Customer Reviews

The Dark Tower VII

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I won't ruin any elements of this story for those who are still reading, or have yet to discover this amazing series by Stephen King. All I will say is that after years of waiting, King has given an astounding finale to his masterwork.....Roland the gunslinger is ever so close to his tower, he and his friends experience joy, sadness, loss....and you will find yourself unable to put this book down, wanting to find out what happens next as the tower looms closer and closer....as King puts it, "Come a bit further constant reader, for the tale is almost done..." All will be revealed, and I love the ending!! Read this series! GREAT!

I just finished this book maybe an hour ago. I've thought my way in and out of the ending, and I want to share my thoughts.

Truly, this is a work of genius.

I suppose that it fits that some people are angry at Mr. King for the ending, but in the end I blame that on one thing. I blame the story he used for his potent and valuable message, that he used his excellent fantasy adventure to illustrate the danger of doing one thing too much in life. Twirling your finger indicating you want things to hurry up.

When I began reading "coda" it became so clear to me that he was spelling the message out for the reader, almost nervously, that we should not have rushed to the end, that it was a shame if we twirled our finger at Mr. King as he wrote, rushing to the end, the Dark Tower. The idea that the it was not about the end, but about the journey. That Roland could not stop and be happy atlast, that his obsessive need for "the end" drove him to lose everyone and everything he cared about. Over the last two-hundred pages I really started to dislike Roland, and dislike what it was that he was doing. I loved this character until this last 1/3 of the series. It started to feel like he was the villain, and that he fooled us all along the way. We were Jake, and Eddie, and Susannah, and he fooled them all.

His obsession, affectly foreshadowed by Eddie referring to him as a "tower-junkie," (eddie would know best) can only lead to an unhappy ending. There is a serious lesson in the layers of writing Mr. King has done here. How many here can say that they've ever known a true obsession to end well? What someone else said about people like this, is once they achieve their goal, they only make bigger goals for themselves. They never find satisfaction, they never find rest.

The story of saving the universe ended when king writes, ". . .now they ka-tet for the last time. The story of their fellowship ends here . . ."
Their fellowship to save the universe. The ka-tet's goal.

But what did the last 6 books make us feel . . .if it had ended right there . . .how would we feel? Exactly how Roland would have, unsatisfied.

That ending would have been the unsatisfying ending people are talking about. Instead, the constant (impatient finger twirling) reader got what they wanted. They got their fix. They got the Tower, and when they read the ending, when Roland was sent back to the beginning, they felt like they wanted more. They wanted the REAL story, the better story, they wanted the bigger goal.

Roland's failing to recognize this in himself is why he is damned and Susannah was not. This why she is reunited with her family and Roland is faced with his journey anew. It is a lesson that we should all pay close attention to: Always remember to take your eyes from your goals ahead of you long enough to learn the value of those walking right beside you.

I was eagerly yearning for the ending, after started reading this in the 80's. At first I detested the ending, then after some thought, decided it was in fact perfect. It's not the end of the tale but the journey. This series will maintain a perminant place on my shelf for the rest of my life, that's for sure!

This is a general review about "The Dark Tower" series from Stephen King. I have memorable highlights from each and every book and they are all very much separate and unique and very much part of each other...
"The Gunslinger" contains one of the most intense and vivid action sequences that is still playing in my mind...
"The Drawing of the 3" was surely some wacked out view point and probably the most captivating in the series...
"The WasteLands" contain some signature Stephen King horror which is simply mesmerizing...
"Wizards and Glass" was probably my toughest read (yawn) but one I simply cannot forget his friends...
The last three books in the series are equally complete. Each dealing with the challenges of our "ka-tet". But the highlight here(for me) would be the new character introduced in the last and seventh book. As for the end of the series, well I must admit that I was expecting something...more...There were so many sacrifices and the journey was so challenging...But yet, as "Twirling Finger" pointed out, or the way he said it, well I can live with it. Highly recommended.

The perfect final book in a perfect series. An absolutely addictive combination of love, adventure, fantasy, magic, gunfire and everything else you might dream about. I await anxiously the day another story will make me feel the way King's Dark Tower series has. However, I'm afraid that day shall never come. This book sincerely brought me to both tears of joy and sadness. It made me forget all else in my life for hours upon hours every day and night that I spent in the world of the Dark Tower. I felt like I was there, a spirit from another world watching everything unfold, knowing everyone from Roland and Eddie to Jake and his little billy-bumbler Oy from the inside out like a true friend. And this seventh installment brings it all to an end - and what an end! Not only did I experience the story of Roland Deschain so intimately and realistically, I was even given a choice of my own to make when all the dust settled.

Thank you Stephen King. May your magic tales touch the lives of countless others like they have mine.

Thoroughly enjoyed the series. It captivated me and made me think. Hard to put down and always looked forward to the next one. Sad to see it end. Or did it? You never know!

Another series I've begun reading recently that lovers of this one may enjoy is The Unsuspecting Mage, Book One of the Morcyth Saga by Brian S. Pratt. It's a good read too. I love it so much, I'm telling everyone. He's new on the scene but I think is destined to leave his mark on the genre of fantasy.

This has been one of the most amazing reading experiences of my life! (I'd say the most amazing, but I have a vivid memory of discovering Tolkien when I was a kid.) The sheer sweep and scope of the story is awesome, and the intricacies of the plot keep the reader's attention focused - if you plan to read this, bring your attention span along!
One of the things I loved most about the books (apart from Stephen King's own involvement in the tale) was the many links to his other works - eg., finally discovering what became of a character from a much earlier book, and finding answers about 'low men in yellow coats'.
Go ahead - join the 'ka-tet'. Go on the gunslinger's journey, and find out if all manner of things will be well.

When I finally got around to reading this series, I made a liar out of myself! I enjoyed every other book that King has written and have read most of them. BUT I didn't like the sound of DARK TOWER and the cowboy in all that desert, so I told everyone I liked ALL his books except the DARK TOWER series. Well, I finally read one and was hooked right from the start, and that's how I made a liar of myself. I then went on to read them all. Now, like many other King fans, I hate to see the series end.

I have always adored Stephen King's writing, and the man himself! He has the most fantastic, dark imagination and sense of timing than any author ever. His books are masterpieces, yet King has remained his sweet, humble self. (Can you believe he allowed me, a little known author, to use a quote he wrote, put my own spin on it and make it my own!) If that isn't generosity, I don't know what is!

As you can see, I recommend this book without qualification ... and I've learned a valuable lesson--never say never! I made a liar out of myself this time, but I'm delighted for the opportunity to have had such a fabulous reading experience.

Thanks, Stephen King, for countless hours of entertainment ... not only with your books, but your movies, as well!

KING'S THE KING, for sure!

I must be one of the few who didn't think the last book in the series was brilliant. Overall the series is very enjoyable, "The Drawing of the Three" is my absolute favourite. Maybe I'm just mad that he killed two of his best characters so early into the story. Really I don't think it was necessary to kill both Eddie and Jake. One or the other, totally understandable, they can't all make it after all. Yet after both of them were gone, I found the story dragged horribly. Roland is a fascinating character and Susannah's interesting, but just having the two of them remaining for the rest of the journey was boring. It would have been so much better to have Eddie's sarcasm or at least Jake there to liven things up.

Plot point with a twist that should never ever be used again: writing yourself into your story as a character. That was really lame as far as I'm concerned. It just shows a degree of egotism that no writer should reach in their career. I don't care how many New York Times Bestsellers you've written, don't do it!

All in all, a satisfying (if not wholly satisfying) end to the series. The ending is very fitting for the journey Roland takes, that's all I will say. There's certain aspects I would have changed and improved--I have the feeling that King's editor just kind of lets him do whatever now. The series as a whole I give 5 stars. The last book, however, gets only three.

This was the best series I have ever read! I couldn't put the book down - I am sad to see the story end, but I'll look forward to reading his new books this year.