I am always amazed at the intricacy of Stephen King’s books. As an aspiring author, I can’t help but wonder at the intricate details of his writing process. I know he wrote about most of it in On Writing, but I can’t help but think that there is more to it than that…

Synopsis: (via Goodreads – shortened by me)

In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents, who got to this place the same way Luke did. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.” As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.

Review: For starters, this book was absolutely amazing. I instantly fell in love with the characters and the plot line, knowing that something intense was happening.

The characters (and there are many) are so well crafted and thought out that is if you have known them for years. What I love most about Stephen King’s books is that his characters all have very complex lives. They are not just simple, flat characters but rather rich and deep with stories. They are real people! I also think that King has a wonderful way of writing about kids in a way that isn’t so far fetched. He understands the intricacies of a child’s mind and yet how intelligent they really are. I always love to read about his characters and experience the story through their eyes.

The plot moved quickly but not so fast that you felt as if something was moving. Multiple times while reading, the characters had a “plan” and as the reader I was so mad that I didn’t know it ahead of time! I had to wait and see what their plan was as it unfolded. It was so frustrating but also perfect! I had to keep reading so that I didn’t leave the children in a scary predicament and I had to know what happened. I don’t want to give any spoilers about the end so I will stop there. 🙂

If you haven’t already, I would highly recommend picking up this book. It was definitely a 5 star read for me!

Amazon Link: The Institute