Bloody Good Horror discussion

Revival - Stephen King
A dark and electrifying novel about addiction, fanaticism, and what might exist on the other side of life. In a small New England town, over half a century ago, a shadow falls over a small boy playing with his toy soldiers. Jamie Morton looks up to see a striking man, the new minister. Charles Jacobs, along with his beautiful wife, will transform the local church. The men and boys are all a bit in love with Mrs. Jacobs; the women and girls feel the same about Reverend Jacobs—including Jamie’s mother and beloved sister, Claire. With Jamie, the Reverend shares a deeper bond based on a secret obsession. When tragedy strikes the Jacobs family, this charismatic preacher curses God, mocks all religious belief, and is banished from the shocked town. Jamie has demons of his own. Wed to his guitar from the age of thirteen, he plays in bands across the country, living the nomadic lifestyle of bar-band rock and roll while fleeing from his family’s horrific loss. In his mid-thirties—addicted to heroin, stranded, desperate—Jamie meets Charles Jacobs again, with profound consequences for both men. Their bond becomes a pact beyond even the Devil’s devising, and Jamie discovers that revival has many meanings.

Reading Schedule:
1) Week of 3/13: Chapters: Epigraph - 5
-Discussion of Section 1: 3/20, discussion begins at 12pm/EST
2) Week of 3/20: Chapters 6-10
-Discussion of Section 2: 3/27, discussion begins at 12pm/EST
3) Week of 3/27: Chapters 11-14
-Discussion of Section 3: 4/3, discussion begins at 12pm/EST

Discussion of Section 1:

1. The first time we meet Charlie, he helps him build caves in his dirt Skull Mountain, which immediately collapse on his enemy soldiers-how do you think this foreshadows Charlie's character, or even Jamie and Charlie's relationship?

2. Charlie admits to Jamie after helping Con find his voice again, that it's all a show, that it's "kindling faith" - not a real healing moment. How will this effect Charlie and Jamie's relationship now that Jamie is the one who needs help?

3. Do you think that it's fate or coincidence that they have found each other again - since both men have abandoned their faith?

Discussion of Section 2:

1. What do you think Charlie's ulitmate goal is with his "secret energy?" Do you think it's an effort to reconnect him to his wife and child - or is he much farther gone now?

2. What do you think the aftereffects really mean for the people that Charlie has healed? Why has Hugh and Jamie both had disturbing experiences with ants? Was Hugh really seeing the parallel world when he experienced his prismatics?

3. How foreshadowing do you think the verse of Matthew is, to Jamie and Charlie's relationship? That the lightning Charlie was selling was not related to God's healing, but rather the apocalypse?

*As always, please feel free to add your own questions or observations:

sorry I haven't posted anything... I read this book within the last year and loved it, but am having a hard time remembering all the details and I'd just spoil the ending for everyone.

If I remember right, at about the 2/3 point in the book, it may still be a bit fuzzy as to the point with the "secret energy". But while the book is a GoodRead (ha) one of the things that I found lacking was sufficient backstory about how the pastor started tinkering with his gadgets and secret electricities.

At first, the after effects were random enough that they seemed to be just a thing that happened to some people. But the fact that we start seeing commonalities in them does lead us to start wondering if there's something more there.

I got the book from the library Friday and was done by Sunday morning and it's already returned - so I can't go back and read which verse from Matthew that is.

Like Chris, it's hard to pull back and separate what I knew at this 2/3 point from what I knew when it was all done.

As much I like Stephen King, I am struggling with this book. As mentioned above, there are exposition holes regarding the backstory and motivations of the pastor, at least to the point where I have read up to, so I am finding it hard to care about what he is doing/why he is doing it and why Jamie is re-inserting himself into the pastor's path so many years on. To be fair, I finished Doctor Sleep a few weeks ago, so I may be a little "King-ed Out" at the moment; He needs to find a word other than "Rube" to describe common/regular people in his stories...or maybe I'm a rube which is why I can't appreciate it ;)

1st off: I'm super sorry I fell off on this month's book. Life sped up and I just couldnt get ahead of it.
Regardless, I'm good to go for May! Pinky promise.

2nd:
I overall liked the book I think. There were quite a lot of plot holes or unexplained motivations of the Pastor that I would have like explained a little more like Christine said - I think that would have boosted the ending for me a bit. I liked Jamie's character and his description of this afterworld, but it seemed a little more forced that what I was expecting, like you said, Ken.

I'm currently reading a Joe Hill novel and he uses "rube" a lot too! It must run in the family. hahah