Book Review - Fairy Tale by Stephen King

Title: Fairy Tale
Author: Stephen King
Genre: Fantasy/ Horror
Published: 2022
 
Description: Charlie Reade looks like a regular high school kid, great at baseball and football, a decent student. But he carries a heavy load. His mom was killed in a hit-and-run accident when he was ten, and grief drove his dad to drink. Charlie learned how to take care of himself – and his dad. Then, when Charlie is seventeen, he meets Howard Bowditch, a recluse with a big dog in a big house at the top of a big hill. In the backyard is a locked shed from which strange sounds emerge, as if some creature is trying to escape. When Mr. Bowditch dies, he leaves Charlie the house, a massive amount of gold, a cassette tape telling a story that is impossible to believe, and a responsibility far too massive for a boy to shoulder.
 
Because within the shed is a portal to another world – one whose denizens are in peril and whose monstrous leaders may destroy their own world, and ours. In this parallel universe, where two moons race across the sky, and the grand towers of a sprawling palace pierce the clouds, there are exiled princesses and princes who suffer horrific punishments; there are dungeons; there are games in which men and women must fight each other to the death for the amusement of the “Fair One”. And there is a magic sundial that can turn back time .
 
Review: We meet Charlie Reade, our main character and the narrator of the story. He is a nineteen-year-old kid who one day helps the elderly Mr. Bowditch. Because Mr. Bowditch has broken his leg, Charlie decides to take care of him and he becomes friends with him and Mr. Bowditch’s dog Radar. Charlie discovers a shed in Mr. Bowditch’s yard, which is always locked and there are strange sound coming from the inside of it. When Mr. Bowditch dies, he leaves Charlie his dog, his house and his money. But also a cassette tape, on which Mr. Bowditch tells Charlei what is in the shed and the instructions he should explore it.
 
I immediately liked Charlie. I’m glad he was the main character. He is a kind, smart, selfless kid and I enjoyed reading from his perspective. Stephen King did a great job with this character. Also with Mr. Bowditch and even with the dog Radar. What King also did, and has always been one of his best qualities, is setting a scene and describing everything. It’s always so easy to form a picture in your head while reading a Stephen King novel. He created an interesting, magical, scary world in “Fairy Tale”. It's a fantasy novel at most and it’s not King’s preferred genre. But it’s excellently done.
 
The story is full of characters and there is a lot of world-building. There is a lot of social and political commentary, as known from King’s other books. And the book had some surprising lightheartedness to it. It didn’t feel heavy, even though “Fairy Tale” also deals with themes like grief, addiction and death.
 
I really enjoyed “Fairy Tale”. It’s a wonderfully imaginative, adventurous book. The only critique is that it was a tad too long and there were some parts in the book that dragged a bit or felt repetitive. I would definitely recommend this to people, if they want to start reading Stephen King.  
 
Rating: 4/ 5