by Stephen King
Musings: 1) Needful Things was published shortly after King gave up drinking and doping, which coincides with the decline of his most creative period. I don’t believe it can be happenstance – the man was simply a more inspired, original writer back when he was snorting and swigging. 2) Needful Things is middling King. It’s well-crafted, often amusing, and laugh-out-loud funny near the climax. It’s also over-the-top, alternately too somber or too silly, and not particularly scary. 3) The knight-in-shining-armor hero and his perfect girlfriend are the least interesting characters in the story – too bad we have to spend so much time with them. 4) I do like King’s theme about how our possessions tend to take possession of us.
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