Stephen King's Best Novel?

clovis-man said:
I agree with several others that The Stand may be his best. But I also found Needful Things to be worthwhile among his many other works. I actually found an antique shop on the Oregon coast with the same name and discovered the best "finds" there in comparison to any other such retail establishment I've ever visited.
Click to expand...
I'm glad someone else likes Needful Things. It's the first King I read and has probably remained my favourite because of that (also because of how it revels in pure carnage and destruction).

For a King newbie I would recommend The Stand, It, Insomnia, Pet Sematary or The Shining as quite a few others have said.

Other King books that I liked, but probably wouldn't recommend to begin with, are Lisey's Story, Duma Key and Salem's Lot. If you do read Salem's Lot I reckon you'll get a lot more out of it if you've recently read or are closely acquainted with Dracula.
 
I've got an oddball choice. Bag of Bones. I think I read the book in two sittings. I just HAD to know what happened next. There was a dream sequence in this book that will stay with me the rest of my life. Truly creeped me out. Thus was also just something very personal and heartbreaking about this novel.
 
For all time scares, read Needful Things. It's the only book as an adult I was too scared to finish. And I love horror.

If you can stomach the 1000+ page uncut version of the Stand, I'd recommend that too.

Insomnia and Desperation are up there on my top five list - Insomnia because of the different take on protagonists (the two heroes are pensioners) and Desperation because of the mash of religion with psychotic.

The Shining is incredibly well written, but for me I was so busy admiring the narrative I forgot to be scared.

Avoid some of his newer work though, like Cell - he simply isn't trying in that one!

N
 
Needful Things, Insomnia, The Talisman, The Shining

IT started off well but was a dismal ending and the film was awful

Pet Semetary was readable but again the film was dire
 
If by 'best' you mean the most scary or horror-like, I would have to recommend IT. There was something unsettling and creepy pervading that entire story, and I must admit I haven't quite felt the same while reading other horror novels (though I read IT when I was still in high school).

I guess it really depends on if you're a reader who appreciates a good ending, or the journey as a whole. I didn't find the end all that disappointing, to be honest.
 
I loved IT right up till the last few chapters, it had me hooked from the start when I was 14 and I think the ending upset me because I loved the book so much. Pennywise was a truly chilling character
 
suupaabaka said:
If by 'best' you mean the most scary or horror-like, I would have to recommend IT.
Click to expand...
I'd have to agree with this. I've read all of SK's offerings, but this was the only one which truly scared me (an honourable exception being Salem's Lot). It's a fantastic novel, and along with The Stand probably ranks as a highpoint of his writing career.
 
The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon..............Just kidding!;)

Top of the list:
It, The Dark Tower series, Pet Semetary, Salem's Lot, Cell, any of his collections(novellas and short stories), The Shining, Christine, Dreamcatcher, Desperation, Misery, The Tommyknockers, The Talisman, Blackhouse, Insomnia, Bag of Bones, Duma Key, The Stand, Needful Things and Gerald's Game.

Middle of the road:
Lisey's Story, Carrie, Cujo, Regulators, The Dark Half, Dolores Claiborne, Firestarter, The Green Mile, and Thinner.

Bottom of the Barrel:
The Dead Zone, The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, From A Buick 8, Rose Madder, The Colorado Kid, and Cycle of the Werewolf. Keep in mind though that From A Buick 8 has ties to The Dark Tower for sure, really everything he has written is based on the idea of alternate realities, an idea that plays a significant role in The Dark Tower.

I didn't care for The Dead Zone much at all when I first read it, but I would really like to reread it, tastes change as you grow older.

I have yet to read Eyes of the Dragon, The Bachman Books collection, Under the Dome, Full Dark No Stars, or Blaze.
 
Last edited:
Instead of picking my favourites, I'm going to pick the one I think Gollum will like the most (out of the ones I've read). I'm going to say Pet Semetary.
 
dlsevern said:
Ever read Robert McCammon's "Swan Song", kinda reminiscent of "The Stand" but I felt it was a very enjoyable read.
Click to expand...

Loved Swan Song as well and really need to get another copy, my old one was "borrowed" years ago and disapeared.
 
Hard to say which is his "best" so I'll just list the ones I have re-read the most.

The Stand, Salems Lot, Dead Zone, Pet Semetary, The Talisman/Black House, Desperation(def. one for those who find Kings writing bloated), Insomnia, Needful Things, The Dark Half, Dreamcatcher, and the two I am always reading it seems.. IT and Bag of Bones.

Ones to avoid - Tommyknockers, Christine, Rose Madder, Geralds Game
The rest all fall somewhere in between for me.
 
I'd say his best is Under the Dome.

And I also really love The Stand, 'Salem's Lot, Misery, Desperation, Insomnia, and Cell.
 
Duma Key was surprisingly good, a return to his '80's style. It (the book) didn't pass the test of time for me and Carrie was a solid but beginning effort, in my opinion.

He hit his stride with The Stand and The Talisman (if you'll consider the co-authorship).

The Long Walk from the Backman collection has stuck with me, haunted me, over the years.
 
No-one else has said my favorite (probably because I haven't read nearly as much Stephen King as the rest of you all), but my favorite was "The Long Walk", which he wrote as Bachman. Other stories that I read by him that I really liked were "The Running Man" (another Bachman), "The Stand", and "The Cycle of the Werewolf". "The Eye of the Dragon", "The Gunslinger" and "Cujo" were ok IMO. And the ones I liked the least were "The Drawing of the Three" and "The Girl Who Loved Tom Robinson". I didn't even read the Dark Tower past "The Drawing of the Three".

Of course a lot of the folks on here have read a lot more than I have, but that's what I thought about what I've read.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread starter Similar threads Forum Replies Date
Pyan Stephen King's books, ranked. Book Discussion 26
Brian G Turner Stephen Hawking's last paper: multiverses follow the laws of physics Science & Nature 161
Brian G Turner Stephen King's Dark Tower: Trailer! General Film Discussion 31
Toby Frost Stephen King's tarot of monsters Writing Discussion 13
dolphintornsea How Do You Rate Stephen King's Story Collections? Stephen King 9

Similar threads


Back
Top