The Institute by Stephen King

[Elyse, Moderator]

Woot! Starting today we will be reading The Institute, Stephen King's newest book! Can't wait to start it when I get home!

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime]

I'm with you!

[Elyse, Moderator]

I read about 20 pages last night. I barely remember a thing I read. lol. The font is very small! Probably not good to read right before bed.

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime]

Awww! I'm reading on Kindle, read 11% last evening. So far, quite impressed; reads smoothly, reminds me of the titles I call "the literary King": Bag of Bones, Lisey's Story
Duma Key. I've a review title due Saturday, then I'll delve deep into The Institute.

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime]

At 28% and astonished how much I really like it! Feels great after (in the past) suffering Cell, Under the Dome, The Outsider, and Revival. Instead, The Institute is going to be a favourite, along with Duma Key, Lisey's Story, and Bag of Bones.

As to content: (view spoiler)[ Hello, Juvenile Guantanomo! The inmates are in control of the Asylum! I hope all the kids escape and The Institute is destroyed in a fiery conflagration. (hide spoiler)]

[Elyse, Moderator]

I'm about 100 pages in. Would've have liked more reading time this weekend but was super busy! And then I needed to catch up on my DVR queue. lol. Not really sure how I feel about it yet but it is wordy! Oh King.

[Elyse, Moderator]

I'm sad that I haven't been able to pick this up all week. :(

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime]

I reached 47%; but--NINTH HOUSE and BEFORE THE DEVIL FELL arrived at midnight on Tuesday.... So I've been doing catch-up ARC reading daytimes....and the wonderful glorious O M G NINTH HOUSE every evening/night....

[Elyse, Moderator]

Autumn Is Azathoth wrote: "I reached 47%; but--NINTH HOUSE and BEFORE THE DEVIL FELL arrived at midnight on Tuesday.... So I've been doing catch-up ARC reading daytimes....and the wonderful glorious O M G NINTH HOUSE every e..."

Got my copy of Ninth House too and gahhh I don't have time for it!!! lol. Nov 1 I will be reading it.

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime]

Oh, Elyse! You are in for such an experience! This is one of the few novels I rate as highly as I do John Connolly, Tim Powers, Neal Stephenson, and Dean Koontz' Jane Hawk Series. I am over the moon with it. Over Neptune and Pluto, too. After Ninth House I'll read Before the Devil Fell--more Legacy witchcraft in New England..I feel a theme coming on...:) (Hex, The Witches of New York, The Witches of Eastwick, a reread of The Thirteen.)

[Elyse, Moderator]

Autumn Is Azathoth wrote: "Oh, Elyse! You are in for such an experience! This is one of the few novels I rate as highly as I do John Connolly, Tim Powers, Neal Stephenson, and Dean Koontz' Jane Hawk Series. I am over the moo..."

I actually haven't read any of Bardguo's books yet...eep!

[Icy-Cobwebs-Crossing-SpaceTime]

I actually haven't read any of Bardguo's books yet..


Nor had I--but if they are any bit as good as Ninth House, I'll certainly read all!:)

[Elyse, Moderator]

Autumn Is Azathoth wrote: "I actually haven't read any of Bardguo's books yet..


Nor had I--but if they are any bit as good as Ninth House, I'll certainly read all!:)"

haha oh good!

[Charleen]

Well I had meant to check in before now, but I just finished The Institute tonight. Overall I really enjoyed it.

Thoughts on the ending:
(view spoiler)[I was a little bothered by the fact that the ending, the "three months later" part, was such a huge info dump, but not too much because I really don't know how else you'd do it. The part that really bugged me is that these precogs didn't see that bringing Luke into the Institute was the thing that would be its downfall. It's mentioned a couple times in the course of the story that it's his exceptional intellect, not his mild TK abilities, that are his real superpower, and they would have been better off leaving him alone. So I was really expecting it to be brought up again at the end. Either something about the probabilities being low enough that they picked him up anyway, or even just a quip like, "Guess they didn't see that coming." The lack of anything made it feel incomplete, to me anyway. (hide spoiler)]

[Elyse, Moderator]

I'm 200 pages in. It's finally picking up!

[Elyse, Moderator]

I finished right after Dewey's ended! (view spoiler)[The end reveal was disappointing. Felt like Minority Report with the precogs. And you're right, Charleen! (hide spoiler)] But I did like it overall. Not my favorite King book but pretty good nonetheless.

[Stacie]

My hold on this came in on this yesterday and I got about 50 pages in before bedtime. I'm a little late to this party, but better late than never, right? ;)

[Elyse, Moderator]

Stacie wrote: "My hold on this came in on this yesterday and I got about 50 pages in before bedtime. I'm a little late to this party, but better late than never, right? ;)"

Hardly late! :)

[Juli, Moderator]

Stacie wrote: "My hold on this came in on this yesterday and I got about 50 pages in before bedtime. I'm a little late to this party, but better late than never, right? ;)"

Not late at all. Kingtober is really more of a Kingyear in my mind.

[Stacie]

Ok, that was a fast read, once you actually get to the main character (view spoiler)[Tim Jamieson is just so boring. I know starting with him is meant to make his part at the end less deus ex machina-y, but still... total milktoast (hide spoiler)]. The story itself kind of reminded me of Firestarter and I did enjoy the little nods to his other books that he peppered in so that you knew this was in the same universe. Not my favorite of his, but solid, and I enjoyed enough to finish it in two days, lol!

[Elyse, Moderator]

Stacie wrote: "Ok, that was a fast read, once you actually get to the main character [spoilers removed]. The story itself kind of reminded me of Firestarter and I did enjoy the little nods to his ot..."

I also disliked the first part. Blah blah boring!

[Carol]

Am just starting The Institute. Better late than never!

[Stacie]

Carol wrote: "Am just starting The Institute. Better late than never!"

Best thing about books: They wait patiently until you get to them whether it's a day, a year or a decade!

[Elyse, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Am just starting The Institute. Better late than never!"

Woot! Feel free to talk about it as you're reading! :)

[Juli, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Am just starting The Institute. Better late than never!"

Yay, Carol! I haven't started, even though I kept meaning to since it came out. I might join you soon. I haven't been in the mood for horror lately. GASP!

[Juli, Moderator]

@Carol, I just started and I'm really liking it so far. I'm enjoying learning about Tim and the tiny town of DuPray! I did not like the inaccuracies about Tampa's airport location lol and no way do people living in that part of Florida have a southern drawl - they're mostly NY explants.

[Juli, Moderator]

I finished the book early this morning. I quite liked it!

[Carol]

Juli wrote: "I finished the book early this morning. I quite liked it!"

Wow! That was quick. I think I will finish it tomorrow. Am about 80% done and am really liking it so far.

[Juli, Moderator]

Carol wrote: "Juli wrote: "I finished the book early this morning. I quite liked it!"

Wow! That was quick. I think I will finish it tomorrow. Am about 80% done and am really liking it so far."

Yes, Carol! If I get sucked in by King (which is true for most of his books), I can't stop reading, lol!