#LetsTAKaboutit – #allthebookreviews – Desperation by Stephen King

The month of November is wrapping up and so is the #letsTAKaboutit read along I’m co-hosting with the other half to our #allthebookreviews duo 🙂

We both hadn’t read either book in years (and in some cases, decades) so we figured it was about time we revisited them. Since everyone seems so set on which they like better, we were curious to see if we felt the same way about them the second time around.

Verdict? We didn’t change our minds, like, at all. THE REGULATORS for me and DESPERATION for Chandra.

Chandra’s Thoughts: 4/5 stars

Ah Desperation! So good to reread you again.  It has been around 20 years since I’ve read this book and while I still prefer this over The Regulators, I didn’t quite enjoy it as much as I have in my first round.  You certainly can’t take away from King’s ability to weave a tale, insert gore, religion, faith, horror and bloody ooziness into one solid crazy ass novel.

Some people have issues with the religious aspect of this book.  I am not a religious person by any means but this never really bothers me when reading books, especially horror books as this can be seen quite a bit with the whole good vs. evil aspect that’s a common theme.  Some aren’t as blatant about it as Desperation is, but it’s still there.  I still put it all in a fiction category and enjoy the read for what (I think) it’s mean to be.

While I did enjoy The Regulators a bit more my second time around, Desperation still holds its place in my heart between the two. Why? Well, we get more background on each of the characters, a more defined and “mature” Tak and a more developed story over all.  (Not gonna lie though, I did miss the “fun” aspect of the Motocops though).

I don’t believe either of these books gets enough love.

My Thoughts: 4/5 stars

DESPERATION versus THE REGULATORS, this is a debate you’re one side or the other. Most people prefer DESPERATION, and after my second read, this one is still in second place for me. There is no doubt that King has created another incredible and wild story here and I think both of these books deserve more love than they get.

We are treated to the same characters as we are in THE REGULATORS, only some things are slightly different (adults are now kids, etc). Taking place in an utterly hopeless town of Desperation, all hell breaks loose for some unsuspecting travelers.

The readers are brought through a true good vs. evil story. I understand the incorporation of faith and the religious themes, but there were times it kind of took me out of the story. I will say though, it didn’t as much this second time around as it did the first. With this being significantly longer than it’s sister book, we do get more character development and I did enjoy this different version of Tak.

Overall, DESPERATION is another solid installment from Stephen King. Full of horror, gore, good and evil, the power of faith, all in a desolate setting. This one isn’t as quick as THE REGULATORS, but one I still highly recommend picking up.

 

Which one do you prefer?

–Jess