Stephen King Fans discussion

Discuss Roadwork here. Please mark all spoilers for those reading along.

I can't get on my PC need a new video card so I will be sitting this one out I don't have any Stephen King on my kindle

Roadwork is amazing, it gets you in the mind of a desperate person with nothing to lose

Is it someone with nothing to lose or is it some one with something to prove ?

i m reading IT and its been and while and plan to finish this month and read more. i want some help from all of u , how can i read fast. its been 4 months on and off am reading but still its half way through. plz help

For faster reading - Normally I would suggest taking your book with you everywhere and getting in little 5-10 min increments of reading whenever you have a moment... while drinking your coffee or waiting for an appointment, etc. However, It isn’t really an easy book to just “carry around” even if you have a paperback.

Also... unpopular opinion maybe, but Roadwork is the first (and so far only) Stephen King book I’ve ever read that I can’t wait to be finished reading (and not in a good “I need to know the ending” sort of way). I know it’s more character driven than plot driven but so much of it seems unnecessary. Would have made a better short story IMO. Still good writing because, you know, SK!

Lacey wrote: "For faster reading - Normally I would suggest taking your book with you everywhere and getting in little 5-10 min increments of reading whenever you have a moment... while drinking your coffee or w..."

So if I'm anxious to get through a book, usually because I've got commitments to read others coming up, I do the Whispersync thing, read on the Kindle in the evening or when I'm waiting somewhere, listen to the audio in the car while driving. Whispersync keeps the pages in sync so after reading at night, I open the audiobook, and it says "your furthest progress in this book is to page XXX would you like to go there?" Tap 'yes' and the audio picks up where I stopped reading the night before. Yes, it's more expensive, but there are often Whispersync deals where you get the audio or the Kindle at a big discount if you do both. I'm doing that now to get through Daisy in Chains so that I can get to Roadword, though I'm also anxious to get through the story to find out the ending. This keeps me from staying up till 2 AM.

Don wrote: "Why do you want to read fast? Just enjoy it. But it' all about time. I spend whole days reading and whenever I habe free time."

thnx for the reply, its not like i want to read fast but its taking me too long i know i m not even close the speed u might have. and yes i dont read regularly but really want to read more so if its taking me 4 months to finish half of the novel then i m looking at 4 more months to finish the novel. that was my concern, besides what ever i m reading i m really enjoying it. but there are so many stepehen king novels i want to explore.

Nick wrote: "Lacey wrote: "For faster reading - Normally I would suggest taking your book with you everywhere and getting in little 5-10 min increments of reading whenever you have a moment... while drinking yo..."

thnx lacey, i m really doing this these days and this made things go even faster. i am rwading when ever i get chance and u r right this way i can get thru it fast. i m not compromising enjoyement over fast reading but its taking me forever. i was never been a fast reader.

Ahmed wrote: "Nick wrote: "Lacey wrote: "For faster reading - Normally I would suggest taking your book with you everywhere and getting in little 5-10 min increments of reading whenever you have a moment... whil..."

I'm really not a fast reader either, but I've read all of King's novels. I started by setting aside a few hours after my wife went to bed and I'd just read until I was tired. Of course, if the book was really gripping I'd keep going until early in the morning.

Hi,

I have finished my read of Roadwork and have posted my review. Although I will warn you, this was not one of my favorite King books and it shows in my review. I am sure some fans will not be happy, but I guess we can't always love every one of them, just most of them.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Thanks.

Scott wrote: "Hi,

I have finished my read of Roadwork and have posted my review. Although I will warn you, this was not one of my favorite King books and it shows in my review. I am sure some fans will not be h..."

I'm holding off on reading your review Scot because I'm only a third of the way through, and even though this is my second read It was a while ago and I don't remember too much. What impresses me this time is that King, at a relatively young age, was able to tune into the mentality and basic fears of older people. He had his mother and some uncles and aunts as examples I guess, but his quote about the most important thing for a writer to do is OBSERVE is really born out. Great writing whatever happens to the characters.

Nick - your thoughts are well-stated.

And yes, I would wait until you're done before reading my review.

Thanks, Scott.

I’m going to start this tomorrow. It’s another re-read for me but it’s been soooooo long since I read it, it’s like reading a new book, LOL.

Just started up for in between the breaks I need away from pushing through my read of Ghost Story. So far not too bad, but I'm not very far yet.

Tim wrote: "Just started up for in between the breaks I need away from pushing through my read of Ghost Story. So far not too bad, but I'm not very far yet."

I'm about 40 pages from the end and I do like it. In this case a lot has to do with the ending I think which is still unpredictable. Should have a review tomorrow.

Okay, posted my review. It is positive, more positive than some of our standard King readers. It struck a chord with me, and that helped grab me from the very start.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Scott wrote: "Hi,

I have finished my read of Roadwork and have posted my review. Although I will warn you, this was not one of my favorite King books and it shows in my review. I am sure some fans will not be h..."

Great review, Scott, even though I disagree... or maybe, because of several difficult experiences, I relate better to the problem that King is addressing. I do agree that things are a little muddled in the start and it's hard to figure out where things are going. But I've written that off to Bart's own disorganized conscious mind rather than his clear-thinking and purposeful subconscious. I failed to mention the episode with the hitchhiker which you did. I thought that was a nice interlude that gave the reader and Bart himself a different focus and a new purpose.

Nick - I actually enjoyed your review and perspective too. I don't disagree either with the higher rating you gave. I liked your comments and thought they were good. There's no shame or loss of street credibility when there's a different opinion on a book, movie or record. It's all good. And it gives us something to talk about and share.

I have found myself thinking and processing the book quite a bit since I finished it. I really think the second half of the book is much better than the first. I also am coming around to your thinking. My struggling with understanding Bart's behaviors and actions could have been attributed to his losing his mind mentally. Some clues would have been helpful, but I still kind of liked the rebel in him coming out.

I also think that with some editing and cleanup, King could make it even better, and a real strong statement on the loss of small towns in America.

Thanks for sharing. I appreciate your thoughts. Until next time, here's to good reading...

Does anyone else think Phil Drake could be Father Callahan’s twinner?

Nancy wrote: "Does anyone else think Phil Drake could be Father Callahan’s twinner?"

Good catch Nancy. Absolutely, though for some reason I don't think they look alike, but in terms of philosophy and purpose and maybe disillusionment, you bet.

There was also mention of a “mangler” machine but this one wasn’t evil. 😏

I finished last night. Although I knew how it was going to end when he initially bought the (view spoiler)[guns (hide spoiler)] I kept hoping the outcome would be different. I can relate to his loss of his (view spoiler)[son and what Bart said about Mary (the Before Mary and After Mary). (hide spoiler)] King really knows human behavior. I think there are a lot of layers in this book. In some ways it reminds me of Rage. The spiraling out of control.

What is interesting is at the beginning he is talking to himself and at first the reader thinks he is probably crazy but you find out later (view spoiler)[ the middle name thing and how he and Charlie called each other by there middle names (Bart is George and Charlie is Fred). Then as the story progresses, Fred isn’t talking to him anymore. I think he is really talking to Charlie and answering how he thinks or hopes Charlie would answer. I think this is his way of letting go of Charlie when he stops having Fred talking to him. (hide spoiler)]

Not being a person involved in the mental health area, I wouldn’t be surprised if Bart had been suffering from depression. Mary had good advice for Bart and he didn’t take it. He also gave really good advice to Olivia but didn’t head his own advice. He tells her “All the places are the same unless your mind changes. There’s no magic place to get your mind right. If you feel like shit, then everything you see looks like shit. I know that.” I felt like this was a huge self admission as to what was going on with Bart.

Nancy wrote: "I finished last night. Although I knew how it was going to end when he initially bought the [spoilers removed] I kept hoping the outcome would be different. I can relate to his loss of his [spoiler..."

I agree completely, though it would be painful to follow Bart's progress through any kind of therapy. Usually, therapy sessions aren't portrayed in films and books as having much of a positive outcome, though it's clear that they frequently do.

It probably would have been incredibly boring to read about him in therapy and wouldn’t be the same story if it was a happily ever after ending.

Don wrote: "Why do you want to read fast? Just enjoy it. But it' all about time. I spend whole days reading and whenever I habe free time."

It is big relax and enjoy.

Ahmed wrote: "Don wrote: "Why do you want to read fast? Just enjoy it. But it' all about time. I spend whole days reading and whenever I habe free time."

thnx for the reply, its not like i want to read fast but..."

Ahmed the journey is as important as the take each book as it comes if it takes months to read then it takes months to read. It is better to have read and enjoyed then to have not read at all. I am not a fast reader by any stretch of the imagination, but I don't, won't base what I read on how long it takes to get there. Just the joy of reading Sai king is its own reward.

I just finished reading Roadwork. I tried to read this book years ago but didn’t finish it. I remember finding it so boring. I decided to give it another chance this month and have no idea why I thought that way about it the first time I tried to read it. I loved it this time. There is such a sense of sadness throughout the book. I’m glad I read it.

I think you have to be older to understand the kind of despair he feels. If you're too young it's not relatable.

Kandice wrote: "I think you have to be older to understand the kind of despair he feels. If you're too young it's not relatable."

I agree Kandice and older to understand the sense of value a person feels for associations with places that hold a sense of security and happiness and special memories. What got me is that King was able to write a book like this while in his early 30s.

He has a knack for capturing people. Their behaviors, motivations, what makes them tick.

Absolutely regarding the genius it took for him to write this so young. On the other side of the coin, I find he is still able to capture children at his age.

Like Nancy said, he is so very good and getting into the mind of the "other" regardless of what that other may be. Woman, child, teen, old, etc. He must be very, very good at relationships.

Kandice wrote: "Absolutely regarding the genius it took for him to write this so young. On the other side of the coin, I find he is still able to capture children at his age.

Like Nancy said, he is so very good ..."

Good at relationships... Yes, think about his marriage and all they've had to go through. He's one of the more stable geniuses.

And in general. his empathy must be off the charts.

I think I'm going to throw in the towel with this one. I just couldn't get into it, couldn't relate to the character. Every night I read several pages and my mind wandered.

It doesn't help that I'm currently obsessed with the movie "The Night Comes for Us" (if you like bloody, violent action movie, watch it on Netflix) so I end up using my free time scouring YouTube for reviews.

I didn't like this book. I understand that he was probably depressed and had mental issues, but it was hard to watch him self destruct. I couldn't sympathize with him.

My favorite of the Bachman Books. and the most underrated imo

This is my favourite in The Bachman Books omnibus. I don't know why but it really hooked me

StuFighter 2020 wrote: "This is my favourite in The Bachman Books omnibus. I don't know why but it really hooked me"

I also didn't care for this the first time I read it, but when I reread, I really liked it. I think it was my age.

I'm starting this one! I've not read it before. I'm super excited to get into it!!

There's an introduction which I thought was pretty cool! Unfortunately at one point in the introduction, King spoiled the ending of The Running Man which I haven't read.

The director of it and It 2 is producing a movie based on this one. I'm gonna read this next for my Stephen King binge.

This is one of the King/Bachman books I don't really remember much about so I'm giving it another go...38 years later.