Top positive review
4.0 out of 5 starsI always knew there was a reason I disliked topiary.
Reviewed in Australia on 13 January 2021
The Shining is one of those novels that is world-renowned for being at the top of their genre. I enjoyed it, but I did find it a little slow in parts. It's very much an object of its time. There's a scene towards the end of the book when Halloran is racing towards the hotel to try and save Danny. The Overlook's "soul" for want of a better description screams out a warning that made me freeze in my tracks. There is absolutely no way any author would get away using racial slurs like that in a modern story.
However, I did enjoy it, and I'm intrigued as to what Stephen King did in the follow-up Doctor Sleep that I'm tempted to buy it.
I didn't find it particularly scary (I can see where others might though), but it's extremely well written, and Stephen King has an awesome ability to turn a phrase on its head and make it glow that I wish I possessed.
