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Wordplay: Lisey's Story
King plumbs romance in Lisey's Story
By Clarke Reader
creader3@mscd.edu

Lisey's Story Stephen King $28.00

Retirement does not suit Stephen King. The macabre master of suspense and horror can’t stop writing.

His latest foray is Lisey’s Story, a haunting tale that mixes King’s trademark horror talents with a complex love story.

King creates vivid characters and believable dialogue to match their depth. He throws them into a world that mixes familiar elements with surrealism, where readers have to orient themselves along with the characters.

The novel follows Lisey Landon, widow of famous author Scott Landon, who has been dead for two years.

To say her late husband was eccentric would be an understatement: He created a slew of imaginary words and led bool games, in which each bool was a clue leading to a prize.

Of course, since it’s King, Scott also left a couple dark secrets.

When Lisey finally decides it’s time to go through her husband’s office and clear out his papers, she gets hit with a wave of memories from their life together. Not all the memories are pleasant, and she soon starts to hear her husband’s voice in her head.

Her composure deteriorates quickly when she gets a call from someone demanding her late husband’s unpublished work. She realizes Scott has left one last bool game for her to solve, with a prize that isn’t pleasant or expected.

If the plot sounds a little murky, that’s because it is. Lisey jumps back and forth in time as she sifts through her memories, often without warning, and it is easy to get lost.

By the end of the novel, everything becomes clear, and so in a way, King is playing a kind of bool game with readers: Follow the clues, stick with the story, and it will all make sense.

While a love story may not be what’s expected from King, he delivers admirably, giving Scott and Lisey a real and relatable relationship. They both have secrets and half-truths in their lives, and though they are more exaggerated than most people’s, it adds to the truth of the characters.

For old-school King fans, don’t worry: There are plenty of frightening moments, including horrific attacks from stalkers and demons alike.

King has a gift for robust dialogue that he puts to full use in the novel. The story’s funny moments come from the conversations between characters, adding a touch of levity to an otherwise heavy story.

After all these years as a writer, it’s good to see King is still growing and exploring his talent. If books like Lisey’s Story are the result of retirement, he should keep picking up his pension.