Customer Reviews

Blood And Smoke

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

This audio book was a nice surprise from Mr. King. Just in time for the holidays, like a Christmas present from my favorite author. This title is only available on audio, so don't bother looking for a book version. It is 3 stories read by the author himself, all dealing with smoking, hence the title, and you can't have a Stephen King book without a little blood. This audio is cleverly packaged like a cigarette box and even contains a warning label not to listen to in the dark. A true treat for any Stephen King fan.

"1408"~is about a bestselling author of true ghost stories who faces the ultimate challenge: spend a night in New York City's most haunted hotelroom--and he must live to write about it without the help of his ex-best friends, his cigarettes.

"In The Deathroom"~This one is about a man who is held captive in South American and discovers smoking isn't always hazardous to your health.

"Lunch at the Gotham Cafe"~is about a man going through some intensely painful times--his wife has just left him and he's just quit smoking. He's hoping for a reconciliation, but what happens when he meets his estranged wife and her lawyer for lunch at a cafe in NYC will shock you.

I had never listened to an audio book in my life. In fact, I had done everything I could to avoid them. Friends and family recommended this one or that, but I politely avoided each one thinking to myself that this fad was heralding the death of the printed word. I probably would never have listened to one, but my favorite author made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Stephen King's new release, Blood and Smoke, is only available on audio.

Blood and Smoke is a collection of three stories (two never before published) with a common thread of smoking binding them together. The first story, "Lunch at the Gotham Cafe," is a story of addiction and withdrawal, as a man tries to quit smoking on the same day that his wife leaves him. In "1408," a writer who chronicles "haunted" places visits a supposedly haunted hotel room, unable to imagine that there are some things more frightening than ghosts. The last story, "In the Deathroom," follows an American journalist who is being interrogated in a South American prison, where a cigarette may be his last request or his salvation.

Each story in Blood and Smoke wonderfully showcases King's ability to write. From the everyday to the surreal, the descriptions he uses create a world in the listener's mind that eliminates the need for video. King could have made a fortune writing for old time radio theater.

While "Lunch at the Gotham Cafe" and "In the Deathroom" are interesting in their own way, neither is particularly frightening. "1408," however, offers bone-chilling storytelling combined with King's personal brand of the unreal. I listened to this story, the longest of the three, late one Saturday night, unaware how unnerving it would be. King doesn't make it scary from the beginning, but first lets the listener drop his/her guard before delivering the punch. It's a wonderfully eerie story and highly recommended.

Several years ago, King lectured at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. It was a perfect night for him. The rainy October night had set a spooky mood, and fans of King filled the hall to hear him speak about his latest release (Insomnia) and read excerpts from it. From that experience, I came to the conclusion that an author's voice can lend something special to his/her words.

Hearing King read Blood and Smoke is like having him in your living room, sharing a tale with you in front of a roaring fire. There's just you and him. His Maine-accented voice comes out of your stereo speakers and sucks you into his imagination. It's not always scary, but it is entertaining.

Yet, there is something confining about an audio book. Unless you have a portable CD (or cassette) player, you can't take it with you. You can't pull it out of your backpack while you wait for an appointment or sit in your favorite coffee shop with a caffinated beverage. Worst of all, on a CD you can't bookmark your place and come back to it later. All in all, I'll stick with the printed word, but Blood and Smoke is a nice treat for any Stephen King fan.

I found this on accident, while looking for what to spend a newly gotten gift certificate on. King has always been my favorite author and i was surprised that something of his was released without my being aware--i'm even on the mailing list for christ's sake! So, of course, i grabbed it as fast as i saw it, and, boy is it good! "Gotham Cafe," which i'd read in the Bad Love collection, is a great horror story, as is the next story "1408." What with his newer releases all more general fiction than horror, it's nice to see he'll never lose his guiginol touch. The last story is, of course, a remarkable character-driven story, and one which will hopefully reach a larger audience if placed in print. Either way, though, this collection is just as addicting as any pack of Marlboros, and even moreso recommended.

I don't normally buy audio books, but decided to make an exception for this one(as it's read by Stephen King himself)and boy, was I in for a pleasant surprise! hearing it told in the authors own voice is a treat for any true King fan, he adds a delicious slice of irony to the three stories, and makes the whole experience even better! A word of warning though - make sure you listen to '1408' in the daytime, with plenty of light - I didn't, and I was seriously spooked for days after - you can't beat a good ghost story! Keep them coming Stephen - I for one will be eagerly awaiting your next audio book, especially if its read by yourself!

Please do not listen to the 1-3 star reviews below. Stephen King is the true pinnacle of the audio book, both as a writer and narrator. Like Faulkner is to the printed word. Like the Beatles or Beethoven are to music. Like Kubric is to the cinema. I do a lot of audio book listening as a part of my work and over the last few years and countless audio books, I have come to the opinion that Stephen King is made for audio books. The truth be told, I have a hard time reading his books (when I read, I like the experience to be a little more stimulating) - but listening to them, especially when he is the narrator, is a pure joy. He is the ultimate storyteller, both in substance and tone. Yes, his voice is slightly unusual, but to hear him read his own words is to know that nobody else can do it better. I will take his readings of Bag of Bones (all 20-30 hours of it) over Willem Defoe or William Hurt reading some of his Four Past Midnight stories any day. Blood and Smoke is no exception. Thank you Stephen! You have found your true media.

Stephen King is a brilliant writer and I love hearing him read his work aloud. These three stories once again prove his talent. The only problems I had with this set of tapes were technical. First, "Lunch at the Gotham Cafe" has been previously published in an anthology of horror stories so it was nothing new (also the tape reads "Lunch IN at the Gotham Cafe"). The music which opens and closes "1408" was so overbearing that it was hard to concentrate on Mr. King's voice. These things are probably beyond his control and didn't do much to lessen my enjoyment of the tapes. I highly recommend "Blood and Smoke" to anyone who likes Mr. King's work.

This, as far as I'm concerned, is the first frightening bit of horror Mr. King has released in quite some time. And it rocks. The first story petered out like ZZ Top song with no substative ending, but beyond that, this collection thumps. I don't scare easily, but the story 1408 had me doing sanity checks for the next two days. I don't know if I'll ever stay in an old hotel again. The exposition leading to the horror is unparalleled. The horror itself NEVER lets you go. The falling action, as it turns out, is just a little more horror, toned down to allow our pulses to normalize. The last story is just a bit of flavor and a good yarn like the first, but unlike the first, it feels more complete. But, my God, the second tale, 1408, must be heard to be believed. Listen to it in the dark, alone, at night, preferably in an old hotel room.

Enter the Gotham Cafe, have lunch, experience what our protagonist in the first of three typically deep King stories is suffering. Steve Davis has quit smoking. Bad timing. His wife is asking for a divorce. They meet at the Gotham Cafe with his wife's lawyer for lunch to discuss terms. What follows is far worse than any craving for a cigarette or losing a wife can feel like. And a story you will not soon forget. In the second story, "1408", Mike Enslin is a writer whose books are about all the nights he has spent in supposedly "haunted" houses, castles, graveyards. Now he is to spend the night in room 1408 of the Dolphin hotel. He doesn't believe anything different will happen to him here than what happened to him in all those other "haunted" places, namely, nothing. But "nothing" is far from what happens one dark night in room 1408 and Mike Enslin will not come out the same man who went into that room. In the third story "In the Deathroom", Stephen King's talent for storytelling will have you believing that yes, you can feel the cold gray tile on the floor in this room, you can hear the steady hum of the torture machine, and you can smell the all pervasive odor of death that awaits a man named Fletcher, held captive here and being forced to tell all. In all three tales, told in Stephen King's own voice, the main character begins as one person, and ends up as quite another. All three men are changed profoundly, and all three men can link this change to smoking, or the cessation of. A brilliant trio of Stephen Kingness, you will at once find yourself grossed out at the Gotham Cafe, frightened to death in room 1408, and scared but hopeful in "the Deathroom".

Blood and Smoke deals with the typical smoker: the one that desperately dreams of giving it up and simultaneously can't live without it(it's just like that thing with women, can't live with 'em, but can't live without 'em either - sorry, my first line just reminded me of this old saying). Smoking is carefully woben into the kas (for those of you who have not made acquaintance with King's Dark Tower series and books like Insomnia and Rose Madder yet where he occasionally drops this term, it does mean "fate" or "live" seen in a more interconnected context)of the three main characters who join you on this 4 hour (just a guess) experience; it also connects with the sudden impacts of events that shatter the lives of these three guys and makes the stories King has to tell unique. Although King has written a lot of better stories, this set of three short stories read by King himself is classic story-telling, it's just good old-fashioned (not Wendy's hamburgers but) Stephen King, who starts reading when me made ourselves comfortable in our favorite chair and starts pushing when you are not prepared for it - shoving us into the world of these three guys ... shoving us into the live of the smoker with all the dangers that are ready to jump right on him. The package this cd-set comes in also is a nice exemple for taking pride in your work. The package looks like a huge pack of King-sized Marlboros with Stephen King's head in the middle. The pack even bears a Surgeon General's warning, making you realize that with opening this package and inserting the first cd into your player you get hooked immedeately ... on three unfiltered tales of blood and smoke.

Man oh man, was this ever outstanding!! Before I go on, I just wanted to let you guys and gals know, this isn't for sale as a book, just in tape or cd.

The first is called, "Lunch at the Gotham Cafe." This is a story of a man who is going through a divorce and has to meet his ex and her lawyer. He has no idea at the horror which is waiting for him. What makes this so wonderful is when you get to the end....you undstand the horror and what drives the person to the edge, and knows that it can happen to any of us. I know that makes no sense, but when you listen to the story, it will, promise. I just dont' want to spoil it.

1408 is down right spooky!! At one point I had to snap the light on b/c I got the willies. This is a story of a man who is "ghost Hunter" and has writen several book on haunted houses and graveyards.....ect. He thinks he's prepared for what awaits for him...nothing can prepare him for what's waiting for him in Room 1408 in a hotel. What makes matters worse is that he's an ex-smoker. Perhaps it was the wrong time to quit. He will need all the vices he can get...if he wants to live through the night.

The last story that King reads in called, "In the Deathroom". I'm not going to sya to much about his story, except that smoking saved the life of a man who is at the hands of an evil and toruous man. Then odds swing in the man's favor when his captors offer him a cigarette.

This is packaged in a box that looks like a box of cigarettes complete with a waring in the side. The warning tells the reader what could happen is you listen to this in the dark. I did..the warnings are true. If you are silly enought to do what I did, make sure your in a arms reach if the the light switch. For when you listen to this in the dark, the rules will change and the monsters will come out. Beware of the dark....

This is a must for all King fans