u/ComprehensiveRoad150

Hey everyone. I’ve been a Stephen King fan since I was a kid and have read a lot of his books. I recently finished Billy Summers and really loved it — the characters, the plot, and King’s incredible writing style all hooked me.

Now I’m back with the same old question: what should I read next? This time I casually picked up Duma Key. I only knew the basic premise: a guy has an accident, moves to an island for recovery, starts drawing, and what he draws starts coming true. On one hand, it sounded really interesting and clever. On the other hand, I’ve seen quite a few negative comments about the book online, so I got confused.

I’m currently on page 45 and I’m starting to get stuck — it’s dragging for me. Should I push through and continue, or should I drop it and move on to another Stephen King book?

Any opinions? Thanks

Edit

I want to thank everyone who shared their opinions and comments under the post. I read all your valuable suggestions one by one. Thank you so much and much respect to all of you. The thing with Stephen King’s books for me isn’t really the horror or paranormal stuff. What gets me is the characters. They often feel like real people — almost like friends. I can understand them, feel what they feel, get angry at them, empathize with them. Sometimes I even feel like I’m sharing something with them. But the protagonist in Duma Key just didn’t click with me. I think that’s the main reason I’m struggling with the book. Still, after reading all your comments, I’ve decided to push through and finish it. Thank you all so much. I really appreciate it — glad you guys are here.🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🤝🤝

At first, I was skeptical about Billy Summers. Since it’s outside of King’s usual supernatural and metaphysical genre, I didn’t have high expectations. I felt like it was something out of his comfort zone and doubted he could pull it off. I was completely wrong. It was a beautiful book, and honestly, it’s going to stay with me for a long time.

However, there’s a part of me that is both in awe of King and a little resentful towards him. I mean, Billy already had such a traumatic childhood: his brother murdered right in front of him, a drug-addicted mother, and growing up in an orphanage. As if that wasn't enough, he goes to war, sees combat, kills people, and suffers losses that left scars on his mind that will never heal. Then, he returns to civilian life, struggles to adapt, and is forced to become a hitman.

I don't know... throughout the book, it felt like Billy truly deserved that peaceful life in Midwood as 'Dave' with his neighbors. The ending was devastating. I felt so bad for Billy. Once again, I take my hat off to Stephen King, but I also have to voice my resentment—Billy deserved better."🥲