New English Library (Hodder & Stoughton)

1980 London, paperback £5.99

ISBN 0 450 04018 6

"The world's most successful living writer." Such had I heard, and I was also acutely aware that I'd not read even one of Stephen King's novels. I had, however, seen various films and TV adaptations -- but my only direct experience of King's writing was the novella "Everything's Eventual," published in the 1997 October/November double issue of The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction.

An enquiry in the Usenet Newsgroup rec.arts.sf.written brought many recommendations, and I subsequently obtained a copy of The Shining. I saw Kubrick's film many years ago, but my only recollection is the maniacal grimace on the face of Jack Nicholson, and the vague feeling that I didn't understand what had caused him to go berserk. The book soon changed that.

The 'shining' of the title is the rare telepathic ability of five-year-old Danny, whose family moves to the isolated Overlook Hotel for the winter, as his father -- a reformed-alcoholic English teacher and spare-time writer -- takes on the job of winter caretaker. They settle into the routine of the hibernating hotel, but when deep snow cuts them off from the rest of civilisation the Overlook comes alive with its evil past.

The strength of the novel is its characterisation. King gives us detailed insights into the four main characters, taking his time to deliver a slow plot, reaching a terrifying conclusion in the last fifty pages. The denouement is, perhaps, a little too pat, and the writing is quirky in places, but it has an assurance that belies its plain style. Despite the slowness of the narrative, it's a page-turner -- mostly due to its superb character-development.

Some of the images -- the blurring of reality and imagination within the hotel and its grounds -- take some swallowing, but supernatural horror demands suspension of disbelief. King stretches the suspension a good deal, but compensates with the concreteness of his characters. The Shining is a good read, with a satisfying conclusion.

Thanks to Karen Wingfield for the loan of the review copy.

Copyright © 1998 Paul S. Jenkins

Note: This review originally appeared in the Usenet Newsgroup rec.arts.sf.reviews.