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Cell: A Novel Hardcover – January 24, 2006
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There’s a reason cell rhymes with hell.
On October 1, God is in His heaven, the stock market stands at 10,140, most of the planes are on time, and Clayton Riddell, an artist from Maine, is almost bouncing up Boylston Street in Boston. He’s just landed a comic book deal that might finally enable him to support his family by making art instead of teaching it. He’s already picked up a small (but expensive!) gift for his long-suffering wife, and he knows just what he’ll get for his boy Johnny. Why not a little treat for himself? Clay’s feeling good about the future.
That changes in a hurry. The cause of the devastation is a phenomenon that will come to be known as The Pulse, and the delivery method is a cell phone. Everyone’s cell phone. Clay and the few desperate survivors who join him suddenly find themselves in the pitch-black night of civilization’s darkest age, surrounded by chaos, carnage, and a human horde that has been reduced to its basest nature...and then begins to evolve.
There’s really no escaping this nightmare. But for Clay, an arrow points home to Maine, and as he and his fellow refugees make their harrowing journey north they begin to see crude signs confirming their direction. A promise, perhaps. Or a threat...
There are 193 million cell phones in the United States alone. Who doesn’t have one? Stephen King’s utterly gripping, gory, and fascinating novel doesn’t just ask the question “Can you hear me now?” It answers it with a vengeance.
- Print length384 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherScribner
- Publication dateJanuary 24, 2006
- Dimensions6.13 x 1.3 x 9.25 inches
- ISBN-100743292332
- ISBN-13978-0739464335
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In Cell King taps into readers fears of technological warfare and terrorism. Mobile phones deliver the apocalypse to millions of unsuspecting humans by wiping their brains of any humanity, leaving only aggressive and destructive impulses behind. Those without cell phones, like illustrator Clayton Riddell and his small band of "normies," must fight for survival, and their journey to find Clayton's estranged wife and young son rockets the book toward resolution.
Fans that have followed King from the beginning will recognize and appreciate Cell as a departure--King's writing has not been so pure of heart and free of hang-ups in years (wrapping up his phenomenal Dark Tower series and receiving a medal from the National Book Foundation doesn't hurt either). "Retirement" clearly suits King, and lucky for us, having nothing left to prove frees him up to write frenzied, juiced-up horror-thrillers like Cell. --Daphne Durham
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From The Washington Post
Reviewed by George R.R. Martin
Copyright 2006, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.
Product details
- Publisher : Scribner (January 24, 2006)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 384 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0743292332
- ISBN-13 : 978-0739464335
- Item Weight : 1.52 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.13 x 1.3 x 9.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #575,628 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #463 in Psychic Thrillers
- #8,709 in Murder Thrillers
- #29,722 in Suspense Thrillers
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About the author

Stephen King is the author of more than fifty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His first crime thriller featuring Bill Hodges, MR MERCEDES, won the Edgar Award for best novel and was shortlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger Award. Both MR MERCEDES and END OF WATCH received the Goodreads Choice Award for the Best Mystery and Thriller of 2014 and 2016 respectively.
King co-wrote the bestselling novel Sleeping Beauties with his son Owen King, and many of King's books have been turned into celebrated films and television series including The Shawshank Redemption, Gerald's Game and It.
King was the recipient of America's prestigious 2014 National Medal of Arts and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for distinguished contribution to American Letters. In 2007 he also won the Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America. He lives with his wife Tabitha King in Maine.
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So when I heard that his self-imposed retirement had evaporated and that he would be releasing two new novels (I can't wait to read Lisey's Story) I was extremely happy. Never mind that I haven't finished The Dark Tower saga yet, I was eager to read King's latest jaunt into the horror genre, especially after hearing that it hearkens back to his work of old.
Cell is the story of graphic novel artist Clay Riddell and his quest to find his son (Johnny) and estranged wife (Sharon) after a mysterious Pulse, delivered via that little Pandora's Box know as a cell phone, drives most of the world's (?) population totally bonkers.
Early publicity for the book would have you believe that it was a spin on the zombie sub genre, but it's really more than that. King has created a monster within the mythology of Cell that is unlike any other spin we've seen on the zombie archetype (the opening chapter is really the only part of the book that in any way resembles its inspiration, such as Night of the Living Dead or 28 Days Later).
The book in and of itself is a very enjoyable read, but I did notice more grammar errors and at least one repeated sentence ("Clay sat down next to them," is repeated twice in one paragraph, for example) than is usual for Stephen King, but those errors are down to the editor not catching them. It happens to the best of authors.
The story itself is very lean. The reasons for the Pulse are only speculated by the characters, the story never leaves Clay Riddell's hip (unlike books like The Stand or The Dark Tower series, in which it tends to jump from character to character) and, because of this, it feels like a very personal journey in which we see what might happen to a man who loses everything, gains something else, and is forced to abandon it as well. The subtext isn't near as elaborate here as it has been in some of his previous work, but there's plenty of it there if you're willing to dig deep enough.
The characters are all truly enjoyable - Tom, Alice, Jordan, the Head, Dan, Ray, Denise, Gunner, Harold - even if they do feel a bit underdeveloped at times, which I put down to the book's short length and unwillingness to spend time with anyone but Clay.
The concept of "technology gone crazy" is beaten over the reader's head ever so slightly, but that's no surprise; King displays the same lack of trust for technology in Cell that he displayed for the government in The Stand. I'm actually a bit surprised that it's never insinuated that the government were at the heart of the problem, but I put that down to the current attitude of the country in general - most of the characters are very quick to blame terrorists, though this never pans out to be more than a sort of embodiment of our country's fear of attack from outside (which I would suggest is the over all theme of the book).
As always, King is rife with pop culture references and callbacks to recent events - Hurricane Katrina, the September 11th attacks, the bombings in London that occurred late last year, et cetera. I'm not sure why, but it made me feel uneasy each time he name-dropped each of these events, not because it felt tacky, but because it reminded me of the world we live in, which isn't as prevalent in some of his past works (possibly because they were written before I was born, or while I was still too young to realize that he's writing about our world).
The book does feature a couple of heart wrenching moments in which I did have to put it down, one of which involved the death of a character; fellow readers will know the moment I speak of, I'm sure. It felt cruel and nihilistic, but I understand the purpose for which it was done. I must say that I haven't been so moved by the demise of a character since The Gunslinger (Go, then. There are other worlds than this.) and I commend King for that. I've been reading his work for a long time, and it never fails to impress me when he manages to yank my heartstrings so thoroughly.
The ending is a bit open, but I don't view it to be a nihilistic wreck like some fellow online fans. I think it's more hopeful than some choose to believe, and I feel good about the future of our hero, whether or not his final attempt to right the wrong done to him is ultimately unsuccessful.
If you don't know anything about the Dark Tower saga, feel free to skip the next paragraph:
I also wanted to address some of T. Baron's issues, and it ties in with something I had planned on commenting about anyway - this book obviously ties into the Dark Tower saga (as do all of his books, according to Stephen King). He admits in the author's notes to taking liberties with geography, which is no surprise considering each individual level of the tower differs in various ways. It's not beyond the realm of believability that Clay Riddell's word is different form our own in certain ways (it is established in Wizards and Glass that even the world of The Stand is a different world from our own). A safety on a revolver (I don't recall this, myself), the way the roads run, et cetera ... can all be put down to the differing nature of each level of the tower (it's a great way to explain author laziness, if indeed that's what it was). The inclusion of Charlie the Choo Choo was a nice touch as well, and it sent more than a few goosebumps down my arms.
Cell is one of those books that certainly does recall King's older work, is a love-letter to fans of his horror work, and it is one of the most enjoyable reads I've had in a while, simply because I enjoyed the cast of characters so much. It does seem to be tailor made for the big screen, it's just a shame that Eli Roth is the one chomping at the bit to adapt it (Alice is bound to be an annoying teenybopper and the subtleness of Tom's sexuality will go into full on pantomime characterization, but one can hope against hope that something good comes from the project).
If you're a fan of Stephen King's earlier work and don't expect him to write the next great opus every time he puts ink to paper, then I wholeheartedly suggest reading Cell. It's a fun, depressing, and creative spin on the zombie sub genre, and you might never look at your cell phone or boom box the same way again.
But I'm really digressing here. Back to The Cell . If you think you don't like King's "supernatural" or "horror" style, I'd urge you to give The Cell a chance. I read it from cover to cover in one sitting.
I can't say it is the best book he's written but it was still a fine read and had many of the trademarks of King's superior writing - excellent characterization, an unpredictable plot and just enough plausability to make me think, "WHat if?" What if there WERE some way to use cell phones to affect people's brains, to create insanity in our population, with results leading to the brink of civilization's collapse?
It is to King's credit that he not only raises these questions but kept me wanting to find out what happened next, to see what happened to Clayton, a guy who happens to be away from home when all hell breaks out. By the time it does, I was already intrigued by this guy, someone who was trying to figure out a way to curry his estranged wife's favor, who had the usual worries and imperfections of the average man. He was no hero, just an ordinary guy, just trying to get by, thinking about his career and the next step in his day, the usual stuff..when everything changes in an instant and he faces the type of test that he never could have foreseen, not in his usual routine..nope, not him. All aroud him, people are attacking each other and there doesn't seem to be a reason why. Clayton is forced to think quickly to save himself and others, without any inkling of WHY all this is happening...at least, not at first.
I won't go into any of the "symbolism" that I'm sure some critics will have a field day exploring, maybe something about how cell phones represent "terrorists" and the horror and uncertainty akin to the type that hit New Yorkers after 9/11, when normal life was suddenly a speck in the distance. A detailed talk about symbolism and metaphor is for someone else to write.
All I can add is that I found this book to be one heck of a good way to spend the day, allowing me to forget about the small irritations in my own life (the dishes in the sink, the piles of laundry) and to ignore the twinges of guilt about that for a bit longer. I needed an excuse to avoid that, feeling tired and burned out on that particular day.
I'm glad I put off my usual routine a bit longer because when I finally came up for air, bleary-eyed at 4 in the morning after reading the very last lines in the book, I felt oddly reinvigorated. I stayed up most of the REST of the night washing dishes and finishing laundry as my nerves settled (thanks, King) but didn't regret a moment of the time I'd spend deviating from my usual routine...well, okay, maybe a little...but it was still worth it.
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Amo quasi tutta la bibliografia di Stephen King, e con Cell il maestro dell'horror ci trascina in un nuova catastrofe mondiale.
In una normale giornata nella vita di un uomo, uno strano impulso trasmette qualcosa che induce ignare persone alla follia. E l'impulso viene trasmesso tramite... cellulare.
Come salvarsi in una situazione del genere, in un mondo che dipende quasi interamente dalla rete cellulare?
Per chi ne ha la possibilità, consiglio di leggerlo in inglese, per gustare a fondo le capacità descrittive di King.








