Customer Reviews

Pet Sematary

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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How far would you go to protect someone you love? That, not cemetaries, cats, or scary shenanigans, is the true horror of Stephen King's "Pet Sematary".

Basically, with no major spoilers, the plot centers on a young family, the Creeds, who move to Maine for a new start. Shortly after the move, neighbor Judd Crandall shows Louis Creed (the father) a rather supernatural place that can perform miracles beyond human comprehension. However, when a tragedy rocks the Creeds and Crandalls to the very core of both families, Louis must make the horrible decision of whether or not to use that magical power (which also contains some rather unfortunate consequences for the user) for his own personal gain.

As is typical with King, the entire book (when not developing the characters, which is also quite important and interesting) is a morality play between "man" (which should represent good, but often does not) and "evil" (a dark force as old as time). What really will stick with you after you finish reading the novel, though, is how close you might come to making the exact same choice that Louis Creed ultimately does. The lines between what is "right" and what is "wrong" are blurred enough that each scenario could produce both "good" and "bad" consequences.

I am currently working my way through all of King's novels (in no particular order), and it never ceases to amaze me how he uses the same basic themes (man's struggle against evil) to create exciting fiction. I guess part of it has to do with the interesting characters he creates, which holds true in his book. Each character seems to add a new dimension to Louis' "big decision" towards the end of the book.

Thus, King fans can expect the same masterful story crafting in this novel, while newcomers to the master of suspense will find that the true horror of King is not in the physical/spiritual realms, but in the psychological thought processes we all have.

I used to be a huge Stephan King fan and I say "used to" because Pet Sematary is the last really scary book he wrote. Forget the movie; it doesn't do the book justice.

What makes this such a good story is the very "ordinariness" of the characters and the setting. What could be more all American than a young doctor, Louis, his wife and two children settling down in a small college town with two grandparent types for next door neighbors?

Everything appears nice and normal until Louis's first day on his new job but within hours, normal disappears and everything Louis holds dear is in terrible danger.

In some of King's later novels, the characters are at the mercy of evil that not only don't they understand, they can't even defend themselves. The people in Pet Sematary are forewarned of the danger, they make choices with their eyes wide open and once they do, there's no turning back.

If your want to get the full impact of this story, do like I did. Read it in the dead of night when everyone else is asleep and the house you're at is down the street from a cemetery.

Stephen King has wrote some of the creepiest books ever and this is one of them. Highly suggest

I have heard---heard, mind you---that King needed therapy while writing this novel; he---according to my source---was told by the aforementioned therapist that the only way to deal with the horror of what he had written so far was to finish it. Whether this is true or not almost doesn't matter. The fact is, this has to be among the most terrible, nightmarish, horrifying and disturbing novels ever penned. There are aspects of this book that are so upsetting it will almost depress you with it's bleak horror; and if you are a parent, do not read this book---ever. There's a reason why they call him "King"--- and it will be clear to you after making it through this hideous and harrowing ride into the darkest recesses of fear and madness, love and desperation, life and death. Arguably the greatest horror novel ever written.

If you want actual horror then this is the book for you. This is the first book by King that i ever read and it caught me hook line and sinker and made me an instant King fan! The movie is pitiful compared to the book. Whatever you do , read the book whether or not you have see the movie. It beats all the horror movies i have seen or read. I loved it! It has plenty of humor also. You gotta love King's humor! This book will grab you from page 1. You wont be sorry you bought it!

I had been planning to read this book for years and never got around to it. I'm glad I finally made it happen. It's a decent read. It's not as much horror as it is suspense and weirdness. It's the typical Stephen King creepiness. If you like his other stuff you will certainly dig this as well. (The dig reference will be funny after you read the book). It can be slightly "long" and inactive at times but tolerable. I recommend it.

I'm reading the book and the house starts creaking, with unaccounted for footfalls--no one was upstairs in the overhead condo either as her car was gone. It was a bit disconcerting. It happened to me several times. There's supposedly a ghost upstairs. Seriously. But... I digress.

This book has to do with zombies, that death can be overcome, for both pets and humans. It's pretty good, but two books I found scarier were Salems Lot and The Stand. The Stand, which I would rate as his scariest, I couldnt even finish because it was just too disgusting, weird, and creepy. This book, like The Shining, has a lot of superfluous details that get in the way of a scary story. It's great that he can cram so much detail into a novel, but it detracts from the scare factor--in my opinion. Also, I wanted the character Pascow, the dead guy, to have a more continuous role in the story line. He was the best part of the story at the beginning--very creepy and he sent shivers and goosebumps up my spine. Wow!!

But this book has an underlying love theme that is stronger than the scare factor. When Louis digs up his young, and very dead, son and holds his limp body in his arms, I was just tearing up. And anyone who has lost a loved one can certainly identify. The book really gains momentum by the last 100 pages (which is where he digs up his son), so it is worth sticking it out. I especially liked the very last line. I hope I didnt ruin it for anyone, but the point is, it's not just about pets.

Reading Stephen King's books alone in your house can be creepy. What was that bump? Do I have rats in the attic? Something else?

Stephen King Rocks!!

This was an excellent book in excellent shape. It was a present for my daughter and she was very happy with it.