angustia, te asfixia y te condueles del pobre Paul Sheldon que ha caído, para su desgracia, en las redes de esta mujer fanática a morir de los libros que él ha publicado sobre Misery.
Recomiendo sin dudar a cualquiera este libro. Es hasta un buen acercamiento para conocer a Stephen King. Cumple con lo que propone y lo hace de manera magistral y sin extenderse más de la cuenta, generando adicción. Mis dieces más que merecidos para esta locura de libro.
Este libro es una genialidad. Una trama llena de suspenso, tensionante en todo momento y con una carga constante que pesa sobre los hombros del protagonista haciendo de su vida una miseria, caminando entre los hilos de la resignación y la esperanza de salir con vida. Con una atmósfera muy agobiante y demente. Es TREMENDO. Y más aún cuando solo tenemos únicamente a dos personajes que interactúan a lo largo del libro y guardan muchas cosas dentro de la cabeza.
Esta historia es una caza discreta y luego salvaje donde la presa intenta salir con vida (o al menos completo) mientras la depredadora se encuentra siempre al acecho, jugando y debatiéndose si comerse o no al pobre animalillo. Es por eso que esta vez quiero hablar de los personajes, que son fantásticos y en conjunto, el corazón de la historia.
A partir de aquí habrán ligeros spoilers, la verdad no hay cosas muy importantes que arruinen la lectura pero no está de más la advertencia.
Empecemos por Paul Sheldon. Me encanta como este al principio sabe qué decir con tal de enaltecer a Annie para poder suplir su adicción al Novril y calmar el dolor que siente, aún sabiendo que a ella le faltan unos cuantos tornillos; y como luego todo se retuerce y ya no la agasaja con cumplidos solo por interés, sino por el mero instinto de supervivencia ante el peligro que supone estar encerrado en aquella casa con esa mujer. Ese proceso de concientización que va sufriendo con respecto a la persona con la que convive diariamente es una maravilla. Porque también nos ayuda a ponernos más en su lugar y sentir el terror continuo de compartir casa con alguien tan inestablemente peligrosa.
Paul es muy imaginativo (claro, es escritor) pero el poder de su mente es mucho más grande y sensible, por lo que tenerlo a él de narrador es perfecto; ya que nos mantiene siempre con la incertidumbre al recrear posibles escenarios donde él nunca termina bien parado o donde Annie hace siempre de las suyas. A veces hasta haciéndote dudar como lector si lo que pasa es real o imaginario.
Y en el otro costado está Annie Wilkes, quien es aterradora. No hay nada peor (para mí) que enfrentarte a la realidad, a seres humanos de carne y hueso que están allí para torturarte física y mentalmente; con el simple propósito de hacer de tu vida un infierno. Esta mujer neurótica/psicótica y demasiado decorosa para decir malas palabras, que por breves momentos es tonta ante las mentiras de Paul Sheldon, pero inteligentísima para saber de qué hilos tirar y hacer del pobre escritor un ratón indefenso; es, sin duda alguna, una villana en todas sus letras. Y de las mejores.
Annie lo tiene todo: una imponente figura que atemoriza, es manipuladora, detallista, muy desconfiada, paranoica en exceso y amenazante todo el tiempo con lo que dice y hace; monstruosa en todos los sentidos. La odias pero sobre todo le temes, te angustia, te asfixia y te condueles del pobre Paul Sheldon que ha caído, para su desgracia, en las redes de esta mujer fanática a morir de los libros que él ha publicado sobre Misery.
Recomiendo sin dudar a cualquiera este libro. Es hasta un buen acercamiento para conocer a Stephen King. Cumple con lo que propone y lo hace de manera magistral y sin extenderse más de la cuenta, generando adicción. Mis dieces más que merecidos para esta locura de libro.
April 5, 2025
المعجبة رقم واحد
الرعب رقم واحد
المجنونة رقم واحد
الجحيم رقم واحد
المعذبة رقم واحد
السادية رقم واحد
نعم آني كانت الكثير من الاشياء
آنى هى الشخصية المرعبة لكل كاتب ،
آني الشخصية الذى يجب على كل كاتب قرائتها قبل كتابته لاى رواية
إحذر من المعجبة رقم واحد
إحذر إن قررت كتابة سلسلة روائية و قمت فى لحظة غضب أو ملل بقتل الشخصية الرئيسية وإنهاء السلسلة
احذر فربما تصاب بحادث وتجدك آنى
حينها ..
اكثر تخيلاتك رعبا ستكون فيلم كوميدى بجانب ماستفعله آني 😄😅
****
تخيل ان تجد كاتبك المفضل غائب عن الوعى ومدمر جسديا من حادثة ماذا ستفعل ؟؟
ستطلب له الاسعاف ؟ ستحاول نقله للمشفى؟
مبروك انت شخص طبيعى 😃
لكن
للاسف لم تكن انت من وجد بول
كانت اني هى من وجدته
المعجبة رقم ١ هى من وجدته
من حظ بول ان كانت آني هى من وجدته ، من حظه انها انهت الكتاب الاخير له الذى قتل فيه بطلتها ميزرى اثناء تواجده تحت رحمتها وجسده محطم من الحادث ، من حظه انه كان قد انهى كتاب آخر ابتعد فيه عن سلسلته الناجحة ميزرى ، من حظه ان آني المهووسة بميزرى كانت اول من تقراها لتقرر انها اسوأ ماكتب ، ولتجبره على إعادة بطلتها للحياة مرة اخرى
من حظه ان آنى كانت مجنونه ، مهووسة ، ليست متزنة نفسيا
من حظه ان معجبته الاولى التى وقع تحت رحمتها كانت لها هواية مختلفة ظلت سنوات تمارسها منذ صغرها
وستعرف كل مافعلته وانت سجين لديها
هذا كان حظ وقدر بول ، والحظ ليس دائما جيد
احيانا يكون ليس فقط حظ سئ
بل حظ مرعب
😃
كان قدره ان تدمره معجبته الأولى ليس فقط جسديا لكن نفسيا ايضا
احذر يابول لا تحاول الرفض ،
لاتحاول الهرب ،
لاتحاول الخروج من غرفتك ،
لا تحاول ان تشتكي ،
لاتحاول سرقة الدواء المسكن ،
لاتشتكي من الالة السيئة التى اجبرتك على الكتابة عليها والتى تفتقد لحرف النون ،
لاتشتكى اذا سقط حرف آخر
ثم آخر
احذر ان ترفض طلبات معجبتك الاولى
احذر ان تحاول طلب المساعدة
اه للاسف جاءت نصيحتى متأخرة ، فلقد فعلت بالفعل كل ماحذرتك منه
رواية مرعبة احيانا ، دموية احيانا، مخيفة احيانا، بائسة احيانا
رواية قرأتها من قبل بنسختها المترجمة وليست الكاملة من د احمد خالد توفيق فى روايات عالمية للجيب
وشاهدت الفيلم الخاص بها
وفى احد التعليقات مع الصديق محمود تذكرتها مرة اخرى فقررت اعادة قرائتها كاملة فى وقت ما
لتأتي بعدها امامى على موقع الجودريدز فقد اضافها احد الاصدقاء للقراءة لأضعها انا ايضا
ولاجدني بعد ايام اقرر قرائتها
الرواية فكرتها وكتابتها اعجبتنى
مأخذى عليها هى اضافته صفحات من رواية ميزرى فى الرواية لم أهتم بها كنت ارغب فى عودته لارض الواقع وللقصة الرئيسية وماذا ستفعل آنى مع بول ان اغضبها مرة اخرى وهل سيستطيع بول ان يفعل شيئا ؟
١٤ /٧ / ٢٠٢٠
الرعب رقم واحد
المجنونة رقم واحد
الجحيم رقم واحد
المعذبة رقم واحد
السادية رقم واحد
نعم آني كانت الكثير من الاشياء
آنى هى الشخصية المرعبة لكل كاتب ،
آني الشخصية الذى يجب على كل كاتب قرائتها قبل كتابته لاى رواية
إحذر من المعجبة رقم واحد
إحذر إن قررت كتابة سلسلة روائية و قمت فى لحظة غضب أو ملل بقتل الشخصية الرئيسية وإنهاء السلسلة
احذر فربما تصاب بحادث وتجدك آنى
حينها ..
اكثر تخيلاتك رعبا ستكون فيلم كوميدى بجانب ماستفعله آني 😄😅
****
تخيل ان تجد كاتبك المفضل غائب عن الوعى ومدمر جسديا من حادثة ماذا ستفعل ؟؟
ستطلب له الاسعاف ؟ ستحاول نقله للمشفى؟
مبروك انت شخص طبيعى 😃
لكن
للاسف لم تكن انت من وجد بول
كانت اني هى من وجدته
المعجبة رقم ١ هى من وجدته
من حظ بول ان كانت آني هى من وجدته ، من حظه انها انهت الكتاب الاخير له الذى قتل فيه بطلتها ميزرى اثناء تواجده تحت رحمتها وجسده محطم من الحادث ، من حظه انه كان قد انهى كتاب آخر ابتعد فيه عن سلسلته الناجحة ميزرى ، من حظه ان آني المهووسة بميزرى كانت اول من تقراها لتقرر انها اسوأ ماكتب ، ولتجبره على إعادة بطلتها للحياة مرة اخرى
من حظه ان آنى كانت مجنونه ، مهووسة ، ليست متزنة نفسيا
من حظه ان معجبته الاولى التى وقع تحت رحمتها كانت لها هواية مختلفة ظلت سنوات تمارسها منذ صغرها
وستعرف كل مافعلته وانت سجين لديها
هذا كان حظ وقدر بول ، والحظ ليس دائما جيد
احيانا يكون ليس فقط حظ سئ
بل حظ مرعب
😃
كان قدره ان تدمره معجبته الأولى ليس فقط جسديا لكن نفسيا ايضا
احذر يابول لا تحاول الرفض ،
لاتحاول الهرب ،
لاتحاول الخروج من غرفتك ،
لا تحاول ان تشتكي ،
لاتحاول سرقة الدواء المسكن ،
لاتشتكي من الالة السيئة التى اجبرتك على الكتابة عليها والتى تفتقد لحرف النون ،
لاتشتكى اذا سقط حرف آخر
ثم آخر
احذر ان ترفض طلبات معجبتك الاولى
احذر ان تحاول طلب المساعدة
اه للاسف جاءت نصيحتى متأخرة ، فلقد فعلت بالفعل كل ماحذرتك منه
رواية مرعبة احيانا ، دموية احيانا، مخيفة احيانا، بائسة احيانا
رواية قرأتها من قبل بنسختها المترجمة وليست الكاملة من د احمد خالد توفيق فى روايات عالمية للجيب
وشاهدت الفيلم الخاص بها
وفى احد التعليقات مع الصديق محمود تذكرتها مرة اخرى فقررت اعادة قرائتها كاملة فى وقت ما
لتأتي بعدها امامى على موقع الجودريدز فقد اضافها احد الاصدقاء للقراءة لأضعها انا ايضا
ولاجدني بعد ايام اقرر قرائتها
الرواية فكرتها وكتابتها اعجبتنى
مأخذى عليها هى اضافته صفحات من رواية ميزرى فى الرواية لم أهتم بها كنت ارغب فى عودته لارض الواقع وللقصة الرئيسية وماذا ستفعل آنى مع بول ان اغضبها مرة اخرى وهل سيستطيع بول ان يفعل شيئا ؟
١٤ /٧ / ٢٠٢٠
October 17, 2023
ENGLISH / SPANISH!
Who doesn't know the film adaptation of this novel with Kathy Bates's wonderful performance as Annie Wilkes? Well, while the film is a fairly faithful and well-done adaptation, the book is even more shocking and scary.
It all starts when successful author Paul Sheldon suffers a car accident in the Colorado mountains in the middle of winter and is found by Annie Wilkes. And there begins the nightmare; but I will say no more, no need to write yet another synopsis, since they already exist in abundance.
What I will say is that this book is extremely disturbing and chilling, and is written with great mastery.
Both protagonists are very well developed and we see different facets of their personality throughout the story. The setting is very well achieved, it is claustrophobic, distressing, despairing. And the plot is also very engaging and keeps the reader on the edge of the seat all the time; and sometimes it's even terrifying: just when you think that things couldn't be worse, something horrible happens (courtesy of Annie of course).
It is inevitable to empathize with Paul and his ordeal, which I believe is normal; but where Stephen King's true genius comes to light is on those occasions when he manages to make us readers feel pity for Annie, a woman completely disturbed seemingly because she never received any sort of help or specialized attention. And returning to Paul... the poor devil was left with psychological scars and very deep traumas because of the terrible suffering to which his number one fan subjected him. Awful...
Anyway, it's brilliant the way Stephen King manages to create so much suspense and tension and make us feel a roller coaster of emotions. - Bravo.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
¿Quién no conoce la adaptación al cine de esta novela con la maravillosa actuación de Kathy Bates como Annie Wilkes? Pues bien, aunque la película es una adaptación bastante fiel y bien lograda, el libro es aún mucho más impactante e inquietante.
Todo comienza cuando el exitoso autor Paul Sheldon sufre un accidente automovilístico en las montañas de Colorado en pleno invierno y es encontrado por Annie Wilkes. Y ahí comienza la pesadilla; pero no diré más, de por sí no suelo escribir sinopsis porque éstas ya existen en abundancia.
Lo que sí diré es que este libro es sumamente perturbador y escalofriante, y está escrito con gran maestría.
Ambos protagonistas están muy bien desarrollados y vemos diferentes facetas de su personalidad a lo largo de la historia. La ambientación está muy bien lograda, es claustrofóbica, angustiante, desesperante. Y la trama es además muy enganchante y mantiene al lector en ascuas todo el tiempo; y a veces es también espeluznante, pues cuando cree uno que la cosa no podría estar peor, sucede algo horrible (cortesía de Annie por supuesto).
Es inevitable empatizar con Paul y su martirio, lo cual creo yo es normal; pero donde sale a relucir el verdadero genio de Stephen King es en esas ocasiones en las que logra que lleguemos a compadecer a Annie, una mujer completamente trastornada porque nunca recibio ayuda o atención especializada. Y volviendo a Paul...pobre hombre, quedó con cicatrices psicológicas y traumas muy profundos debido al terrible suplicio al que lo sometió su fan número uno.
En fin que resulta brillante la manera en que Stephen King logra crear tanto suspenso y tensión y hacernos sentir una montaña rusa de emociones. ¡Bravo!
Who doesn't know the film adaptation of this novel with Kathy Bates's wonderful performance as Annie Wilkes? Well, while the film is a fairly faithful and well-done adaptation, the book is even more shocking and scary.
It all starts when successful author Paul Sheldon suffers a car accident in the Colorado mountains in the middle of winter and is found by Annie Wilkes. And there begins the nightmare; but I will say no more, no need to write yet another synopsis, since they already exist in abundance.
What I will say is that this book is extremely disturbing and chilling, and is written with great mastery.
Both protagonists are very well developed and we see different facets of their personality throughout the story. The setting is very well achieved, it is claustrophobic, distressing, despairing. And the plot is also very engaging and keeps the reader on the edge of the seat all the time; and sometimes it's even terrifying: just when you think that things couldn't be worse, something horrible happens (courtesy of Annie of course).
It is inevitable to empathize with Paul and his ordeal, which I believe is normal; but where Stephen King's true genius comes to light is on those occasions when he manages to make us readers feel pity for Annie, a woman completely disturbed seemingly because she never received any sort of help or specialized attention. And returning to Paul... the poor devil was left with psychological scars and very deep traumas because of the terrible suffering to which his number one fan subjected him. Awful...
Anyway, it's brilliant the way Stephen King manages to create so much suspense and tension and make us feel a roller coaster of emotions. - Bravo.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
¿Quién no conoce la adaptación al cine de esta novela con la maravillosa actuación de Kathy Bates como Annie Wilkes? Pues bien, aunque la película es una adaptación bastante fiel y bien lograda, el libro es aún mucho más impactante e inquietante.
Todo comienza cuando el exitoso autor Paul Sheldon sufre un accidente automovilístico en las montañas de Colorado en pleno invierno y es encontrado por Annie Wilkes. Y ahí comienza la pesadilla; pero no diré más, de por sí no suelo escribir sinopsis porque éstas ya existen en abundancia.
Lo que sí diré es que este libro es sumamente perturbador y escalofriante, y está escrito con gran maestría.
Ambos protagonistas están muy bien desarrollados y vemos diferentes facetas de su personalidad a lo largo de la historia. La ambientación está muy bien lograda, es claustrofóbica, angustiante, desesperante. Y la trama es además muy enganchante y mantiene al lector en ascuas todo el tiempo; y a veces es también espeluznante, pues cuando cree uno que la cosa no podría estar peor, sucede algo horrible (cortesía de Annie por supuesto).
Es inevitable empatizar con Paul y su martirio, lo cual creo yo es normal; pero donde sale a relucir el verdadero genio de Stephen King es en esas ocasiones en las que logra que lleguemos a compadecer a Annie, una mujer completamente trastornada porque nunca recibio ayuda o atención especializada. Y volviendo a Paul...pobre hombre, quedó con cicatrices psicológicas y traumas muy profundos debido al terrible suplicio al que lo sometió su fan número uno.
En fin que resulta brillante la manera en que Stephen King logra crear tanto suspenso y tensión y hacernos sentir una montaña rusa de emociones. ¡Bravo!
January 16, 2019
This is my first time reading Misery and all I can think about is how I’ve been depriving myself of this masterpiece for years and I’m filled with regret about it. I could have feasted my eyes on the glory that is this book years and years ago! It has officially clawed its way into my top five King stories, it truly is phenomenal! I think Annie has to be one of my favourite King characters I’ve met yet, that is one crazy bitch! And that’s what makes this story so terrifying, there’s no monsters, just a 100% out of her mind crazy lunatic human that commits unspeakable acts on another human being. There are some truly terrifying and gut wrenching moments in this story, I was literally cringing and closing my eyes at some parts because it was just too much and I ADORED every second of it!
March 14, 2011
this book made me miserable
October 18, 2022
I just Finished Misery by Stephen King.
Wow, this is one of my favorite book!
I watched the movie but I had never read it. I don’t know why I waited so long. The two main characters are so well developed, and the story is captivating.
I loved it!!
🪓🪓🪓🪓🪓
Wow, this is one of my favorite book!
I watched the movie but I had never read it. I don’t know why I waited so long. The two main characters are so well developed, and the story is captivating.
I loved it!!
🪓🪓🪓🪓🪓
August 28, 2018
Crazy good. Thriller with psychotic sprinkles.
July 20, 2024
Stephen King's brilliant psychological horror classic "Misery" [1987] was one of the two main group read selections from the horror book club Horror Afficionados. This does not reflect a re-read in 2024. I am simply re-posting my book review. This is one of my personal favorites.
MISERY [1987] By Stephen King
My Review 5.0 Stars
This novel written by King in the ‘80’s was a Group Read selection for Horror Haven, horror-oriented book club on Goodreads. “Misery” was actually the Runner Up of the Group read poll for May 2024. In my case I had previously read “Misery” (albeit eons ago) and obviously watched the film adaptation by the same name in 1990 (more than once). The third salient fact was that I am also a member of the “Stephen King Fan Club”. In short, I was peeved that Horror Haven fans had cast votes for a King novel for obvious reasons. It is pertinent to note that a second early work of King’s was noted to be on the plate for ingestion and discussion in June already (“Pet Sematary”) and members were casting votes for “Carrie” for the future month of July!
I read Stephen King’s “Misery” in 2024 with a “chip on (my) shoulder” one might say. But to my utter surprise, I found myself captivated, no, absolutely riveted, by the unforgettable narrative which unfolded and enveloped me like the silk of a spider's web. The author held me spellbound as he spun the harrowing details of Paul’s abduction, mental and physical abuse, manipulation, and the infliction of both mental and physical pain.
It is pertinent to note that "Misery" was originally published in 1987, and in fact this coming Saturday June 8, 2024, will mark 37 years since its debut. Nevertheless, I would venture a bet that all of the King of Horror’s fans know the basic premise of the novel. A well-known author (Paul Sheldon) was rescued following a devastating car crash in a snowstorm by his self-proclaimed biggest fan (Annie Wilkes). The entire novel springs from the relationship that develops between our protagonist, the injured Paul, and Annie, his “number one fan”. The story is written in first-person POV, limited which is remarkably effective for providing a front row seat. The reader sees and feels everything that happens through Paul’s prism of perception and experience. In my opinion, "Misery" is one of the most successful novels of psychological horror I have read to date. Likewise, the character of Annie Wilkes is simply put, terrifying. A 40-year-old Stephen King executed a masterpiece with "Misery" presenting it with perfect heart-thudding pace and a gradual escalation in our antagonist Annie’s actions that are pitch perfect. The final showdown is both thrilling and horrifying.
It is worth mentioning that “Misery” [1987], unquestionably one of King’s finest novels, is likely to be best known for its film adaptation by Rob Reiner in 1990. The Oscar-winning performance delivered by Kathy Bates is now a permanent part of cinema history. This is a book review and not a movie review, but it is one of those kismet situations where both the novel and the movie are nothing less than extraordinary. Any King fan (or Kathy Bates fan), who has not read the story behind making the movie is short-changing him or herself. The novel is chock full of more shocking and horrific material than is the motion picture, and ironically this is one that is quite interesting to read about. Then there is Kathy Bates, a completely unknown talent, thrust into the demanding role of Annie Wilkes. She would win an Academy Award for Best Actress at the 63rd Academy Awards. “Misery”, to date anyway, is the only film adaptation of Stephen King’s novels to win an Oscar. King has stated that “Misery” is one of his top ten favorite film adaptations.
Maybe mentioning my favorite film adaptation in my lifetime to date being “Silence of the Lambs” is inappropriate, but its parallels to “Misery” are downright interesting. I will not indulge myself and list the parade of Hollywood icons who rejected roles as Hannibal Lector and Clarice Starling. I will however mention that a host of big names turned down the role of Paul (including William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, De Niro, Gene Hackman, Robert Redford, and Warren Beatty). More interesting still is Bette Midler’s later regrets about refusing the role of Annie, and Anjelica Huston’s refusal of the part. I actually researched who in the heck it was who plucked a completely unknown entity (Kathy Bates) to play the character of Annie Wilkes. Kathy Bates would make cinema history. I love her by the way, in AHS in particular.
The point that the film had the capacity to overshadow the novel was driven home to me when I reread “Misery” last week. I discovered that my recall of the novel’s events and trajectory were modified sufficiently by the film adaptation that I incorrectly remembered portions of the novel. There were recurrent comments I made as I read the book that were religiously disputed by my partner who felt the necessity to interrupt TV viewing to tell me I was wrong about this, wrong about that, etc. The bottom line is the changes that were deliberately made in the film for I believe savvy reasons worked out well for filmgoers. That said, the book is the winner where this reader is concerned.
It is sometimes very interesting to learn a few of the facts surrounding a novel that you have read a second time after a period of over three and a half decades ago. I do want to mention the awards which Stephen King garnered with the release of this novel. “Misery” won the first Bram Stoker Award for Novel in 1987. It was nominated for the 1988 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. “Misery” neatly slotted itself in 4th Place in the 1987 Bestseller List. Perhaps more importantly, reviewers praised King and such critical acclaim was in part due to the novel’s parallels with the author’s personal life.
It is a well-known fact that King planned for the novel to be released under his pseudonym Richard Bachman but somehow the cat got out of the bag. Stephen King has likewise been candid and honest about his own battles with alcoholism and substance addiction. The saying “Once an addict, always an addict” is factually correct. It has been speculated this self-evident truth is why that the character of Paul suffers the hallucination of Annie at the end of the movie. I agree with the opinion that in order to truly appreciate “Misery” (1987) as the psychological horror classic that it most assuredly is you must remind yourself of King’s fight with alcoholism and rampant drug addiction.
King went on the record in 2014 and stated that “Misery” was a book about cocaine, and in fact the character of Annie Wilkes was symbolic of cocaine itself, elaborating “She was my number-one fan”. King related that his addiction to cocaine was from “1978 to 1986”. Loyal fans of Stephen King are aware of the characters in his novels who experience addiction issues, as he has always been a proponent of an author writing about what he knows. It is likely with the masterpiece “Misery” one can more clearly see the connection if not literally in the way Annie Wilkes imposes her will on her captor Paul and forces him to gobble down Novril, a fictional codeine-based pain pill. There is little question that King turned his own pain into a creative masterpiece in “Misery”.
Finally, I finished “Misery” with the thought in my head of just how damn good….no, truly great it really is… standing tall because it is a stellar example of a perfect psychological horror novel. There are no supernatural elements whatsoever employed. I will never inwardly or outwardly feel irked when I spot Group Reads of King’s works on other horror book club sites. I have already purchased the newest edition of Pet Sematary [1983] for this month’s Group Read. Yes, Horror Haven again. Thanks to the members of the club for voting their heart, and a big thanks to Stephen King.
ONE OF MY VERY FAVORITE NOVELS BY STEPHEN KING, MASTER OF HORROR
MISERY [1987] By Stephen King
My Review 5.0 Stars
This novel written by King in the ‘80’s was a Group Read selection for Horror Haven, horror-oriented book club on Goodreads. “Misery” was actually the Runner Up of the Group read poll for May 2024. In my case I had previously read “Misery” (albeit eons ago) and obviously watched the film adaptation by the same name in 1990 (more than once). The third salient fact was that I am also a member of the “Stephen King Fan Club”. In short, I was peeved that Horror Haven fans had cast votes for a King novel for obvious reasons. It is pertinent to note that a second early work of King’s was noted to be on the plate for ingestion and discussion in June already (“Pet Sematary”) and members were casting votes for “Carrie” for the future month of July!
I read Stephen King’s “Misery” in 2024 with a “chip on (my) shoulder” one might say. But to my utter surprise, I found myself captivated, no, absolutely riveted, by the unforgettable narrative which unfolded and enveloped me like the silk of a spider's web. The author held me spellbound as he spun the harrowing details of Paul’s abduction, mental and physical abuse, manipulation, and the infliction of both mental and physical pain.
It is pertinent to note that "Misery" was originally published in 1987, and in fact this coming Saturday June 8, 2024, will mark 37 years since its debut. Nevertheless, I would venture a bet that all of the King of Horror’s fans know the basic premise of the novel. A well-known author (Paul Sheldon) was rescued following a devastating car crash in a snowstorm by his self-proclaimed biggest fan (Annie Wilkes). The entire novel springs from the relationship that develops between our protagonist, the injured Paul, and Annie, his “number one fan”. The story is written in first-person POV, limited which is remarkably effective for providing a front row seat. The reader sees and feels everything that happens through Paul’s prism of perception and experience. In my opinion, "Misery" is one of the most successful novels of psychological horror I have read to date. Likewise, the character of Annie Wilkes is simply put, terrifying. A 40-year-old Stephen King executed a masterpiece with "Misery" presenting it with perfect heart-thudding pace and a gradual escalation in our antagonist Annie’s actions that are pitch perfect. The final showdown is both thrilling and horrifying.
It is worth mentioning that “Misery” [1987], unquestionably one of King’s finest novels, is likely to be best known for its film adaptation by Rob Reiner in 1990. The Oscar-winning performance delivered by Kathy Bates is now a permanent part of cinema history. This is a book review and not a movie review, but it is one of those kismet situations where both the novel and the movie are nothing less than extraordinary. Any King fan (or Kathy Bates fan), who has not read the story behind making the movie is short-changing him or herself. The novel is chock full of more shocking and horrific material than is the motion picture, and ironically this is one that is quite interesting to read about. Then there is Kathy Bates, a completely unknown talent, thrust into the demanding role of Annie Wilkes. She would win an Academy Award for Best Actress at the 63rd Academy Awards. “Misery”, to date anyway, is the only film adaptation of Stephen King’s novels to win an Oscar. King has stated that “Misery” is one of his top ten favorite film adaptations.
Maybe mentioning my favorite film adaptation in my lifetime to date being “Silence of the Lambs” is inappropriate, but its parallels to “Misery” are downright interesting. I will not indulge myself and list the parade of Hollywood icons who rejected roles as Hannibal Lector and Clarice Starling. I will however mention that a host of big names turned down the role of Paul (including William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, De Niro, Gene Hackman, Robert Redford, and Warren Beatty). More interesting still is Bette Midler’s later regrets about refusing the role of Annie, and Anjelica Huston’s refusal of the part. I actually researched who in the heck it was who plucked a completely unknown entity (Kathy Bates) to play the character of Annie Wilkes. Kathy Bates would make cinema history. I love her by the way, in AHS in particular.
The point that the film had the capacity to overshadow the novel was driven home to me when I reread “Misery” last week. I discovered that my recall of the novel’s events and trajectory were modified sufficiently by the film adaptation that I incorrectly remembered portions of the novel. There were recurrent comments I made as I read the book that were religiously disputed by my partner who felt the necessity to interrupt TV viewing to tell me I was wrong about this, wrong about that, etc. The bottom line is the changes that were deliberately made in the film for I believe savvy reasons worked out well for filmgoers. That said, the book is the winner where this reader is concerned.
It is sometimes very interesting to learn a few of the facts surrounding a novel that you have read a second time after a period of over three and a half decades ago. I do want to mention the awards which Stephen King garnered with the release of this novel. “Misery” won the first Bram Stoker Award for Novel in 1987. It was nominated for the 1988 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel. “Misery” neatly slotted itself in 4th Place in the 1987 Bestseller List. Perhaps more importantly, reviewers praised King and such critical acclaim was in part due to the novel’s parallels with the author’s personal life.
It is a well-known fact that King planned for the novel to be released under his pseudonym Richard Bachman but somehow the cat got out of the bag. Stephen King has likewise been candid and honest about his own battles with alcoholism and substance addiction. The saying “Once an addict, always an addict” is factually correct. It has been speculated this self-evident truth is why that the character of Paul suffers the hallucination of Annie at the end of the movie. I agree with the opinion that in order to truly appreciate “Misery” (1987) as the psychological horror classic that it most assuredly is you must remind yourself of King’s fight with alcoholism and rampant drug addiction.
King went on the record in 2014 and stated that “Misery” was a book about cocaine, and in fact the character of Annie Wilkes was symbolic of cocaine itself, elaborating “She was my number-one fan”. King related that his addiction to cocaine was from “1978 to 1986”. Loyal fans of Stephen King are aware of the characters in his novels who experience addiction issues, as he has always been a proponent of an author writing about what he knows. It is likely with the masterpiece “Misery” one can more clearly see the connection if not literally in the way Annie Wilkes imposes her will on her captor Paul and forces him to gobble down Novril, a fictional codeine-based pain pill. There is little question that King turned his own pain into a creative masterpiece in “Misery”.
Finally, I finished “Misery” with the thought in my head of just how damn good….no, truly great it really is… standing tall because it is a stellar example of a perfect psychological horror novel. There are no supernatural elements whatsoever employed. I will never inwardly or outwardly feel irked when I spot Group Reads of King’s works on other horror book club sites. I have already purchased the newest edition of Pet Sematary [1983] for this month’s Group Read. Yes, Horror Haven again. Thanks to the members of the club for voting their heart, and a big thanks to Stephen King.
ONE OF MY VERY FAVORITE NOVELS BY STEPHEN KING, MASTER OF HORROR
April 3, 2018
(2018 re-read)
(2012 review)
I've been re-visiting some of my King All-star Team this year as audiobooks and am reminded yet again that Uncle Steve is The Man. No matter what asshats and embittered douchebags like "literary critic" Harold Bloom say, King is one of the greatest storytellers in any language of all time, full stop. Is everything he's written pure gold? Of course not. Given the sheer size of the man's canon, that's to be expected. But even when I think King has put up something less than stellar, I always feel his heart is in the right place. In other words, King -- unlike so many other bestselling authors these days -- has integrity to spare. The words, the story -- they come first always. Even after all these years, I really believe he does it for the love of the craft, not for the next bloated paycheck (*cough* James Patterson *cough* whore).
I first read Misery when I was seventeen years old. I started it about eight o'clock that evening, and finished it about four in the morning. Heart pounding, bleary eyed and afraid to open my closet door lest Annie Wilkes was waiting there for me with an axe or chainsaw raised over her head. Whenever we're excited about a book, readers will often say "OMG, I couldn't put it down!" but we probably did, at least once, to go to work, get supper, put the kids to bed, whatever. It's not meant to be a literal expression per se, though sometimes it is and whoah to the power of a book that can hold you in its ironclad grip with such uncompromising resolution. That will make you stay up til the wee hours of the morning even though you have work or school the next day. Or breakfast to make for a screaming brood of little ones.
I couldn't put Misery down that first time. King has penned some page-turning mothers over the years, but the story of Paul Sheldon and his number one fan Annie Wilkes has got to be the most page-turning of them all. I guess you could classify this book as psychological suspense, since there are absolutely no supernatural elements introduced here, but for me Misery will remain classic horror because I really do feel like King's ultimate goal in writing it is to scare the shit out of us. And in this he succeeds brilliantly. We're trapped in that room with Paul Sheldon. The desire to escape is overwhelming. You begin to understand how an animal can chew its own leg off. And Annie Wilkes? Has there ever been a literary creation able to make you lose control of your bladder so effectively? She haunts my nightmares still.
King not only does an amazing job examining the sometimes deranged and twisted fan/creator relationship when a mental illness is introduced, but more significantly, the beating heart of the writing life. In Misery, King is able to inject a lot of what he knows and believes about the craft and all the tics and challenges that come along with it. Until he published On Writing, Misery was King's most passionate description of the weird and wonderful life of a fiction writer.
As always, the blessed relief of starting, a feeling that was like falling into a hole filled with bright light. As always, the glum knowledge that he would not write as well as he wanted to write. As always the terror of not being able to finish, of accelerating into a brick wall. As always, the marvelous joyful nervy feeling of journey begun.I like to think one of my favorite passages is King's version of a big middle finger to the critics who have lambasted him (and likely will continue to do so into the afterlife) as a hack:
There's a million things in this world I can't do. Couldn't hit a curve ball, even back in high school. Can't fix a leaky faucet. Can't roller-skate or make an F-chord on the guitar that sounds like anything but shit. I have tried to be married and couldn't do it either time. But if you want me to take you away, to scare you or involve you or make you cry or grin, yeah. I can. I can bring it to you and keep bringing it until you holler uncle. I am able. I CAN.Can he ever. Am I right, Constant Readers? Can I get a witness?
When I listened to Gerald's Game a few months back, I argued that it shared a lot more similarities to Misery than to the book it's always paired with Dolores Claiborne. In my review for Gerald's Game I write: "what King is really doing is looking at the human body under brutalizing physical duress... at the body in extremis and what humans are genetically hardwired to do to survive and go on living another day."
Like Jessie Burlingame in Gerald's Game, Paul Sheldon is a miserable animal caught in a trap. While Paul has the indomitable Annie Wilkes to contend with, Jessie has her own problems, but it all adds up to the same thing in the end: "In telling Jessie's story King uncovers all the nitty-gritty minutia of human physical suffering and the desperation of one woman's attempt to end it. How far is any one person willing to go to keep on taking his or her next breath? Stephen King knows pretty damn far. Just ask Paul Sheldon or Ray Garraty. Or the castaway in "Survivor Type" -- him most of all. King also knows that the human body has an amazing capacity for trauma. It can withstand a lot -- so much so that the mind often breaks first."
Yes it does.
I'm going to end this review the same way I ended my review for Gerald's Game, with a quote from Bondama made in the Stephen King Fans forum here on Goodreads. I keep coming back to this quote because I think it really captures what is so deeply disturbing and terrifying about both these novels. And what makes them so very hard to put down once begun. Each go:
straight to the oldest, reptilian part of the human brain: fight or flight -- but here, flight's out of the question. This is true horror -- helplessness.
March 6, 2021
Probablemente sea mi libro favorito de King hasta la fecha. Aunque es más corto que la mayoría de sus libros, también es más fluido, pero por sobre todo tiene a uno de los mejores y más aterradores personajes que he leído.
Paul es un escritor que pasó años atado a una serie de libros que odiaba, por eso está feliz de haber terminado y poder dedicarse a las historias que le gustan. Sin embargo, cuando tiene un accidente y despierta en la casa de Annie Wilkes y esta le dice que es su mayor fan, las cosas se ponen más surrealistas que en cualquiera de sus historias.
Tengo que partir por Annie, porque es terrible y maravillosa, por momentos la odiaba tanto que quería arrancarle la cara con las uñas y en unos pocos momentos sentía algo de lástima por ella, más lo patética que era su existencia que por ella misma . Es una de las mejores villanas que he leído, los personajes que creen que son buenos y que todo lo hacen por altruismo son los peores, los más detestables y Annie es todo eso y más. Es una mujer, francamente, mala, su indiferencia frente a la muerte, su forma de culpar a los demás por sus arrebatos, todo en ella es maravillosamente complejo y retorcido.
Si bien Paul es quien nos cuenta la historia, Annie es nuestra protagonista y, al mismo tiempo, la protagonista de la vida de él, se vuelve sus temores, su meta, su odio, su todo. Me gustó la voz de Paul, se notaba que era un escritor por la forma en que veía las cosas, me gustaban sus desvaríos por el dolor, el cómo se refugiaba en recuerdos, el cómo distorsionaba la realidad por sus mismos sueños mezclados con recuerdos. Llegados a un punto tenía su forma de ver a Annie (como la diosa) y todo el proceso para estar en ese punto era de lo más racional.
Lo más interesante es que Paul, de alguna forma macabra, necesitó de Annie para volver a encarrilar su vida y descubrir esa pasión por escribir que había perdido por el éxito y el dinero. La relación simbiótica entre ambos, era tan retorcida como maravillosa. De la misma forma, Paul aprendía más y más sobre Annie con el paso del tiempo, aprendía a leerla como si fuera un personaje y aprendía a controlarla, aunque en muchos casos no saliera bien.
Es uno de los libros de King que más turbación me ha producido, porque Annie es real, Annie puede existir, de hecho, Annie existe, hay Annies por el mundo y esa idea es perturbadora. Acá no hay magia, rituales indígenas, ni vampiros, solo la simple y pura maldad humana y eso es lo que resultó tan aterrador al final. Es una maldad sin lógica, no se le podía apelar al sentido común porque Annie veía el mundo con otros lentes. Había que entenderla para poder saber cómo interactuar con ella y entender sus propios límites morales.
Misery, me pareció fascinante y aterrador, quería seguir leyendo/escuchando para saber qué pasaría a continuación al mismo tiempo que me aterraba el pensar qué iba a hacer Annie ahora. Si bien el libro tiene la prosa propia de King, es menos descriptivo que sus trabajos más recientes y tiende a dar menos vueltas dentro de lo mismo, a pesar de los momentos en que Paul está tan drogado que su mente solo vaga sin sentido. Ya que esos momentos estaban justificados.
Paul es un escritor que pasó años atado a una serie de libros que odiaba, por eso está feliz de haber terminado y poder dedicarse a las historias que le gustan. Sin embargo, cuando tiene un accidente y despierta en la casa de Annie Wilkes y esta le dice que es su mayor fan, las cosas se ponen más surrealistas que en cualquiera de sus historias.
Tengo que partir por Annie, porque es terrible y maravillosa, por momentos la odiaba tanto que quería arrancarle la cara con las uñas y en unos pocos momentos sentía algo de lástima por ella, más lo patética que era su existencia que por ella misma . Es una de las mejores villanas que he leído, los personajes que creen que son buenos y que todo lo hacen por altruismo son los peores, los más detestables y Annie es todo eso y más. Es una mujer, francamente, mala, su indiferencia frente a la muerte, su forma de culpar a los demás por sus arrebatos, todo en ella es maravillosamente complejo y retorcido.
Si bien Paul es quien nos cuenta la historia, Annie es nuestra protagonista y, al mismo tiempo, la protagonista de la vida de él, se vuelve sus temores, su meta, su odio, su todo. Me gustó la voz de Paul, se notaba que era un escritor por la forma en que veía las cosas, me gustaban sus desvaríos por el dolor, el cómo se refugiaba en recuerdos, el cómo distorsionaba la realidad por sus mismos sueños mezclados con recuerdos. Llegados a un punto tenía su forma de ver a Annie (como la diosa) y todo el proceso para estar en ese punto era de lo más racional.
Lo más interesante es que Paul, de alguna forma macabra, necesitó de Annie para volver a encarrilar su vida y descubrir esa pasión por escribir que había perdido por el éxito y el dinero. La relación simbiótica entre ambos, era tan retorcida como maravillosa. De la misma forma, Paul aprendía más y más sobre Annie con el paso del tiempo, aprendía a leerla como si fuera un personaje y aprendía a controlarla, aunque en muchos casos no saliera bien.
Es uno de los libros de King que más turbación me ha producido, porque Annie es real, Annie puede existir, de hecho, Annie existe, hay Annies por el mundo y esa idea es perturbadora. Acá no hay magia, rituales indígenas, ni vampiros, solo la simple y pura maldad humana y eso es lo que resultó tan aterrador al final. Es una maldad sin lógica, no se le podía apelar al sentido común porque Annie veía el mundo con otros lentes. Había que entenderla para poder saber cómo interactuar con ella y entender sus propios límites morales.
Misery, me pareció fascinante y aterrador, quería seguir leyendo/escuchando para saber qué pasaría a continuación al mismo tiempo que me aterraba el pensar qué iba a hacer Annie ahora. Si bien el libro tiene la prosa propia de King, es menos descriptivo que sus trabajos más recientes y tiende a dar menos vueltas dentro de lo mismo, a pesar de los momentos en que Paul está tan drogado que su mente solo vaga sin sentido. Ya que esos momentos estaban justificados.
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