MovieChat Forums > The Dark Tower (2017) Discussion > Book four sucks...

Book four sucks...

posted 9 years ago by brett_md
54 replies | jump to latest

...there, I said it.
We know what happens before the book even starts as it's explained in previous books. So dragging it out for several million pages just makes it painful. I gain little from Wizard and Glass, same goes for Wind Through the Keyhole (which was a fine story, but should have just been it's own book, minus the first 20 pages and the last 5 pages). These two books could be removed from the series and we would be left with a fast paced, action packed, mind blasting adventure.
I'm trying my best to leave spoilers out of this for new readers, but I skip book four on each read through now. My gf said the same about four. The whole time she was just waiting to get out of the world of four and move on to five. I suggested to her that she should skip 4.5 and just read it alone some day if she wants to. She skipped it.
Of course, this is just my opinion.

Side note. I'm fine with the casting so far. I'm confused about the characters though. Sayre and Tirana in the first movie (assuming there will be more than one)?? This leads me to believe that they are not planning on more than one. Sadface.

That's my ramble for now.

"Mother Father, Chinese Dentist!"

[–] meleractor 9 years ago

Book four is one of my most favorite in the series.

thought the flashback story was phenomenal.

[–] MatthewKeen 9 years ago

I am one of those that read the series in real time. When book 4 came out, it was a new entry in the series. That, out of 672 pages, we get 600 pages of backstory was irksome, even in 1997. But it was a new book.

Now, I don't even bother with that book for the same reason. It stops the story dead in its tracks.

--
Listen to them—the children of the night. What music they make!

[–] notimeforbunkrock 9 years ago

best book in the series for me. Young Roland kicking ass with his friends? Yes, please!!! And the love story is a heartbreaker. Among Kings best.

[–] meleractor 9 years ago

👍

[–] man-of-action-2 9 years ago

IMO it's amazing.

[–] meleractor 9 years ago

👍👍

I agree. I was riveted when I first read it.

[–] brett_md 9 years ago

Right on. I love everyone's comments.

The love story is normally people's reason for loving this book. It's one of the bigger reasons that I dislike it. Perhaps if it were read as it's own story, but in the middle of this tale I think it's out of place and could be removed without damaging the emotional quality of the story. It's what I referred to earlier, about knowing what happens before it even happens. Especially when it's as long as it is. When you know the outcome of a story before you start reading it, you can lose all sense of suspense. It's kind of like the Star Wars prequels in a way. I don't need three movies to show how Anakin becomes Darth Vader. I already know that he does. Good guy, turned bad, redemption. The story is there already, without wasting my time. Roland loves girl, loses her, regrets it. I don't need a drawn out story about it. This story is about a quest for a tower. I'm not saying that we shouldn't get any Susan story. Keep the back stories quick and detailed. Keep the story it's self moving forward. Book 4 and 4.5, if read back to back, take the reader out of the "present" search for the tower for far too long. I feel that Wizard and Glass should've been about the length of Wind Through the Keyhole. A nice concise tale of Roland, his friends, his love.
Again, that's just me, and it's not like it can be changed now anyway. Just day dreaming here. :)

A couple things that I take from the book, like you said, Roland kicking ass with his friends. Yes, please! I love seeing more gunslingers and how they interact with each other and the rest of society. The other things I love from this book are Rhea of the Coos and the introduction of Maerlyn's Rainbow.

Thanks for chatting fellow Constant Readers.

"Mother Father, Chinese Dentist!"

[–] rabidbeaver-17250 9 years ago

Can't stand love stories, is why that book is mostly so boring once they do away with Blaine.

Love stories are easy, stupid, boring, and all the damn same. But people think anything with sex in is great, stupid sheep. I have a feeling that Witcher 3 is probably really a terrible game, and the only reason anyone praises it is because they get to see their player character dip his wick.

[–] razar-34595 9 years ago

i agree that skipping 4.5 is better continuity since 4.5 was actually the last book published and it offers some alteration to the present storyline but book 4 (again i will agree it has a lot of repetitive filler) was indeed a good and necessary part of the storyline... but I also read each book as it was released as opposed to someone who can go out and buy them all off the shelf now so each one was a treasure to me.

[–] CyberVerm 9 years ago

I've only read the first three, I am not a big Stephen King fan or anything like that, in fact those are the only 3 Stephen King books I've ever read. I thought they were good, with the first one playing out like a movie, the second one being by far my favorite of the three and the third one being good as well, that one feels a bit more like an adventure than the other two but after that book I was just spent, to the point where it's been two years since I finished it and I just haven't even bothered to start with the fourth. Part of that was because I found out the first chunk of book fourth is a flashback and I am just not interested in what happened before.

I'm the guy who makes the "worst movie ever" thread in your favorite movie board

[–] man-of-action-2 9 years ago

CyberVerm, you stopped reading at the Blane cliffhanger?

[–] jason_gulisux 9 years ago

I have no problem with book 4, it was fine in its own right, and it was okay to take a break from the main plot for a while (even though it's quite a thick novel). But a serious problem with pacing occurs once you cram book 4.5 between it and the Wolves. The delay becomes unbearable then.

Another problem I had was the structure of certain parts of the series:

For what reason book 3 ends in book 4? Utterly pointless. Book 3 has no ending of its own, and book 4 got two beginnings then.

Same thing with book 6, ending with a cliffhanger (should've properly ended with "The Little Red King"), and then the final installment gets two beginnings (should've started with "Blue Heaven"). Book 6 wouldn't look so much like a filler in that case.

Some rushed decisions indeed. :-/

[–] Cult_of_Kibner 9 years ago

Eh...I'm not a big fan of how the main story line ended up progressing afterwards anyway, so for me W&G is delaying the series' decent into craphood rather than interrupting its momentum.

[–] wileypeyote 9 years ago

I never got through Book 4. Boring attempt at a romance novel as far as I could see. Hope it's not in the movie. Doubt if it is. Book 4 was probably the part that was supposed to be a TV series as the same actor couldn't play both teenage and old Roland.

[–] jason_gulisux 9 years ago

Unfortunately, I need to agree. King's long hiatus left its mark on the last three books. Obvious drop in quality, he was visibly out of form.

[–] rabidbeaver-17250 9 years ago

Yeah, that's a total shame.

I can sort of see why he included himself - to emphasize the "leakage" between worlds - even though he apparently tried to throw that away later by rewriting the first book? My copy's an original version of it, and I've never read the rewrite, though I read about it.

But if he had been in a saner state of mind, he probably wouldn't have done it.

I first got into the series in 1988, and started with the second book, actually, because that's what I was given to read while I was in hospital after childbirth. :P I went and found the first one, and re-read the second one after; I don't think I found The Wastelands until much later (but that wound up being my favourite in the entire series.) Damn, if only he had kept up the quality of Wastelands ...

[–] jon-mcburnie 9 years ago

Best of the lot.
Before the series well and truly jumped the shark with book 5

[–] man-of-action-2 9 years ago

I'm the same: The first 4 > the last 3.

[–] johnnykid 8 years ago

I just finished book 4 and now have little interest in reading last 3 after reading so many poor reviews .
I'm thinking of just searching out spoilers to see how it all ends

[–] tinasparklesau 8 years ago

Wizard and Glass is tricky. We all waited so long to resume the journey, and then it was like a slap in the face to get a prequel instead. I initially hated it for that reason and it wasn't until a re-read after the series was finished that i loved it for what it was. 5-7 go up and down imo. Wolves of the Calla is a great read, but it feels like King is going off on unnecessary tangents that aren't part of the quest in the last 3 books. SoS i could barely read, and a good portion of 7 seemed like i was still reading SoS. I think it's worthwhile to keep on reading as King really picks it up half way through book 7 and brings it home brilliantly.

The Wind through the Keyhole is just a story that belongs in Wizard and Glass imo. However it's a fun little read and i personally enjoyed it as Jamie DeCurry is the only one with Roland and i was always intrigued by his character and felt he was umm under written in Wizard and Glass...

[–] aleonardsson 9 years ago

I couldn't agree more. The 4th book made me stop reading the series, I just lost all interest in finishing the series and couldn't pick up book 5 because I was afraid King just gave up on the whole Dark Tower story and were focusing on another snore fest ( "wolves" seems to be full of "fillers" as well, as far as I've heard at least). I might go back and finish the books one day, the first 3 books is some of the best and most intense stuff that I've ever read. While the 4th book is one of the most boring books I've read. Man I really wish I knew that you could ignore book 4, but I always thought it would get better and that the "flashback" only would last for a few chapters or so.

[–] rabidbeaver-17250 9 years ago

Aw, the ending itself is kind of worth suffering through the rest.

But yeah, the first three are brilliant, the last few, not so much.