I have worked my way through a good portion of Stephen King's books over the last few years as a fan of horror. And nobody does original horror/supernatural stories better than Mr King. But Blaze is not a horror nor does it really verge on the supernatural. I'm not really sure what you would call it. If someone had told me the plot before I had actually read the book I would have said it wasn't my type of story. But I had the book finished within 24 hours - one of the best reads I've had in a long time. You shouldn't want the protagonist to succeed in his task of kidnapping a baby, but despite yourself you do. You hope that he will be ok. No one can make you care about a character like Stephen King can.
Posted By: Gav Worlledge - 02/24/2010 - 12:00 PM EST
My partner bought this book for me for christmas - I had read it by boxing day night, just couldn't put it down! Classic King characterisation once again and what starts as a simple plot from the cover (baby-kidnap, ransom ect ect) develops into so much more as us constant readers have come to expect. Reading about Blaze's childhood enthralled and saddened me and despite what he does throughout the course of the story you can't help but feel compassion towards him. Although I have been a long-time fanatic of Mr king, it is only recently that I have had time to actually start reading any of his novels published under the name of Richard Bachman. Recently I got a copy of The Bachman Books and read "Rage" and "The Long Walk" (Both utterly excellent) and Blaze rates high up there with them as some of my favourite King reads. Maybe the ending seemed a slight predictable but by the time I got to it, it still brought out the emotions I think King was planning us to have. A great book and a worthy read to anybody that enjoys crime, adventure and real character analysis. You do NOT have to just be a Stephen King fan to enjoy this beauty! 10/10
Posted By: Chris - 01/20/2010 - 3:52 AM EST
Amazing...couldn't put this book down. Actually, this was the first book I had read in about 5 years...i got it in a bookstore in the airport flying to the florida keys...read half of it on the way there, read the other half on the way back....what a hell of a trip that was...i love the way stephen king crafts his stories...just incredible detail...its like he's telling stories from past experiences...i loved this book....ive since read duma key, cell, and im about to go get a copy of under the dome...sounds like king at his best
Posted By: Malena - 01/13/2010 - 11:32 AM EST
AMAZING! I FINISHED IT YESTERDAY, JUST AMAZING.
Posted By: Vare - 12/06/2009 - 10:01 PM EST
king, you're awesome. i'm from argentina, i remeber that when i was going to buy this book y accidentally read,looking for the total page , the end of the book. fortunatly that was a little extract of duma key.love you
Posted By: James - 11/28/2009 - 9:30 PM EST
Only halfway through this book, but I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Quick note to author/editor: A typo on page 147, 2/3 way down, paragraph starting with "Too bad,".
Posted By: Savannah - 11/05/2009 - 10:07 AM EST
amazing book,i found myself getting so into the story i became oblivious to everything around me........including my mother in law,trust me i payed for that one lol(but it was worth it)
Posted By: Tweek - 10/27/2009 - 12:07 PM EST
i read this book over the summer, and i thought it was worth reading. i remember i kept wondering what would happen next. and just when you think you knew, it didn't happen. so if you want to read a book that keeps you guessing........then this is it
Posted By: Dave - 10/19/2009 - 8:38 AM EST
This book is by far one of the gretaest books i have ever read by Stephen King. It is truely an amazing book, i found myself staying up late at night just to keep reading, and when i put it down thats all i thought about.
Posted By: Giuly - 08/23/2009 - 10:46 AM EST
Very lovely story. I cryed at the end.
Posted By: SFNGTR - 06/27/2009 - 10:46 AM EST
Blaze is the first SK book that I have had trouble sticking with. Maybe because I just came from The Regulators. My brother tells me to keep going and I will be glad I did. To me it lumbers along. Much like Blaze himself. Maybe thats the point. Thanks bro for all the great reads.
Posted By: Anonymous - 04/28/2009 - 8:54 PM EST
I loved this book. I would stay awake reading this book forever and when I finally put it down I wouldn't be able to get to sleep because I was thinking about it so much. Great work. One of my favorite King books
Posted By: LeoN WiNgsteiN - 02/21/2009 - 10:50 AM EST
This was the first book by Stephen King I read. My dad bought it for my mom to read over vacation, and she was reading something else at the time, so I read it. It has a great mixture of deep thought and good characters along with an excellent plot that makes this book a must read.
Posted By: Blaze - 01/05/2009 - 3:25 PM EST
Read books such as IT, Bag Of Bones, Duma Key, Geralds Game, and watched all the films produced, but Blaze is great writing and a great read. Myself is @ college in the UK studying film making and creative writing is part of the course and would like to say that SK is an inspiration to others. Thank-You
Posted By: Blazedale - 11/06/2008 - 11:42 PM EST
This is King at the top of his game. Of course King is always at the top of his game. This is in the top three books i have ever read. By the way all top three are King books. It is absoutly amazing. I recomend getting the audio verson. It adds an extra feeling to it having someone else reading it to you. Kings amazing writing makes you feel like your in a movie. This is one of those ones that you finish all in one sitting because you just cant stop reading.
Posted By: AlwaysSmiling - 11/06/2008 - 3:29 PM EST
He never lied!! This book should have stayed "Hidden". The plot is too long, the story is very uninteresting and it definitely isn't easy reading. He's definitely done better work.
Posted By: Kali - 09/28/2008 - 1:30 PM EST
VERY GOOD! Srephen King put a new twist on an old favorite. Alas, like many(not all)good tales it has a wretchedly sad ending. This is a must read(sorry for the spoiler!)
Posted By: King Jacob - 09/28/2008 - 11:54 AM EST
I loved this book! I wish there was more available from the late Mr. Bachman, but I still love SK's work.
Posted By: Moonshell - 09/18/2008 - 5:06 PM EST
Stephen King felt unsure about how this book would come across. I felt it was very good! I was engaged throughout the whole reading. You did it again!
Posted By: Warren Piece - 08/01/2008 - 6:52 PM EST
Based largely on Of Mice and Men, Blaze is a novel about being in over your head. The main character, Clayton Blaisdell Jr., also known as Blaze, stands about six foot seven and is about as dumb as he is tall. His partner in crime, until recently, has been a small con-man named George, (This should sound pretty familiar by now.) who has died and left Blaze to pull their one final caper on his own. Blaze has all the elements a good crime novel should have: almost fumbled heist...check! daring run from the law....check! cool criminal hide-out...check! The only thing missing was the sultry damsel in distress. Blaze was by no means original and felt ambiguously lost in time, skipping from eighties to nineties while reading like the fifties. Despite this, the book was thoroughly enjoyable and is strongly recommended for anyone looking for a fun, light read.
