HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Insomnia by Stephen King
Loading...

Insomnia (original 1994; edition 1994)

by Stephen King (Author), Morgan (Author)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingConversations / Mentions
10,560119671 (3.66)2 / 146
As per usual, it's been over twenty years since I read this novel, having burned through it in a few days immediately after its publication date, 23 years ago tomorrow. But I held very few memories of this, beyond the main character being older, not being able to sleep (well, duh...), and watching something weird happening on his street with shadowy figures. And some dim recollection that this tied in with the Dark Tower series somehow.

This time around, I now believe this to be one of the weaker efforts by King. The basic plot is actually quite simple—and no, I won't spoil it, because it frigging takes King forever to get around to it—but the execution felt both unfocused and spitballed.

Part One, taking up about the first almost 40% of the novel, is a shockingly over-long preamble to the main event that easily could have been cut from 300 pages to likely something more like 60 and massively improved the pacing. There's some irony in the fact that a book named Insomnia made me want to go lie down for the majority of this section. Beyond Ralph sleeping less and less, and Ed Deepneau losing his shit, very little else happens, and what does isn't all that exciting.

Part Two raises the stakes, thankfully, and this is where King seemed to find his footing for a while. Unfortunately, in finally getting the plot going, it also contains a massive information dump that King seems to have a hell of a time wrapping up and getting out of so the story can progress. And once he does, then he seems to (at least to me), emasculate the main villain of the piece, Atropos.

Long story short, this is a bit of a blind alley on the way to the Dark Tower, and a quick check in on a couple of the kids from the Loser's Club from It, so it's kind of required reading for the King completist (and yeah, I'm one of them), but overall, while it does have some lovely moments, primarily between Ralph and Lois, for the most part, there are far better books by King to read.

And so ends the first chunk of my King re-read. I've completed his first twenty years (minus the Dark Tower books and The Talisman). I'm going to give it a bit of a break, then resume in the near future, starting with Rose Madder. ( )
1 vote TobinElliott | Sep 3, 2021 |
English (109)  Danish (2)  Italian (2)  Dutch (2)  Spanish (1)  Polish (1)  French (1)  Portuguese (1)  All languages (119)
Showing 1-25 of 109 (next | show all)
There are many people for whom the book "Insomnia" will serve as a cure for the titular condition. It's an 800 page book that takes about 150 pages to start making sense -- the first quarter of the book is all strange goings-on with no exposition.
Our hero, an old man with a dying wife, begins loosing sleep and (he thinks) hallucinating. He can see auras around people, fields of light that change according to their mood and health and terminate in a long "balloon-string," their soul. And if that's not strange enough, he starts seeing three little bald men dressed as surgeons, who go around snipping people's strings.
It's all very psychedelic and intriguing, but I can see someone giving up on the book before it really gets rolling. Which would be a shame, because the plot kicks in around page 150 and it's a heck of a ride, all the more enjoyable if you don't know what's coming.
Suffice to say that this is the multiverse-hopping, cosmic guru King of The Stand and It, not the bare-bones King of The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon and Running Man (I like 'em both, if you were wondering). Insomnia is actually a better read than both The Stand and It, because it is more closely tied into the world as we know it. Most importantly, the characters are complex and believable, truly people worth knowing.
So if you've got the attention span and the physical strength to lift this book, definitely pick it up. ( )
  b00kdarling87 | Jan 7, 2024 |
man what the fuck was that. this is not a horror novel IMO, it starts out as one but it turns into more... science fiction? action? it's weird. the end still made me cry though. i feel like this is one of those books that is going to stick with me even though i didn't necessarily "like" it. how does one rate a book like that??? maybe i'll have to come back and edit this. this book said, or attempted to say, a lot of things- politically, supernaturally, etc. and i'm not sure i followed all of it completely. just... interesting. ( )
  fancypengy | Nov 30, 2023 |
Although it was kind of a slow start, it ends with a great insight into the levels of the tower and the possibilities beyond this world. And although there were supernatural forces at work, the main story is very real and feels possible ( )
  Crystal199 | Mar 8, 2023 |
gets slow in spots but it was a great story as always ( )
  TrishLittle | Jan 9, 2023 |
2.5 stars

Ralph’s wife recently (I think) passed away. Now he is having trouble sleeping. It’s not long before he starts seeing “auras”. It turns out a local older woman, Lois, is also seeing these auras. There is a woman activist coming to town to speak, but townspeople of Derry are divided about it.

I listened to the audio, and the audio was ok; I guess I lost interest periodically, but I don’t think it was the narrator or the audio at fault. This is one of, if not the, book I’ve rated the lowest by King (of what I’ve read, which is quite a bit), as he is one of my favourite authors. There were parts that I “liked” (or at least found more interesting), like the domestic abuse situation, but much of it just didn’t interest me. ( )
  LibraryCin | Nov 17, 2022 |
If you have Insomnia, a great cure for it could be reading Insomnia by Stephen King! Seriously, this has to take the prize for the slowest, most dull SK book.
I think I would have enjoyed Insomnia more if I were a bigger fan of [b:It|830502|It|Stephen King|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334416842l/830502._SY75_.jpg|150259] and Derry lore. I did enjoy the crossover into some of the DT background, but overall spent most of my time bored and waiting for it to become interesting. Ralph was not relatable, he bored me with his random thought processes when other people were talking. ( )
  NicholeReadsWithCats | Jun 17, 2022 |
There are four constants in the short-time world: Life, Death, The Purpose, and The Random. This is what Ralph Roberts and Lois Chasse come to know in their quest to stay alive when a pro-life activist, Susan Day, visits Derry, where the Crimson King is coming to collect a few souls. King drops many "Tower" references in this crazy story of a life and death struggle in his favorite town. Entertaining. A must-read for Stephen King fans. ( )
  PaulaGalvan | May 23, 2022 |
Just finished the book. A very interesting take on life and death but, of course, King always has interesting ways of looking at things. It was a long book and a bit slow to stasrt but once I got into it, i hated to put it down. Very likable main characters, too.
( )
  KyleneJones | Apr 25, 2022 |
Story:
Ralph Roberts has a reality problem. The problem being that he is experiencing too much of it. He gets less and less sleep every night. Colors are getting brighter, people are starting to glow. Actually people in the town of Derry, Maine are starting to go a little crazy it seems to Ralph. The women’s rights activist Susan Day seems to have stirred up a lot the people that live in the town that Ralph has been in all his life. Normally calm people are taking sides, sometimes for no reason at all.

Derry can be a strange place to live, lots of odd things seem to happen there. At seventy years of age and the passing of his wife Ralph thought he had earned a quiet retirement. Fate seems to have other plans for Ralph though.

There seem to be these strange little men that are going around town. Whenever he sees one, someone seems to die or something bad happens. Of course no one else seems to be able to see them. Ralph thinks he is going crazy, but as he learns more it seems that he may have become one of the main players in an insane game that has been going on since the beginning of history itself.

My thoughts:
I thought this was a pretty good Stephen King story. It does seem to have a lot of connections to other books set in the town of Derry, Maine and the Dark Tower series so if the reader doesn’t have much knowledge of those than some of the references in the book may be a little confusing since certain events are referenced multiple times. Other than that the story is pretty self contained and does a good job of keeping the plot moving. For the most part the characters are well developed and the supernatural parts of the story don’t go too far into wacky land like some of Kings stories do. Interestingly, considering this was written almost thirty years ago, the background plot of the clinic and Susan Day doesn’t seem that all out of place today. All in all I would recommend this to anyone who is a Stephen King fan that is looking for a pretty good Drama / Thriller that does its own thing but still has connections to his other books or anyone that is looking for a good drama / thriller that questions what we might see if we didn’t have to sleep. ( )
  cahallmxj | Apr 13, 2022 |
Not really worth reading this one as part of the Dark tower series, there was really only a couple of mentions to the character Patrick Danville. However the story was unusual in that the hero was an elderly man that made it refreshingly different. ( )
  AChild | Feb 11, 2022 |
As per usual, it's been over twenty years since I read this novel, having burned through it in a few days immediately after its publication date, 23 years ago tomorrow. But I held very few memories of this, beyond the main character being older, not being able to sleep (well, duh...), and watching something weird happening on his street with shadowy figures. And some dim recollection that this tied in with the Dark Tower series somehow.

This time around, I now believe this to be one of the weaker efforts by King. The basic plot is actually quite simple—and no, I won't spoil it, because it frigging takes King forever to get around to it—but the execution felt both unfocused and spitballed.

Part One, taking up about the first almost 40% of the novel, is a shockingly over-long preamble to the main event that easily could have been cut from 300 pages to likely something more like 60 and massively improved the pacing. There's some irony in the fact that a book named Insomnia made me want to go lie down for the majority of this section. Beyond Ralph sleeping less and less, and Ed Deepneau losing his shit, very little else happens, and what does isn't all that exciting.

Part Two raises the stakes, thankfully, and this is where King seemed to find his footing for a while. Unfortunately, in finally getting the plot going, it also contains a massive information dump that King seems to have a hell of a time wrapping up and getting out of so the story can progress. And once he does, then he seems to (at least to me), emasculate the main villain of the piece, Atropos.

Long story short, this is a bit of a blind alley on the way to the Dark Tower, and a quick check in on a couple of the kids from the Loser's Club from It, so it's kind of required reading for the King completist (and yeah, I'm one of them), but overall, while it does have some lovely moments, primarily between Ralph and Lois, for the most part, there are far better books by King to read.

And so ends the first chunk of my King re-read. I've completed his first twenty years (minus the Dark Tower books and The Talisman). I'm going to give it a bit of a break, then resume in the near future, starting with Rose Madder. ( )
1 vote TobinElliott | Sep 3, 2021 |
The ending of this book makes me like the book (or appreciate it) as a whole on a new level.

I first started the book and its very slow in the beginning, slow in the middle and probably picks up at around 80% but its worth it if you like the dark tower series. There are STRONG themes connecting this book to the rest of the series and while I dont understand all of the connections at this point its very obvious that there are many.

Summary for myself:
Ralph has dreams, Carolyn is his wife that died, lois is his new friend that he travels and dreams with. He has numerous friends that help him - Bill McGovern is his friend who lives downstairs
The bald docs help people die and are part of the "supposed to happen", the third doc is part of the "random" and takes peoples lives at will.

Ralph gets this power to travel between levels in the tower because he needs to help save the boy Patrick's life as he comes into play later as he helps saves someone elses life (Probably Roland if I had to guess). Ed Deepneau is the antagonist and Ralph has to stop him from bombing the civic center in Derry as thats where patrick is - Ralph also saves patrick's life at the battered woman's shelter the morning of the civic center attack.

Patrick draws pictures of the tower with Roland (and even knows his name) as well as the Crimson or Red king at the top of the tower. Ralph interacts with the Crimson King while in the plane that Ed is flying towards the civic center. Ralph gets away from the king by stabbing him in the eye with one of Lois' earrings that he stole from Doc #3 and by traversing levels.

In the epilogue its revealed that Ralph had agreed to stop Ed only if his daughter could continue her life which 5 years after the attack - ralph's scar reminds him that he needs to save Natalie's life by traversing levels to move quickly and throw her out of the way of a moving car. ( )
  jhavens12 | Sep 1, 2021 |
I liked this book even though it was weird and longer than it probably should've been. ( )
  Jimbookbuff1963 | Jun 5, 2021 |
Interesting read that can honestly get a little creepy at times. The reason this book is so great is not because I was scared, but because I thought this could definitely happen to anyone. If you are not well versed in Stephen King's writing style, this story could see a little confusing at times. Highly suspenseful read. ( )
  allysonpuri | Nov 28, 2020 |
Insomnia is really a Dark Tower novel. I takes about 500 pages to get there, but then you are smacked in the ka with a tower, a dark figure, a king with guns on his hips, and the meaning of the whole struggle of the book as a footnote in the levels of the world. A fun read even if you haven't read any of the Dark Tower, there are moments where it drags. But at 700 pages, that's not a shock. ( )
  kodermike | Jul 31, 2020 |
I don't know how or why I skipped this book when it came out. Maybe I was busy having a kid, or something. I thought it would be 'hilarious' to read a novel about insomnia, while experiencing insomnia myself. Ha.

Having read a synopsis recently, I was surprised to realize that I had not. So I started listening to the audiobook form, read by Eli Wallach. (If you cannot handle listening to nice old men yelling *extreme* obscenities, then please skip this form of the novel. For your own good. It was horrifying, to say the least. And it ruined my ability to listen to this novel in Audiobook form...the whole time I kept wondering if Eli Wallach got off on screaming such words...? What on earth made him decide to do this? Weird.)
At first I was very happy to immerse myself into a heretofore unknown, older version of King. And then later, I got bored.... Eli Wallach reads very slowly, and can only do a couple different versions of his own voice. So I bought the Ebook version of the novel, and read most of it this way.

Not bad. Weird....interestingly weird. But like I said, about 2/3 of the way through, I wanted it to be over, and I don't know why. I LOVE king, and older King more. This made me sad. I'm cannot figure out why, either.
I struggled through, and finally finished it today. All I know is that I am relieved.....and now worried about reading king's Revival, which is sitting on my night stand.
The Ebook version of this novel is LOADED with errors in spelling and punctuation. It was very distracting.

Three stars, because of the boredom. NOT because of the errors, which were not the author's fault, or the distaste in which I held Eli Wallach's performance..... Seriously, does he kiss his wife with that mouth?!? ( )
  stephanie_M | Apr 30, 2020 |
To me it reads like King trying to write like Clive Barker....Just not gonna work. Not a bad book by a stretch but without a doubt not as good his earlier work. His 90s material really kinda bored me. Well written but a little flat. Coming to the end of this story.......what a snoozer. I can't read more than two pages without my eyes closing. This is the dullest of any King book I have ever read.
  JHemlock | Feb 14, 2020 |
Stephen King does it again. Despite its tome-like size, this novel is an easy read. King’s conversational style keeps you engaged and the pages just fly by. It’s a deeply moving story with relatable, human characters with whom you’ll make a real connection. It’s a nuanced telling of a supernatural struggle of good and evil, with tie-ins to the Dark Tower series for those who know what to look for. Well worth the read. ( )
  Ladyfong | Oct 27, 2019 |
I really didn't expect to like this book as much as I did, and it was quite a pleasant surprise. There's something really great about older characters; the experience they bring with them and adds so much to the depth and richness of the story. And as with other books I've read this year, it's disappointing to see how abortion continues to be such a divisive issue. Hopefully there will come a point in the future where people can seek medical care as they see fit without the needless interference of others. ( )
1 vote mediumofballpoint | Mar 4, 2019 |
This was a painful book to get through. It was long, and not enjoyable.There are things I do not enjoy when reading, but strangely enough, some of the books I enjoy the most have these things: don't tell the story from beginning to end (I will purposely jump around a book if labeled so I can read it in chronological order;) leave out important stuff (I try to guess) revealing it later; and having characters / events that don't move the plot forward (nothing helps this.) This book did all that.
8,016 members; 3.66 average rating; 11/18/2018 ( )
  mainrun | Jan 13, 2019 |
he has worse books, for sure, for reasons all over the map, including the most important things - plot, editing, character development. these things were all fine here. but i still didn't like it. it's not those books, that really need work. this just didn't work for me for some reason. it was overlong, and his messaging is muddled. at one point i think he's even saying that lesbians are missing out, or are just avoiding men because of past trauma. it was inconsistent and uninteresting, for the most part. it wasn't badly written, i just wanted it to be better. still, i didn't ever have to make myself read it or push through; it just wasn't all that good along the way. there's something existential that didn't work for me, but i can't quite put my finger on what it was that was missing or lacking here. so not terrible or anything, but not right, and definitely not his caliber.

there are strong parallels to it. this takes place about 8 years after the events in that book, in the same town, and the final confrontation scene in this book mirrors that one. but everything in this book is inferior to it. i just wasn't moved by this almost at all, in spite of the fact that the surrounding atmosphere of the book was about abortion and domestic violence. it's not that he handled any of it badly, it just wasn't done well enough either. i don't know how to describe it, i guess, but all in all this wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. ( )
1 vote overlycriticalelisa | Nov 30, 2018 |
I forgot how much I enjoy the writing of Stephen King. This was an interesting story. I liked older main characters dealing with aging for a change. I do think the story could have been told in fewer words. It got a little long winded at times. Still worth reading .

( )
  melanieklo | Jul 25, 2018 |
Ralph Roberts just wants one good night of sleep before it kills him... or drives him insane... and at this point, he's not sure which of those is worse.

In Insomnia, we are treated to a look at the cosmic forces at play in Stephen King's multiverse. With events that tie directly to Roland's quest for the Dark Tower and the potential success of that quest, we are introduced to the Purpose, the Random, and finally come face to face with the Crimson King himself.

A cosmic chess game is played out in the small town of Derry, Maine, where only 8 years ago the most malevolent force of all was finally banished. Now other forces are at work, and the fate of King's multiverse hinges on how this particular fight turns out.

Little bald doctors, insomniac retirees, the colors at play on levels beyond normal sight, and one madman with a mission; sounds like a real barnstormer... er, burner, barn burner.

I do have to say that I really enjoyed this one. It had me champing at the bit to see what would happen next. ( )
1 vote regularguy5mb | Feb 7, 2018 |
I like how Stephen King introduces his characters through the story. A widower unable to sleep turns into the answers to who dies and who doesn’t. ( )
  caanderson | May 7, 2017 |
Showing 1-25 of 109 (next | show all)

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.66)
0.5 9
1 66
1.5 8
2 173
2.5 39
3 537
3.5 117
4 709
4.5 50
5 488

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

HighBridge

An edition of this book was published by HighBridge.

» Publisher information page

HighBridge Audio

An edition of this book was published by HighBridge Audio.

» Publisher information page

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 203,230,022 books! | Top bar: Always visible