Revival: A Novel by Stephen King Paperback Book

Details

Rent Revival: A Novel

Author: Stephen King

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio

Published: Dec 1969

Genre: Fiction - Suspense

Retail Price: $29.99

Synopsis

A dark and electrifying novel about addiction, fanaticism, and what might exist on the other side of life.

In a small New England town, over half a century ago, a shadow falls over a small boy playing with his toy soldiers. Jamie Morton looks up to see a striking man, the new minister. Charles Jacobs, along with his beautiful wife, will transform the local church. The men and boys are all a bit in love with Mrs. Jacobs; the women and girls feel the same about Reverend Jacobs—including Jamie's mother and beloved sister, Claire. With Jamie, the Reverend shares a deeper bond based on a secret obsession. When tragedy strikes the Jacobs family, this charismatic preacher curses God, mocks all religious belief, and is banished from the shocked town.

Jamie has demons of his own. Wed to his guitar from the age of thirteen, he plays in bands across the country, living the nomadic lifestyle of bar-band rock and roll while fleeing from his family's horrific loss. In his mid-thirties—addicted to heroin, stranded, desperate—Jamie meets Charles Jacobs again, with profound consequences for both men. Their bond becomes a pact beyond even the Devil's devising, and Jamie discovers that revival has many meanings.

This rich and disturbing novel spans five decades on its way to the most terrifying conclusion Stephen King has ever written. It's a masterpiece from King, in the great American tradition of Frank Norris, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Edgar Allan Poe.

View descriptions at Amazon.com

Reviews

BookLender review by Dutch on 2015-06-30 17:25:50

The other reviews shown here are by those who have read the novel and I dont have much to add to their praises of this well told story. But I would note that the reader of the audio book, David Morse, was absolutely superb. His understated, almost eerily calm reading style was perfect for this novel. I found the climax of the story a little too extreme for me to maintain my suspension of disbelief, but Morses reading of it almost made it work. If King has any choice in the matter, and I would think that he does, he should make a habit of hiring David Morse for his audiobooks.