Lee Hunts

Cujo: Book Review (Quickie) I just finished reading Cujo, by Stephen King, which is one of his most popular books—so popular, in fact, that Cujo is now a household name known by basically everyone. Most people already know the basic premise: a 200 pound Saint Bernard goes rabid and threatens the lives of the main characters. All things considered, I think this is one of my favorite King novels. The horror is close to home, the supernatural elements are pared back to great effect, and the characterization is on point. Overall (No Spoilers) The last three King novels that I have read have been disappointing, even if there were elements in the stories that I liked. For reference, those stories were The Stand, Pet Sematary, and The Outsider—and you can go read my reviews of all these books on this blog. Because of this, Cujo was a refreshing return to form. King created serious conflict with compelling tension and an amazing ending. I read one review suggesting that all that cocaine gave h...

I just finished reading Pet Sematary, one of Stephen King's most widely praised novels, one which he, himself, thought he had taken it too far. This is a horror novel about a doctor who, with his wife and kids, moves to a home in Maine with a heavily trafficked highway just without their front door. The highway is notorious for killing pets, leading to the creation of the Pet Sematary, where children would bury their pets once they've turned into roadkill. But there is something deeper to this cemetery, something darker than you can imagine. What ensues is a disturbing, slow-burn story where you track the lives of this newly moved-in family. Overall, my reaction to this story is actually kind of mixed. The premise of the story is amazing, and most everything leading up to the end was great, but I thought the ending did not quite work, both coming off as low-brow and too sudden. Strides (Spoilers) Behind the Pet Sematary is an ancient Native American site called the Micmac buryi...