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The Stand

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About this listen

 First came the days of the plague. Then came the dreams. Dark dreams that warned of the coming of the dark man. The apostate of death, his worn-down boot heels tramping the night roads. The warlord of the charnel house and Prince of Evil. His time is at hand. His empire grows in the west and the Apocalypse looms.

For hundreds of thousands of fans who read The Stand in its original version and wanted more, this new edition is Stephen King's gift. And those who are listening to The Stand for the first time will discover a triumphant and eerily plausible work of the imagination that takes on the issues that will determine our survival.

©1978 Stephen King (P)1978 Random House Audio Ghosts Horror Scary Haunted Royalty

Critic reviews

'As a storyteller, he is up there in the Dickens class.' ( The Times)
All stars
Most relevant
The long awaited audio release of SK's greatest book. A post-apocalyptic gem that has King's typical weave of immensely detailed characters, immersed in an epic biblical story. Grover Gardner does a great job in the narration and doesn't 'over do' the female characters.I can't recommend this book more highly.

King's greatest novel

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This book always rated as one of my best ever reads. This audiobook now rates as one of my best ever listens. Grover Gardner brings the characters to life in such a way that the written word never did and it's a true classic not to be missed. If you're new to Stephen King this is a fine place to start. If you've already read the original, the additional material in the audiobook version, and Grover's narration, make it well worth the purchase price.

New and improved.

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I couldn't stop listening to this book. It's was highly entertaining and had a gripping plot. To top it off the narration was incredible, mr Gardner really made the characters come to life.

However, I have always thought Stephen struggles to write proper endings to his books. I can't put my finger on it but in a lot of his books I've found the ending to be lacking something, for me this book is no different.

MILD SPOILER ALERT
If you're a devout atheists you may find the strong religious theme a bit too hard to swallow towards the end and abused in order to get the ending over with. Being a king novel you are always going to get a religious/supernatural theme but one scene towards the end I was simply unable to suspend my disbelief.
FINISHED SPOILING.


Over all I wold say this book is more about the journey it takes you on rather than the final destination. It's interesting and gripping. I wish I could forget it so I can read it again.

A great listen

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I have never read the book but I'm glad I've listened to it. The narrator is excellent and really brings the characters to life of which there are so many, some favourites include Tom Cullen, Nick and the Walking Dude himself among others. King is an excellent story teller and often detours into minute descriptions at times but with this Novel I felt too much was wasted on precisely that. Some major story lines are left hanging, some major characters are 'removed' too suddenly and without much of an explanation.

The ending was also disappointing verging on ridiculous, however, if you want an entertaining novel with a range of characters then this is it. Despite everything I did really enjoy this and consequently purchased Under the Dome!!

Quantity vs quality

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Superb narration, with excellent compelling storyline, I didn't want it to end but had to get to the end to "hear" what happens next. Brilliant

Outstanding

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