by
3.88 of 5 stars
After an automobile accident, novelist Paul Sheldon meets his biggest fan. Annie Wilkes is his nurse-and captor. Now, she wants Paul to write his g... read full description

reviews

Aug 30, 2011
Bonnie rated it: 1 of 5 stars
Update: I haven't been here for a while (writing reviews, that is) so I didn't realize this required a <spoiler> alert </spoiler>. Also, I haven't been receiving updates until recently, so my apologies for not doing this sooner. And ~ I have a feeling I haven't used the correct format, re: spoiler alert, but I hope it will serve as sufficient warning.

No doubt there are many Stephen King fans who loved this book, but personally I am not into reading about chopping off a More...
6 comments like (10 people liked it)
Nov 12, 2007
Kate rated it: 5 of 5 stars
'Misery' is a gruesome story of torture with blood, guts, and a psychopath. It's a well told tale, the characters are well developed and the fact that there are only two of them never gets boring. It's a real page turner, in fact I finished it tonight after getting off the subway on the platform before I walked home. But, this book is more than just a thriller, just like King is more than just a pulp writer.

I read an article by the ever optimistic and cheerful Harold Bloom in college More...
4 comments like (28 people liked it)
Feb 02, 2012
Diletta rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Esistono essenzialmente tre tipologie di libri: quelli buoni, quelli mediocri, e quelli che non si sfangano (da questi parte un'ulteriore diramazione, quelli che tireremmo contro il muro).
La prima tipologia ha il vantaggio di farsi riconoscere subito: sappiamo immediatamente quando abbiamo tra le mani un buon libro. Quando procediamo senza accorgercene, quando non dobbiamo contare le pagine che mancano per finire il capitolo, quando non ci soffermiamo con aria di profondo interesse su un More...
0 comments like (4 people liked it)
Jun 20, 2010
Mary JL rated it: 4 of 5 stars
You may have seen the movie or you at least know the story. So, you think, why read it? Well, first the book differs somewhat from the move and goes into more depth. Since there are only really two major characers, Anne Wilkes and Paul Sheldon, her captive writer, King can delve into their characters at length--and he does.

I personally feel this is one of Stepehn King's strongest books. I particulary find it horrifying because it is a bit more possible that some of his books. I More...
5 comments like (14 people liked it)
Oct 01, 2007
John rated it: 5 of 5 stars
This has vaulted over almost every other Stephen King book I've read to my top spot, tied with Salems' Lot. I'll have to read Salems' Lot again to see if it really as as good as I remember. Misery is great, completely engrossing.
This book reminded me of something King said in "On Writing", about the writing process. He said to him sometimes, writing was like excavating a dinosaur skeleton. You find just a rib at first, that's like the initial idea. But the whole story is there, More...
0 comments like (6 people liked it)
Jul 09, 2008
Marian rated it: 5 of 5 stars
My first time ever picking up Stephen King, it was this book. And ever since then, my entire reading list was everything he's ever written, and I hailed Stephen King as my favorite author for years. Of course by now, having read most of his works, I wouldn't still say he's "the best writer ever". He's definitely produced some trash along with a few treasures. Misery is, without a question, one of the treasures.

Before Misery I had no idea that it was possible to sit at t More...
1 comment like (11 people liked it)
Dec 16, 2009
Pwntalive rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I read this book in Middle School. My mother had gone into a period of getting every king book as it came out. This was one of the 1st BIG novels i ever got into. Wow, what a mind warp for a 7th grader. I remember the feeling of dirty associated with this book. What caused this novel to be connected with such a feeling of profound filthiness? The book opens with the breath of life being breafed into the lungs of Mr. King by a fat woman what just binged on junk food. Imagine being awoken from dea More...
0 comments like (3 people liked it)
Feb 03, 2011
Jaz.parks rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Mi Opinión en:~Heart Shaped Box~

En mi opinión sobre la película The Collector dije que "Personalmente, me gusta ver películas que pertenecen al género Torture Porn, por que me gusta ver lo lejos que llega el hombre para vivir. Los límites del cuerpo humano, lo que puede o no aguantar. Lo que un hombre está dispuesto a hacer por vivir, o por otros.". En Misery yo puede ver, leer e imaginarme la sangre saliendo a chorros cuando Annie... Bueno, por que eso es lo que la Fan #1 More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Mar 25, 2009
I believe this is one of King's best-written stories I've read, and it's my least favorite kind of horror: the psychotic killer. But King really brought me into this world and made me a co-participant in the nightmare that one frustrated writer is experiencing. It has its in your face, gory moments, but it's very character driven in that the main protagonist spends quite a while alone initially. He has to come to terms with his situation and deal with the intense pain he is in, as well as hi More...
0 comments like (2 people liked it)
Feb 07, 2012
Anne Nikoline rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I can't really decided weather to give this novel three or four stars. So instead I'll try to put my rathing into words and let you decided weather this book is a four or three stared novel in continuation of my arguments.

Misery by Stephen King is a different horror novel than the author's other horror novels, because it is not scary in the same way, however, it is scary when it comes to the psychological aspects of the story, and I believe many people who are a devoted fan of somethi More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Oct 16, 2011
Rola rated it: 4 of 5 stars
بخصوص التقييم
أعطى للرواية الأصلية لستيفن كينج خمسة نجوم
وللمترجم أربعة نجوم
ولدار النشر فيما يختص بالطباعة ثلاث نجوم فقط
و سوف أفرد تفصيليا أسباب تقييمى هذا إن شاء الله

-----------------

تحديث

أما عن ستينف كينج فحدث و لا حرج
روائى بارع هو و استطاع ان يحبس أنفاسي حقا ... بل و يشعرنى بجميع آلام بول النفسية و الجسدية فى كل مرحلة عاشها خلال الرواية
الرواية ممتعة إلى أقصى حد
و كما قلت فى أثناء تقييمى خلال القراءة
أنا أعشق الف More...
4 comments like (3 people liked it)
Feb 07, 2011
Heather rated it: 5 of 5 stars
This book was INSANE! It was my first real introduction to King (besides the Gunslinger books, which are in a whole other category) and I have to say I absolutely loved it! I couldn't put it down. I have always loved the movie, but it's nothing compared to this. The character development was excellent, the pacing was fantastic, and it was so intense. THIS is how you write a suspense novel, Dean Koontz!

In particular, I loved the character of Annie and how she developed over the course More...
3 comments like (3 people liked it)
Jul 16, 2011
Felina rated it: 5 of 5 stars
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here
2 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jan 14, 2008
Mr. Shits rated it: 3 of 5 stars
The first novel I can remember ever reading. I never did see the movie, I think it was rated PG-13 or something and I couldn't go. Anyway I can't adequately describe my state of mind when I read this so here's someone else's review that sums up my thoughts and mirrors my experience almost exactly:

Pwntalive-
I read this book in Middle School. My mother had gone into a period of getting every king book as it came out. This was one of the 1st BIG novels i ever got into. Wow, what a More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Jun 15, 2008
Elizabeth rated it: 4 of 5 stars
This is one of the first books I can remember actually having to do the equivalent of closing-your-eyes-during-the-scary-bit-of-a-movie: I got to one particularly gruesome bit in the book and closed my eyes, turned the page, and started reading again. And I NEVER skip parts of books, but wow. And gah.

Wonderful book all the same though, excellent stuff. But not to be read at night, alone. (And the problem is, if you start reading it in the daytime, you're not going to be able to stop More...
0 comments like (3 people liked it)
Sep 21, 2008
Emilia rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Grudgingly, I give this four.
Let's just say that, save for her serial-murdering side, I identify pretty strongly with the fully envisioned villain of this story, the great Bee-Goddess, the one and only Annie Wilkes. So much so that I felt, for maybe the first half of the book, that Paul and King were being a little hard on her.
Uhhhhh....well... that is all to say, I think the monster-woman archetype is amazing and I was glad to get so much of one in such a claustrophobic atmosphere. More...
1 comment like (1 person liked it)
May 03, 2010
chucklesthescot rated it: 2 of 5 stars
Paul Sheldon became famous writing books about a woman called Misery but now he wants to put her behind him and write new things.When he finishes his new book,he has a serious car crash in an isolated spot and is rescued by Annie,a fanatical reader.She is not very happy when she finds out what he has done to Misery and she intends to keep him prisoner forever and make him write what she wants.
The book was ok but I prefer the film.I wasn't really interested in reading page after page of M More...
3 comments like (1 person liked it)
Oct 18, 2008
Melissa rated it: 2 of 5 stars
I had to read this for a course I took in college: Contemporary American Fiction. For me this book was a misery to read. It really wasn't my thing. Stephen King is an excellent author and is obviously very talented, but this isn't the type of book I usually read. It was out of my comfort zone and it wouldn't have been a title I would have read if I had a choice.

What I learned from this book? I learned that while I didn't enjoy the book myself, that Stephen King is an excellent More...
0 comments like (4 people liked it)
Nov 05, 2008
Jackie rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Another excellent novel by King. Oh how I miss him!
Intense, thrilling, gripping!
I especially liked the novel within a novel aspect of Misery. For some reason I always like that. Maybe because I'm getting two for the price of one. The romance novel of Misery Chastain was surprisingly good. Heretofore, SK was always my horror-guy. Never expected a romance novel from him. And what a unique way to do it.
Annie scared the hell out of me. Insanity and unpredicability is a ter More...
0 comments like (3 people liked it)
Mar 07, 2009
Jason rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I'd never read "Misery" before, and one a whim one night I picked it up from the bookshelf (this is why we have used book sales, folks, always have books to fall back on!) and I was glad I did.

Most of us are familiar with the story by now - Best-selling author Paul Sheldon wrecks his car in Colorado, only to be "rescued" by his Number One Fan, Annie Wilkes. But Annie is more like Number One Psycho, the one fan that every famous hopes they never meet, and begins More...
0 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jan 22, 2009
Pgao rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Finishing this book is a relief for me. It is an awesome book, dark and smothery. Descriptions about Annie, the antagonist, were scary. Annie was supposed to be a “psycho”, but Stephen king made her a “devil”. Paul Sheldon, the protagonist, was a pet for Annie. Since the story was so interesting and made me had a hard time to suppress myself turn to the last page, spoilers would ruin the book. Inner monologues took place through out the book, but sadly, all of them were Paul’s. Annie’s thoughts More...
Jan 11, 2012
Roe rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Roe Cole
A Block

In the book Misery by Stephen King a famous book writer named Paul Sheldon, gets into a car accident and shatters almost every bone in his legs. A complete stranger that’s a nurse has taken him to her small suburban house on the countryside to tend to him personally. The nurse’s name is Annie; she is the book writer’s biggest fan. She will not let him leave the house until he writes her her own book. The other reason the writer is forced to stay is because Anni More...
Dec 24, 2011
Roxanne rated it: 5 of 5 stars
This is one of my all-time favorite books. I usually really like Stephen King's work or I don't.

I always inform people I like reading suspense versus horror. To me the most horrifying things are those with the least amount of blood.

Like Misery, Cujo is another one of my all-time favorite books.

In this freaked out world that we live in, Misery was a very believable tale. It could really happen.

What captivated me even further about this book is the fact More...
Dec 08, 2011
Deborah rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Riveting stuff from Mr King as ever. I started this one thinking I'd take a few weeks to get through it but ended up finishing it in a day because I just couldn't bear not knowing what was going to happen next. Somehow this particular book and its movie version had escaped me until now. Always at the back of my mind as a 'must get round to' but never quite had its moment until now. No doubt there were some horrifying scenes within but for me it never quite tipped the scales into a 'horror' no More...
Nov 19, 2011
Michael rated it: 4 of 5 stars
The funniest thing about this book for me is that I read it when I was (no kidding) pissfully miserable, and in a dark-spidery-corner-of-the-basement way it cheered me up. Seriously. At least I wasn't tied to a book having my ankle hobbled by a ding-dong right? It's compelling, riveting and a smooth effortless read. Annie Wilkes has an oddly recognisable form of transferred craziness -(especially in this OK Magazine era when someone's diet tips are the stuff of legend and it's apparently ver More...
Oct 10, 2011
Edwin rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Excellent spinetingler, quite terrifying by its plausibility; the way any particular author's fandom grows in this crazy age, with its motley variety ranging from sane people to the bizarre ones, it's quite possible that one day a fan may decide that it'd be great to add the writer of his favorite books to his/her/its collection!
It's obvious that this books draws a lot of inspiration from Fowles' "The Collector", sprinkled by Mr. King's worst nightmare scenarios about that strang More...
Sep 17, 2011
Andrea rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Misery is a thrilling yet gruesome story of psychopathic frenzy. Paul Sheldon, the author of a famous series of Victorian romance novels called "Misery" falls victim to a massive snowstorm, and a bit of alcoholic over-indulgence, while driving through Colorado. His car crashes and he could have died but for his rescue by a devoted fan, Annie Wilkes. A former nurse, Annie brings Paul to her home and helps him recover from massive bodily damage. Once Paul begins his recovery, Annie's tru More...
Aug 19, 2011
Sarah rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Wow.

Where do I begin?

This book is so special. There are no words to describe just how engrossing it is. I read it every possible second I could, and I couldn't put it down. It's been a while since a book did this to me, and Misery reminded me why I love reading so much. Stephen King's writing style is fast-paced and engaging, with vivid imagery woven mellifluously throughout the entire book. 

Speaking of vivid imagery... Misery is probably the bloodiest and most horr More...
Apr 05, 2011
Ryan rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I was sitting in the movie theater with my sister waiting for our movie to begin. She was telling me about this killer Stephen King book she was reading, about a writer who goes off the road and crashes his car and someone rescues him. That someone turns out to be some crazy bitch. Things go a tad awry after that. A tad.

The lights in the theater dimmed and the first trailer began. Lo and behold if it wasn't the trailer for Rob Reiner's MISERY. I saw the film before reading the book. Wh More...
Apr 04, 2011
Chriskimpston rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Although I have not read a lot of Stephen King, everyone knows of his brand of horrific and tense stories that have both sold millions and been turned into horror movies for decades. This book, written in the fifties, is no exception. Some literary snobs may dismiss the book because they think of King as cheap genre fiction. However, these individuals would be missing some of the good (even great) elements of the story.

First of all, the story is horrific and gory. Of course. But the s More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)