While I was a third into this Stephen King book, it suddenly occurred to me why King had such a powerful fan base worldwide in the 80s and was the hottest name in popular fiction. I realized that reading such a well-written horror book was truly one of the most fundamental and adult things I could do. That's because this kind of book can have its own unique aftereffect. Fortunately, I haven't yet dreamed of Zelda, the most terrifying monster in this book.

King had a deep understanding of the human mind. He was able to draw horror-laden imagery from ordinary people, as he did in this book. The characters in these pages seemed to come alive. The Pet Sematary was like a character itself, and Route 15 was another. The Creeds lived on the verge of horror, and I was worried for them. From the first chapter, you knew that in time you would identify the danger before the unfortunate Creeds.

The trials of the Creeds, sparked by the character Jud and set in motion by Louis, were cruel but not overly exaggerated. The sense of crudeness I felt didn't come from the situation but from the ancient fear of the wild. The fact that there were two children in the Creed family didn't necessarily mean we would be emotionally invested in them. The reason for this was that a great writer at the top of his game was behind them. After all, simply putting a child in the spotlight wasn't a guarantee that we would empathize with their fate.

Outside of anime, I've never seen such a vivid portrayal of intense love between two characters as when Louis bonded with his growing son Gage. It was a captivating scene, completely believable. The other child, Ellie, was also very well-developed in the book. I'm amazed at how many of the scenes in the book haven't been used by other writers or by Hollywood. The writing in the book was so tight. The last chapters didn't waste time, and the ending was appropriate. There was no unnecessary drama, let alone melodrama. What happened after the book ended is left open to interpretation.

\\n  A truly spooky story!!!\\n


\\n  NEVER PLAY WITH THE BEYOND\\n

I have been familiar with this story ever since I watched the 1998 film adaptation several times. However, I had never properly read the original novel. Since it has already been announced that there will be a new film adaptation in April next year (2019), I thought it was high time to read the book.

Certainly, in my humble opinion, it is one of the scariest books by Stephen King. This is not only because of the main topic but mainly due to the characters involved and their interactions.

Family is always a complicated issue as there is no such thing as a perfect family. There are always troubles, some small and some big, but troubles nonetheless. And when the family meddles with paranormal forces beyond their comprehension...

...dearest blood will flow...

...and hearts will be broken forever...

...since accepting to let go of those you love is one of the hardest things you have to face in life. They are never truly left behind, but when you are terribly tempted to disrupt the natural way of how existence works...

...you can bet that things will go wrong...

....WAAAAAAAY BAAAAAAAAD...

...and even worse when you get completely lost, losing your ties to reason and common sense, and only your heart leads your unholy actions...

...since the path to hell is paved with good intentions...

...and a huge mistake does not always prevent you from making it again and again.

Messing with death...

...only leads to more death...

...and insanity.

Death is a mystery and burial, a secret.

"The human heart is even more arid, Louis," the boy whispered. "Man sows only what he can. And he takes care of it...

"Do not cross the barrier, no matter how much you desire it, doctor. The barrier was raised to be respected. Remember this: there is a force here greater than what you imagine. It is an old and always restless force. Remember it.

You and those you love are exposed to destruction, doctor."

"You do it because something takes hold of you... You invent the reasons for it... They seem good enough to you... You do it because you want to... but above all because that cemetery is a secret place... And you want to share that secret with someone..."

One of the "ultimate fears" we can say is "the fear of death." Whether it is one's own, that of a loved one, it could be that of your pet (which many surely also consider part of our family), or death in general terms. And just as death is one of the greatest fears, it is also one of the greatest mysteries. This, at a dramatic and psychological level, is addressed in a masterful way and there is no way it doesn't hit you in some way, that it doesn't stir something inside you... loss, guilt, lack of mourning, having to take care of a terminally ill person, the paradigmatic masochistic funeral ritual so deeply rooted in our culture for so long. I also don't think it's just a coincidence that the character of Louis is a doctor... because of this figurative sense of being "a bit of a god" when in their profession they have lives and deaths in their hands, and here he really plays that role!

And on the other hand, all the supernatural part. Partially and very briefly we can say that it is his zombistic version and interpretation, with some influence of "The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs (according to King himself). But it's much more than that!

The level of tension is enormous and the setting and atmosphere are brilliant. The use of "cause and effect."

This sensation of a force that exceeds nature, the elements, the material/spiritual world. Something that breaks the equilibrium and balance, that takes control and is omnipresent, exerting its influence without being able to do anything to avoid it. In addition to all this, it is supported and expanded through myths and legends like that of the Wendigo, and in this case the ones of the nomadic Micmac aboriginal tribes.

Personally, I consider that stories that take real things or from transcendental myths and legends give much more force to the story, and in this particular one they contribute a great deal.

A long and winding road meanders by the home of Louis Creed and his family.

This road is far from friendly; in fact, it could even be considered hungry.

It may seem like pure silliness to think so, but is it really?

The pet sematary is located in the woods nearby.

The deadfall that looms menacingly behind it is treacherous and ominous, best left untouched.

What lies on the other side?

The painful loss of a beloved pet or a child is immeasurable.

What if there were a way for a do-over?

This is a tale of a man's descent into madness.

I don't see this particular edition listed on GR.

I purchased this book in 1983, fresh off the presses, and devoured it immediately.

The cover is clothbound, a feature not seen often these days.

The dust cover serves its purpose well.

This second read was well worth it.

4.5 ⭐

My obsession with Stephen King's writing is finally back

Sometimes dead is better.

This, for me, was a struggle of epic proportions. It felt like an insurmountable mountain that I had to climb. At some point, I truly believed that I would never finish the damned book. And it took me a considerable amount of time to figure out the reason behind my struggle.

You see, I really like Stephen King. I firmly believe that he is a great writer. I always found it hard to understand why some people think his writing is crap. Well, actually, that's not entirely true. I didn't really spend a great deal of time pondering over it. I simply filed it under "different people, different taste" and moved on. But still, I was a little baffled. And now, finally, I understand.

It actually took two books for this revelation to occur. This one here and The Stand.

Now, don't misunderstand me. I don't think that either of those books is crap. On the contrary, I think they are well-written books that rightfully have a large number of fans. I'm just not one of those fans.

And while my feelings towards those two books are vastly different, the reasons for my general dislike are similar.

It all boils down to pacing and characters. SK just loves to spend a lot of time with the characters. He delves into them deeply, slowly revealing their darker side, and then hits us over the head with the crazy. And then he does it again. And again. But each time, slowly expanding the madness before things completely spiral out of control towards the end. It's highly effective when you get on board early on. But it's annoyingly frustrating when you don't.

This time around, he just couldn't get me interested in the characters. The first third of the book had me almost completely disengaged from the story. But then the crazy reared its head, and I thought, "Cool, we finally get going now." I really should have known better. Of course, then it all slowed down again. And for a really long time too. And at this point, I already had barely any patience left. And when, after another third of the book, he came up with that total mindfuck (which I can't talk about for spoiler reasons), I was just annoyed. And not because of the quality of his writing, which is actually quite good. No, I was annoyed because of his style of writing (if that makes any sense to you).

To be honest, thinking about it afterwards, I would almost call it a stroke of genius to get the reader annoyed at you, the writer, with what he did after two thirds of the book. I hated it so much that I felt completely numb for the following couple of chapters. And it was the perfect state of mind for those chapters because they contained the funeral of a beloved person. Genius! It could also be that he was high while writing this book, and I'm giving him too much credit. Or it could just be me. Who knows?

And I think that's the point. If this had been my first SK novel, I probably would never have picked up another one and would be telling people that he writes crap. And I couldn't be more wrong. I know this now. But it most likely was just a matter of timing and personal preferences.

I have no doubts about the author's ability, though. I will still read more of his books. Just maybe not in the next few weeks.

Sorry for this rambling review. This book sucked all the life out of me. And I don't have it in me right now to write something a little more coherent.

Just a few random thoughts:

King gets away with a lot of foreshadowing here. Because when he presents to the reader what the latter knew was coming all along, it still hits hard. A testament to how good a writer he is, I would say.

The last third of the book was quite entertaining. Granted, I had almost completely zoned out at this point. But he somehow still managed to draw me back in there.

Great ending.

When King decides it's time for the crazy, the book is crazy good. The other 70% of the book, though? I think you have to decide for yourself.

This was a buddy read with Trish. I apologize sincerely for constantly spitting out profanities about a book that you like so much. I usually don't get so excited. But this time, my anger needed an outlet. You dealt with it quite well. I'm impressed. Must have been some kind of shock? Again, I'm sorry! You're a good friend. You really are. You're still reading the book wrong, though. ;)

Full video review here: https://youtu.be/Lw-TV77BJ-s

I first read this book at the tender age of 14, with no real cares in the world. Although it was spooky, it didn't have the same profound impact on me as IT did (which I read right before Pet Sematary). Now, at 39 years old and the father of two young children, reading it again has made it exemplify every single fear that a parent can have. Losing a child is truly the scariest thing one can imagine. Parents of young kids who read this story might find it difficult to blame Louis for some of his actions. When I read it for the first time, I never understood why so many people considered this King's scariest book. But an older gentleman once told me, "You'll understand when you have kids." And boy, was he right. During my great Stephen King re-read project, the moment that rattled me the most was when Louis described Gage's life had he lived, only to have the cover pulled back a few pages later. It was absolutely heartbreaking.

What if people could abolish death? We have all at least once wished to bring back the dear ones who are no longer with us into the earthly life without thinking about the consequences. But what if the consequences have a high price?

Actually, I'm not a fan of horror, but at least once a year I allow myself to indulge a little. Last year around this time, I was reading "It", which didn't particularly impress me. This time, the choice fell on the cemetery of domestic pets. Did I indulge? Well, yes. But more than the disgusting scenes themselves, I was impressed by the eerie atmosphere. Literally from page to page, you feel that evil creeping in and you know it won't stop, and there's nothing left for you but to read helplessly.

The consequence of reading this book will be that for some time I will carefully watch every cat that wanders into my yard... just in case ;)

I decided to give this book a high 4 just because some things remained unresolved, and I don't like when I'm left in the dark.

*Bumping this up to 5 stars because it’s been a month since I’ve read this, and I still think about this book all the time.

This was my first ever Stephen King novel, and oh my gosh… I kept thinking “surely he’s not going to go there”. And sure enough, it got darker and twistier. Stephen King has an amazing ability to make you truly feel for the characters. You become so invested in their lives that you’re left sitting on the edge of your seat, nervously wondering what their fate will be. I physically could not put the book down. I was completely engrossed and ended up reading this in one sitting!

The story was filled with unexpected turns and intense moments that had my heart pounding. King’s writing is so vivid and descriptive that I could picture every scene in my mind as if I were actually there. It was a thrilling and unforgettable reading experience, and I can’t wait to explore more of his works.

The story seems to have been exhaustingly overwritten.

However, one can't really argue with that plot.

The detailed and perhaps overly elaborate rewrite might have added a lot of complexity and nuance to the narrative.

It could have explored various subplots and character developments that might not have been as prominent in the original.

Despite the potential exhaustion that comes with such extensive rewriting, the plot itself still holds a certain allure.

It might have elements that are engaging, thought-provoking, or simply captivating.

Maybe it's the unique twists and turns, or the well-developed characters that draw the reader in.

Even if the overwriting is a bit much, the core of the story, the plot, remains strong and undeniable.

It's what keeps the reader interested and invested in the story, willing to overlook the potential flaws in the writing process.

After all, a great plot can make up for a lot of other shortcomings.

Brutal!!

If I could, I would bow down at your feet, Mr. King. And if the movie isn't up to par, I'm really going to be pissed off.

How could he not be the best-selling writer in the world? He is, forgive me... the p... master

2023 Update:

After a third read, I'm bumping this up to 5 stars.

Certainly, I might have a few minor nitpicks with it, but this is undoubtedly top-tier King.

2021 Review:

One day, Stephen King is sitting around, pondering his next novel.

He's trying to come up with something that will truly terrify people.

He's already written about vampires, the apocalypse, a dog, and an old car.

He thinks people aren't really scared of anything else.

As a side note, dogs and cars are especially scary to me.

My dog is cool though.

"I've got it," King thinks to himself.

"You know what really gives people nightmares?

The thought of losing one of their kids in some freak accident.

Old cars are scary enough, but a kid dying?

That'll really get them.

Do I really want to go down that road?"

Suddenly, there's ol' Jud Crandall.

"Oh that road?

You don't want to go down that road."

King goes down the road anyway.

And it's intense, man.

Even reading this book for a second time (which was a serious lapse in judgment on my part) was tough at times.

This is Stephen King hitting you right in the gut,

weaving in all the supernatural and horror elements like he does,

but blurring the lines a little,

making you ask yourself how you would react if something like this ever happened to you.

Where would the line of sanity be if you found yourself in the same situation as the protagonist?

Oh man, it's too much to think about.

You really shouldn't read books like this when everything in the real world is already so difficult.

What a dumb decision I made to read this book again, especially right now.

However, this is one of SK's strongest horror novels.

I really like a lot of his older work, and this is no exception.

In my humble opinion, it's one of the scariest ones, just based on the subject matter.

The horror isn't really about a vampire chasing you or a rabid dog on the loose.

It's more psychological and introspective.

It's not always easy to read, but it's well-written and guides you through to the end.

Maybe don't read it now.

Read something happier.

But at least add it to your list and come back to it one day if you haven't read it already.