Duma Key: A Novel

I have read most of King's books, and have liked more better than others. But, I think that Duma Key maybe my favorite. I have read both the paperback and listened to the audio version (twice). Both are excellent, but in this case I prefered to read the story in my own voice in my own head. I found the story to be particularly absorbing. I read a lot, and have read a lot of books as a result, and I have found that my ability to get lost in a story has declined as I have gotten older. I have also found that my threshold for what I consider a "good" author and a "good" story has gotten much higher. Duma Key was the first book in a very long time that I got utterly lost in - in the stay up way to late without realizing it and listening to it while in the car, the gym, work, home, cleaning and even grocery shopping when my audio books are usually limited to gym and bathtub time. I will say again as I have said in other reviews of King's book, but King's ability to create such real and down to earth characters continually amazes me. They leap off the page, they walk and talk and think and feel and I do all those things with them, every step of the way. From the very begining, I get to know these characters and care about them. He writes his characters with realism and sympathy while at the same time drawing no line and never stopping short. Every flaw and shortcoming is expressed as deeply as every virtue. Some reviewers found that the plot of the story degenerated into the bizzarre and the crazy. Maybe it does, but I stayed on that ride until the end and loved every minute of it, and every minute seemed as realistic and real to me as the moment before. One of the things I like most about King as an author is he is not afraid to delve into the bizzarre and the crazy. He takes me places and into worlds and realms that no other author would or even could even if such things occured to them. One of my favorite books of his in the Langoliers, completely unrealistic and bizzarre, but I've read and listened to the audio version of that story over and over. No other author I've read writes the stories King writes. So, while the book does take a turn into the truly weird, trust me its worth the ride. I also especially enjoyed Duma Key in that it was set in Florida. I have never been to florida, and have never lived on the beach, but I felt like I was THERE, with the sun and the ocean, sand under my feet and wind in my hair. And, the main characters has lost an arm, and the ways in which he has to compensate and function, what he feels and how he forgets and then remembers, is all made so real I feel like I might actually know now what it is like to lose a limb. This and other things like it from Duma Key have stayed with me long after I've put it down and keep me coming back. I am actually on here today to order th...

This book has a great pacing, there are times where it’s shaking and grooving, and other times where it slows down (but usually to allow you to understand important plot point), all in all an excellent ride. This book got me into reading in a way I have never really experienced before. Usually I read a book a year, if that… Since I finished Duma Key in May of this year I have consumed 3 other books, 2 of which were by King. All in all, fantastic story

Ahh... what can I say about Duma Key, other than it being an extraordinary experience, a literary breath of fresh air, a masterpiece of color and texture without any actual paint being used. I guess there are some people out there who think it's boring or long and not horror (what? you won't mind if this happens to you?) but I instantaneously felt a bond with the book and I can say that I absolutely loved it! The writing itself was so colorful and interesting that I enjoyed each and every page, there was in no rush to get to the ending by any means, but I did like the end, it matched the enigmatic feel of the story and it had a lush, tropical feel to it but it was tainted by something dark and eerie and quite frankly very creepy because it was deadly and corroded with rot. This was an artsy book which took the art rush to a new level, the characters affected by the story could have never imagined their demise and whether they believed in it or not, it was coming. I was attracted to this book right away, partially because of the cover; it always begged to be read and as an artist it touched my sensors in ways that kept me thinking of it often so I finally had to sit down and read it and also because one of my best friends started reading it and I had to follow suit so we could enjoy and discuss it together, it was a real treat to read it at the same time and marvel at the unfolding story. Edgar Freemantle is a handicapped man who moves to a mythical island of Duma Key, a place that doesn't exist in reality but seems more real than half the vacation spots I've been in. He rents an eccentric salmon colored house in the outskirts close to the water and starts painting with his remaining arm, paintings that change his life - at first for the better but later he realizes that his new found gift is very hungry, and it hungers for things most precious to him. His recovery seems to progress until he starts feeling his missing arm while at the same time strange storms are coming to the island and things that shouldn't be real are happening, Edgar knows that his paintings have more power and meaning than he could have ever imagined and it's up to him to solve the mystery that has enshrouded Duma Key for generations and left many skeletons during it's reign. The story jumps off the cliff with an appearance of a ship on the horizon, Edgar knows that it's not good news, something strange and deadly is on that ship and the closer it gets to him during the stronger the storms around him and his loved ones grow. Even stranger is the sudden deep hold on his sudden artistic talents and the results are quite shocking, but hey they make for great reading. After reading it I can safely say that it's one of my favorite books ever, I even got the hard cover version so I could have the full dust jacket with it's glorious art to see while I read the paperback and car...

As an author of Florida-themed novels myself, I was curious to see how Stephen King would write about the region. As a longtime fan of this fascinating author, I found his take on life in the warm climes of Florida was indeed delightful and insightful. In my opinion, King is one author who can write in first-person without boring you with "I this and I that" type dialogue, which he did with Duma Key. He is also a master at painting vivid pictures of his characters, so that you literally see them as you are reading, which only draws you deeper into the story, as if you are a part of it. Edgar Freemantle, the main character of the novel, is one interesting dude, even with only one arm to call his own. Halfway through the book, I found myself reminiscing about Pet Semetary, another of his brilliant novels, because of the way the story twisted into a similar theme of bringing dead things to life...or the opposite, if he so chose. I have a feeling that King's memories of his own brush with death several years back had a lot to do with this story on Duma Key. What goes on in Edgar's head regarding his missing limb is just too "right on" not to have come from a similar personal experience. More often than not, when bad things happen to people the experience is like being reborn, if you can keep your head screwed on straight without going insane. Suddenly, you have no choice but to re-evaluate your life, and even though you may have lost something or someone near and dear to your heart, at the same time you gain another perspective, or in Edgar's case, a new career and a new passion; making do with what you have and doing it brilliantly, for a little while, at least. I think that's what King was trying to portray throughout this story, even though Edgar's paintings had ulterior motives. "Artistic types aren't morning people", Edgar is quoted as saying more than once in this book, which made me wonder about myself. I'm a huge morning person, often getting up at four or five in the morning...but then, I don't consider myself artistic in the sense of a painter. Maybe it's the creative writers who are the ones getting up before the chickens. Hmmm...I may have to disagree with King here. Elizabeth Eastlake, although portrayed as just a senile old woman who wore big blue sneakers in the beginning of the book, morphed into an icon toward the middle part of the story, and I fell in love with her, much the same as Edgar and her caretaker Wireman did. One of King's revelations in the book that I thought was excellent: "How to Draw a Picture - Be brave. Don't be afraid to draw the secret things. No one said art was always a zephyr; sometimes it's a hurricane." Okay...I wrote all of the above at the halfway point of the book...or thereabouts. What happens on the backside of halfway is what gav...

All the elements I love. Articulate in how it’s written. Very descriptive so that I fully visualize every bit. Great supernatural element. So good!