Ratings114
Average rating3.7
#1 New York Times bestselling author Stephen King’s terrifying novella about a town engulfed in a dense, mysterious mist as humanity makes its last stand against unholy destruction—originally published in the acclaimed short story collection Skeleton Crew and made into a TV series, as well as a feature film starring Thomas Jane and Marcia Gay Harden. In the wake of a summer storm, terror descends...David Drayton, his son Billy, and their neighbor Brent Norton join dozens of others and head to the local grocery store to replenish supplies following a freak storm. Once there, they become trapped by a strange mist that has enveloped the town. As the confinement takes its toll on their nerves, a religious zealot, Mrs. Carmody, begins to play on their fears to convince them that this is God’s vengeance for their sins. She insists a sacrifice must be made and two groups—those for and those against—are aligned. Clearly, staying in the store may prove fatal, and the Draytons, along with store employee Ollie Weeks, Amanda Dumfries, Irene Reppler, and Dan Miller, attempt to make their escape. But what’s out there may be worse than what they left behind. This exhilarating novella explores the horror in both the enemy you know—and the one you can only imagine.
Featured Series
2 primary booksSkeleton Crew is a 2-book series with 2 primary works first released in 1980 with contributions by Stephen King.
Reviews with the most likes.
It was too short for the story to have any impact really... if King did what he does best and made this book 1000+ pages then i just know this would be an iconic book but yeah too short
maybe spoilers ahead? idk read at your own risk but i don't count them as spoilers imo.
the scenery and plot in the book reminds me of season 1 of The Walking Dead video game. Trapped in a market, have to make a break for it to get stuff from the pharmacy, people in market are turning against each other and main character has a child to keep safe with them. Obviously The Mist came out LONG before the game but it was cool how similar they were lol
Interesting premise. I liked how the majority of the plot actually took place in one setting - created a claustrophobic feeling that made the mist even more unnerving. I started losing interest once the “monsters” were revealed to literally just be like, big slugs and crabs lmao
Liked the colloquial voice of the narrator David. Really did feel like I was reading someone's journal
I told myself I wouldn't DNF this one so it wouldn't become the second King book I didn't finish this year (the first one being “The Institute”) Plus this one was so short and I was listening to it on audiobook so I felt I could push through.
I didn't really care for it. The main character annoyed me from beginning to end... your facing an unknown dangerous end of the world scenario and all you can think about is sleeping with another woman trapped with you? While your wife is in who know's what danger herself?
Beyond that the writing style of this book is very detailed in what the character is thinking in every moment but also barely fleshed out in story. I think that's supposed to add to the horror of it, and leave it up to your own imagination, but it's just not my style.
I do think the actual creatures were pretty neat and the action bits when they attacked were pretty nerve-wracking. During those times of the book I felt really invested but everything around it I had to fight with myself to listen and not zone out. I also didn't mind the ambiguous ending honestly. This one just wasn't for me... and it's been a while since I read a book by King that I liked, and I can think of quite a few I have DNF'd over the years so it's possible he's just not for me... (is that a sin?)
The whole story except for the ending is exactly the same as in movie adaptation - which I didn't like much. It's a solid story, although maybe a little predictable. The thing that pissed me off most is that some of the characters flat out refused to believe their own eyes. King explains it by their realities being shattered but I still couldn't get my head around it. It's just ridiculous.
The characters are bland and there's nothing that surprised me.
If you're thinking about reading it, just watch the movie. It'll save you time. I'm usually not the guy who's satisfied with movie adaptations of books but this is an exception.
I had struggled with this novella several times before and just now made myself finally finish it, since it's part of Skeleton Crew and I finally wanted to read these short stories.
Featured Prompt
2,708 booksWhen you think back on every book you've ever read, what are some of your favorites? These can be from any time of your life – books that resonated with you as a kid, ones that shaped your personal...