Lisey's Story by Stephen King

To any Stephen King fan this book is a must read. To the layman this book is a must read.

With that said I first must warn the reader: The book does seem to have a slow start and it does a lot of potentially confusing jumping back and forth from the past to "present." Give it time and it'll all make sense and even be worth it.

"Lisey's Story" is a story about a woman, Lisey, who is married to a famous author. (It seems that all the books about authors Mr. King writes about have slow starts. Remember "Bag of Bones"?) The story takes place after her husband, Scott Landon, has died. She is contemplating going through his study in order to decide what to throw out and what to donate to the Acadamia that have expressed and interest in his left behind treasures. This story, as with any good Stephen King novel, also has a darker hidden side in which is revealed by Lisey's reflection of her past with Scott. For one thing Scott has revealed that his older brother and father died when he was only 10. This secret Lisey knows and has chosen to forget but must remember in order to help with what could be the death of herself.

A university professor has expressed extreme interest in the late Mr. Landon's hidden works and has unleashed upon Lisey a stalker/asylum escapee/Scott Landon Fan. So Lisey learns from revisiting her and her husband's forgotten secrets how to move on in her life and at the same time take care of this creature sometimes known as Zack McCool.

The book reveals that the Scott Landon character has a secret world he visits, called Boo'ya Moon. The jumping from reality to Boo 'ya Moon is very reminiscent of the Stephen King & Peter Straub books "The Talisman" & "Black House," as well as many parts of the "Dark Tower" series. But it's a tool that Mr. King knows how to use and does not seem overused. Another thing I found interesting was the similarities between the pool of Boo'ya Moon and the Sea of Quiddity from the books by Clive Barker "The Great & Secret Show" and "Everville." The world of Boo'ya Moon is full of great sights and smells, yet you wouldn't want to be there after dark...that's when the evil takes over. I'm trying not to give too much away but just enough to intrigue you. Not that I think Mr. King needs another best selling novel (heck, go to the library and check it out for free), It's just that this book has some of his best writing wrapped in a book that could be overlooked otherwise. Besides, telling you too much would give away the end. It's a lot like watching the movie "Fight Club" after you know that Tyler Durden is the subconscious of the Narrator.

There are lots of sections (especially in the last half of the book) that you can't put down. While this may not be one of his best horror novels, it is a good book. There is some really nice writing in this one. Some sweet, poignant confessions of love wrapped in a nice, dark, creepy story.