I thoroughly loved this book!! It’s my first King novel and potentially the first horror novel I’ve ever read. I think the pacing of this book is masterful. I was amazed that the uneasy anticipation I feel when watching scary movies could be replicated while reading this book, though it had no music or visuals to help.

I’m really excited to re watch the movie after reading this because I had no idea they were so different! Several key plot points are different, but more than that, the book seems to deal much more with Jack’s internal struggles with alcoholism, anger, and his abusive father. Seeing Jack turn into the exact monster from his childhood (down to literally beating his wife with a mallet) and hearing his internal musings, how the Overlook is able to pollute his thoughts so seamlessly, the descriptions of the domestic violence in both families - these are all things that were quite haunting in the book but missing from the movie!

Overall, I loved it. I can’t wait to read more by Stephen King!