Black House

[lovely1]

I liked Black House but you could tell the parts that Stephen King wrote and the parts that Peter Straub wrote. I personally wanted more Stephen King because when I read the Peter Straub parts he used repetitive words such as molten this and molten that, and the writing felt cyclical and boring. I was only waiting for the Stephen King parts. I liked the bikers in it too.

[GNTLGNT]

Typos of death that's what I call em-just ask the poor unfortunate who posted the "Blockage Billy" thread...Thank the Load, Eye kneverr dew that kined of stuph...

[Lass Chance]

I've read Black House several times and I didn't get that feeling beyond what I get it from every book that SK writes. I mean, I'm not saying that he out and out starts asking questions about God (or goddess, or coyote, so on and so forth) in all his books, but most often I see him questioning the nature of good and evil within the framework of the story and his characters.
Now as to the possibility that we are talking about Jack Sawyer's "fate"
I dunno. I thought Jack Sawyer was compelling as was the world that SK and PS created. And of course, I loved the way it intersected with The Dark Tower (because I am a giant dark tower nut. I can nerd off for days to those books and the concordance)
While there aren't really sequels to SK's stuff, I think it is valid to say that it all falls under an umbrella. We find out what happens to certain characters from certain books in other books. There is a continuity. It's a small world and all that.
And since I enjoyed reading it so much, maybe they did it because it was fun to write it and to be writing it together.
Or they just magically knew that if they didn't write a sequel I would have been in torment all my days!
Ai, No! **telenovella style hand sweep across my brow**

Well said! I read The Talisman way back when it first came out (didnt sleep, eat or get out of my pajamas til it was done, as I recall). Then, when Black House came out, I re-read The Talisman to help me re-connect to it.
I dont see any indication of SK "losing his faith, in any of his books. If anything, his faith in "The White" seems unshakable, thoughout. His characters are never ambivalent--the "good guys" are clearly GOOD, the bad guys, clearly BAD, the Good serve The White, the Bad serve the Crimson King. And, of course, the White always wins, ultimately. There is often "collateral damage", so to speak, with the Good Guys getting hurt or even dying, but isn't that the way Life goes? In the end, "We All serve The Beam".

Lass Chance

[Lass Chance]

I can't believe any discussion of this story leaving out Henry! He is probably one of the most compelling "minor" characters in any of King's books. I loved him!

John

Here! Here! YES, Henry is one of the best of the SK characters. Maybe THE best of the "supporting cast".

Lass Chance

[Lass Chance]

Desperation has a much more explicit God focus than Black House.

You have a good point, there. I think DESPERATION is the only SK book where the hero is overtly Christian, in direct communication with God. He even performs the Miracle of the Bread and Fishes, albeit with Ritz crackers and sardines.
I wonder WHY, in this one book, SK "goes there"? I mean...many of the books are spiritual in nature,many deal with the forces of The White vs. the forces of the Crimson King....so why did he veer from this in the one book? hmmmm.

Lass Chance

[Lass Chance]

Please forgive a non native that had typed so quickly that she did not read what she wrote and could not edit her post after posting...

It was the Fate of Jack I was contemplating about, as for faith, I have very little opinion on other people's as I am far from being determined regarding mine.

Sorry...

No harm done! It made for some thought provocation!

Lass Chance

[Lass Chance]

Honestly, part of what makes The Talisman and Black Houe so strong ARE the minor characters. Wolf, Henry, The Thunder Five, Jack's Mother, Sophie, Speedy Parker/Parkus and so on. Rarely have I enjoyed supporting cast as much as I enjoyed them in these two books.
For me, in Black House, it was Beezer. I fancy myself half in love with him. But I also loved Henry. I think in the Talisman, my favorite supporting characters were Wolf and Speedy Parker/Parkus.
And my God, the villians! EEK! Morgan creeped me out, but not as bad as Charles Burnside. For myself, I'm going to say he's the most horrible villian, natural or supernatural, in any of SK's books.

Once again, I completely agree. Of course, we may have a problem, since Im in love with Beezer, too!

I wasn't aware there would be a Talisman 3, but I wonder if Jack will be in it? Since he went to live in the "Other World" to survive his fatal-on-this-plane's wounds, I wonder if he will get back to this world or if much of the book will take place "there"? Oooo, I cant wait.....

Lass Chance

[throne_92]

Please check out my new thread about connections from Black House and the DT series..I bring something up you might find interesting..

[jackson992]

I liked Black House but the narrative voice really was hard to get through. When the dialogue started it was much better but I did not like the let's continue our journey and see what so and so is up to etc