Amazon.com
A notice to those who feel that Stephen King has lost his magic touch: Desperation is the genuine goods. The ensemble cast of ordinary Americans thrown together by chance, including a disgruntled alcoholic writer and a child who is wise beyond his years, may be a bit too familiar. But the nearly deserted Nevada mining town with an enormous haunted mine pit and an abandoned movie theatre where the survivors hang out makes for a striking battleground, and the grisly action rarely flags. Best of all, though, are the characters of Tak, the ancient body-hopping evil who emerges from the mine, and of "God"--whom the New York Times describes as "the edgiest creation in Desperation. Remote, isolated, ironic, shrouded behind disguises, perhaps 'another legendary shadow,' this deity forms a sly foil, and an icy mirror, to Tak."
Amazon.com Audio Review
Kathy Bates, the award-winning actress who has starred in two film adaptations of King's work (Dolores Claiborne, Misery) showcases her storytelling talent in the audio version of Desperation. In nine chilling hours of narration, Bates brings to life the story of two doomed travelers headed down Highway 50, a.k.a. the loneliest highway in America, in the brutal Nevada desert. Her even, full-bodied voice has the remarkable ability to sound monotone, sinister, and inviting all at once--a marvelous, engaging match to King's prose. (Running time: nine hours, six cassettes)
