Those who have read Stephen King's Dark Tower series, does it get better after the first one?

[Raduque]

I'm currently listening to the audiobook of Book 5, Wolves of the Calla. A friend of mine recently finished the entire audiobook series and simply said this to me about the ending: WTF? I can't want to finish it.

 

[cKGunslinger]

The ending is either exceedingly brilliant, or profoundly stupid, whichever way you want to look at it. Since I love the series, I (eventually) decided on brilliant, and the only true ending that there could have been.

My take on the books.

I: The Gunslinger
Great book, even better after the series is complete.

II: The Drawing of the Three
Good book. Introduction to major characters and plot unraveling.

III: The Wastelands
Good book. We get a glimpse of just how fubar Roland's world is. Cliffhanger ending (that one was pure hell waiting for the next one.)

IV: Wizard and Glass
Great book. Brilliant King - major character development and an engaging, epic plot. Amazing narrative. Unfortunately, 95% flashback, with the current plot going nowhere in a weak way.

V: The Wolves of the Calla
Good book. Almost a rehash of WaG, but with the current characters instead of flashback mode. Somewhat unecessary to the main plot, seems kinda wasteful if he plans on ending the stoyy in 7 books. Introduces some "weird" stuff and familiar characters.

VI: Song of Susannah
Good book. Plot gets a bit "weirder." Panic, as possible explanation of what (or who) the Tower is, sets is (false alarm, fortunately.)

VII: The Dark Tower
Good book. Hard to read as you simultaneously want to get to end, yet don't want it to be over. Weak on some plotlines. Many characters in this series and others reach the clearing at the end of their paths, and in mostly unsatisfying and disappointing ways. Ends the only way an epic can and should. Skip the epilogue - just feel-good fluff.

 

[ATLien247]

I recently finished VII. The ending works for me, but I personally feel that King took an easy way out.

 

[Cutterhead]

I read the Gunslinger years ago.. thought it was kinda meh. From the sound of it, maybe I should give the rest of the series a go. But whoever mentioned GRRM got it right, A Song of Ice and Fire hooked me in right away and hasn't stopped

 

[Starbuck1975]

Is it just me, or did anyone else notice a parallel between the Dark Tower series and the Stand...Stephen King often uses the character of Randall Flagg/the dark man/the man in black to represent evil incarnate. It has been some time since I have read the Dark Tower books, but I believe at one point, some of the main characters from the Dark Tower series parallel into the world after the disease from The Stand wipes out most of the population.

When I first read the Gunslinger...given its mix of a medieval society with an Old West theme...and the constant references to the underlying decay of a world that existed prior to Roland's world...I always assumed that the world of Roland exists over the world created by the disease in The Stand.

I actually haven't read the last two books in the Dark Tower series, so I may be speculating on revelations that do indeed exist.

 

[DrVos]

I'm listening to the audiobook version of Wolves of the Calla. Its been a great ride so far. I agree with cKGunslinger's assesments of the books I've read so far. Personally, I found The Gunslinger to be really disorienting at first but very engaging and Wizards and Glass to be simply brilliant.

My only gripe is that they have a new narrator for Book V and I can't get used to his voice and pronunciation. He just seems so bland compared to the previous narrator.

 

[marvdmartian]

I read the first 4 books almost immediately when they came out, and enjoyed them all (tho oftentimes for different reasons).
Last year I bought book 5 in hardback, and struggled through it. I don't know why. Maybe it was just having been away from the series for so long? I did enjoy the ending of it, though, especially as it spun the plot up for the last two volumes.
I'm midway through book 6 right now, and enjoying it so far. It's amazing how SK can make the characters grow in your mind, throughout a series like this one!

Oh yeah, and the toughest book of King's that I've completed was IT. Gawd, that book took me weeks to get through!! I'm an avid book reader, but the way he popped back and forth from present to past, I'd read a chapter or two, then have to set it down for a couple days, just to digest what I'd just finished reading!! :roll:

 

[Finns14]

I finished it let me tell you the ending blows the middle of the series is the best begining is ok and the ending is terrible IMO

 

[TGS]

The ending is rather lackluster at best, but overall it's a good work. Much better than say Dune or Foundation.

Blaine is a pain, and that's the truth.

 

[Finns14]

Ending was a cop out IMO king couldn't come up with something gradious enough so he went with that BS to me!

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: Starbuck1975
Is it just me, or did anyone else notice a parallel between the Dark Tower series and the Stand...Stephen King often uses the character of Randall Flagg/the dark man/the man in black to represent evil incarnate. It has been some time since I have read the Dark Tower books, but I believe at one point, some of the main characters from the Dark Tower series parallel into the world after the disease from The Stand wipes out most of the population.

When I first read the Gunslinger...given its mix of a medieval society with an Old West theme...and the constant references to the underlying decay of a world that existed prior to Roland's world...I always assumed that the world of Roland exists over the world created by the disease in The Stand.

I actually haven't read the last two books in the Dark Tower series, so I may be speculating on revelations that do indeed exist.

If you haven't read the last two books, then you have no idea how much parallel between his books exist. King himself said that the Dark Tower series contained all the other worlds in which his novels have existed, which makes some sense, as the DT is supposed to be the nexus of existence, and contains all possible worlds. I assume you saw the crossover between DT, The Stand, and Salem's Lot? The last two book has him dragging in even more seen-before characters. Hearts in Atlantis had a big DT tie-in, as did The Black House.

My biggest gripe is that he really didn't tie-back into Insomnia, which has some heavy DT stuff in it (the kid and his drawings of the plane crash and the Crimson King.) I might need to re-read that, but I think that was left dangling after the DT wrap-up.

(edit: After a second thought - now I'm a bit curious. The kid in Insomnia drew a plane crashing with the CK's eye logo, if I'm not mistaken. Also, Jake left Black Thirteen in a storage locker in the World Trade Center in NY. That part was written after 9.11.2001, but Insomnia was written in 1994. Interesting.. now I will have to go back and re-read Insomnia.)

 

[Proletariat]

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger
The ending is either exceedingly brilliant, or profoundly stupid, whichever way you want to look at it. Since I love the series, I (eventually) decided on brilliant, and the only true ending that there could have been.

My take on the books.

I: The Gunslinger
Great book, even better after the series is complete.

II: The Drawing of the Three
Good book. Introduction to major characters and plot unraveling.

III: The Wastelands
Good book. We get a glimpse of just how fubar Roland's world is. Cliffhanger ending (that one was pure hell waiting for the next one.)

IV: Wizard and Glass
Great book. Brilliant King - major character development and an engaging, epic plot. Amazing narrative. Unfortunately, 95% flashback, with the current plot going nowhere in a weak way.

V: The Wolves of the Calla
Good book. Almost a rehash of WaG, but with the current characters instead of flashback mode. Somewhat unecessary to the main plot, seems kinda wasteful if he plans on ending the stoyy in 7 books. Introduces some "weird" stuff and familiar characters.

VI: Song of Susannah
Good book. Plot gets a bit "weirder." Panic, as possible explanation of what (or who) the Tower is, sets is (false alarm, fortunately.)

VII: The Dark Tower
Good book. Hard to read as you simultaneously want to get to end, yet don't want it to be over. Weak on some plotlines. Many characters in this series and others reach the clearing at the end of their paths, and in mostly unsatisfying and disappointing ways. Ends the only way an epic can and should. Skip the epilogue - just feel-good fluff.

Is this where you got your usernamE?

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: Proletariat
Is this where you got your usernamE?

It would seem that way, no?

 

[TGS]

*cough sig cough*

Edit: Slow on the draw

 

[Proletariat]

Originally posted by: TGS
*cough sig cough*

Edit: Slow on the draw

Well I haven't reasd the books... They seem sorta scary/trippy to me.

 

[Argo]

Yes, it does. Although the last 2 books weren't all that great IMO. The third book "Wizzard and the Glass" was the best, by far!

 

[loup garou]

Man, I always thought that was the best one, dark, mysterious and without all the trivial garbage King filled the rest of the books with.

 

[LeiZaK]

I'm almost through the 3rd one. Had to re-read the first 2 recently as I hadn't read them since they were originally printed. It gets better as things start to come together methinks.

 

[TGS]

Originally posted by: Proletariat

Originally posted by: TGS
*cough sig cough*

Edit: Slow on the draw

Well I haven't reasd the books... They seem sorta scary/trippy to me.

His sig is the first passage from The Gunslinger. It's a very good story, don't get me wrong. I haven't read anything that comes close to that kind of depth for fiction. It's not a suspense horror laden tale like most works attributed to King. There are some "out-there" parts, but those are to highlight the break-down of the world Roland lives in.

For similiar lines of good reading, Orson Scott Card has some really great books. Most notably his "Ender" series, and Alvin Maker books are very good.

 

[conjur]

Well, Song of Susannah sure took an interesting turn there at the end, eh?

Not sure if I liked it or not, though.

 

[Gunslinger08]

I just read the first book in one sitting. Now I'm wondering.. everyone talks about the ending of the series. I've seen multiple reviews which say that they wish they had never wasted their time with the thousands of pages for such an ending. I don't want to be spoiled, but is it worth it? I really don't want to get to the end and have him wrap it up with some stupid cliche like "then the gunslinger woke up and realized it was all a dream."

 

[yosuke188]

I could not finish the first book...

 

[KarenMarie]

I was not a huge fan of that series.

and to be honest... it was kinda all downhill for everything he wrote after that.

 

[Yossarian]

Originally posted by: joshsquall
I just read the first book in one sitting. Now I'm wondering.. everyone talks about the ending of the series. I've seen multiple reviews which say that they wish they had never wasted their time with the thousands of pages for such an ending. I don't want to be spoiled, but is it worth it? I really don't want to get to the end and have him wrap it up with some stupid cliche like "then the gunslinger woke up and realized it was all a dream."

it isn't about the ending. it's a pretty good journey with lots of interesting parts. but yet, some parts suck and are boring and unbelieveable. Wizard and Glass was my favorite.