Drinky Hits the Nail on the Head: WTF happened to Stephen King?

[The Fake Shemp]

The man used to be so good.  Salem's Lot is one of the best horror novels in American literature, and the best modern vampire story by far.  Now he pumps out pure shit; locked in eternal combat with Dean Koontz on who can churn out the most formulaic manuscripts in a morning bowel movement.

[Phoenix Dark]

He's more of a brand now, it seems. Like a factory that churns out stuff on a consistantly mediocre basis. Sort of like EA

[The Fake Shemp]

I think the last books of his I even moderately liked were Desperation and The Regulators, and that was more of a novelty due to the cool interlocking covers and how they used the same characters in different roles.

[whiteACID]

Cell had potential, it was good at the beginning but the ending sucked.

[Mupepe]

The Dark Towers series is still fucking fantastic.  Classics.

[BenjaminBirdie]

I liked Cell from front to back, The Dark Tower is pretty much infallible.  I've been a lot kinder to his work than most.

[Van Cruncheon]

I hated the first two Dark Tower books -- it's like he got all his ideas from the vastly superior Peter Straub and then railroaded them all into his horribly formulaic style. Are the later ones any better? Maybe I've simply outgrown him.

Haven't read Cell, because a) the plot idea was distinguished mentally-challenged; b) The Stand really wasn't all that good anyway; and c) I haven't liked a book he's written since The Shining. Actually, Salem's Lot, The Shining, and Carrie are the only three books he's written I feel are legitimately good.

[Bacon]

Remember when he tried to remake The Shining? Haha what a taco.

[Mupepe]

I hated the first two Dark Tower books -- it's like he got all his ideas from the vastly superior Peter Straub and then railroaded them all into his horribly formulaic style. Are the later ones any better? Maybe I've simply outgrown him.

Haven't read Cell, because a) the plot idea was distinguished mentally-challenged; b) The Stand really wasn't all that good anyway; and c) I haven't liked a book he's written since The Shining. Actually, Salem's Lot, The Shining, and Carrie are the only three books he's written I feel are legitimately good.

The first two are mediocre at best because they're setting everything up.  I just finished Book 6 and it's one of the best books I've ever read.  The pacing picks up tremendously around book 4.

The Stand is my best example of a "Great Idea, Horrible Execution" syndrome.  Oh god, it makes me want to punch him in the balls thinking what that book could have been.

Have you read Insomnia?  His greatest book IMO.  I love it.

And just for reference, I own every Stephen King/Other Pen Names books ever written not counting the crap that's been written in the last 3 or 4 years.  Bag of Bones and the Dark Tower books are all I've bought of his in the last 4 years or so.

[Van Cruncheon]

Hm. Maybe I'll give the series another shot.

[cubicle47b]

I thought books 5, 6, and 7 of the Dark Tower series were mediocre.  1 is alright, 2 is good, 3+4 are great, then 5 is back to okay, 6 is meh, and 7 is okay again (most of the time).

Wizard and Glass is the best of the Dark Tower books IMO.