Ninty 182 Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 I just finished the last book of the mamoth series and TBH thought it was bloody brilliant, a great story. Though I was wondering whether anyone else has read the series and what they thought about it. Oh and if anyone read the very last bit of the final one (where it gave you and option to read on or not) whether anyone did and if so, was it worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackfox Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 I have the first book, The Gunslinger, but ive not got into it so far. Just doesnt enthrawl me. I'll try read more hoping the story picks up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Din Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Great series of books but worst ending EVER!!!!!!! The story was great. From the moment I picked up The Gunslinger I was totally hooked. I read all the way up to Wizard & Glass then had to wait for the other 3 books to come out which wasn't very nice as I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen. Oh and if anyone read the very last bit of the final one (where it gave you and option to read on or not) whether anyone did and if so, was it worth it. I did read on because I thought where Stephen King wanted you to stop reading was bullshit. Mind you it didn't get much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninty 182 Posted October 3, 2005 Author Share Posted October 3, 2005 I thought the ending was alright, yet I didn't read on, I thought it would ruin it for me. Better to leave it with that final image in your head than desriptions of the tower that wouldn't be half as good as you imagined it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmac Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 I've read The Dark Tower series (as anyone who saw my quiz questions should now :P) and loved the books, but the bit after he tells you to stop reading was a bit crap and imo a total cop-out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tendosgirlfriend Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Ooh, Tendo's read them all except i think the last one. He loves them a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Din Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 **Possible Spoilers** Right, what was the point in the Crimson King? The way he was killed was so crap. That kid (don't remember his name) drew a picture and then erased the Crimson King from the Tower. I was expecting a massive battle between Roland and him. And Mordred seemed a bit pointless to me also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksnowman Posted October 4, 2005 Share Posted October 4, 2005 I made a thread about this t'other year and it died out pretty flipping quickly. Ive read the series over many years. Followed Roland on his cycle from the Mohaine Desert more than once and I love it every time. Everytime something different stands out. A great great series, although Im not stupid enough to say its perfect. The Crimson King then. Might be some spoilers here for anyone whos worried. He basically went mad. There are many theories on him and well the final battle wast really that great but thats not what the stories about. Sure he went crazy, killed everyone in his court and headed for the Tower. Insane. If he had remained sane he woulda fought Roland at his Castle and taken his guns as the sigul to enter. I dont have the time to get into it all now but like I said, and this applies to Mordred too, the story was never about the ending, its about Roland and how he changes, opens his heart again, can ya not see it? If you want to know more about the Crimson King read Insomnia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dawn Posted October 5, 2005 Share Posted October 5, 2005 I loved the series, and I did read on. I was slightly confused by the ending more than anything - I wanted to know more, I had so many questions - I was thinking about it for weeks after, and sometimes still do. I would recommend pushing past the Gunslinger, its not the best one of the lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Din Posted October 5, 2005 Share Posted October 5, 2005 the story was never about the ending, its about Roland and how he changes, opens his heart again, can ya not see it?. Yeah I know he changes but he doesn't totally change does he? He still goes on to the Dark Tower even though he knows it will mean the death of his very close friends (Ka-tet). I know the book was more about the whole journey but it still doesn't stop me from hating the ending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninty 182 Posted October 5, 2005 Author Share Posted October 5, 2005 ** Spoilers** Yeah the ending was a bit lame (the 'battle' between Roland and the Crimson King) yet I still thought it was great. I mean the reast of the Ka tet got back together and Roland entered the tower. I think that's pretty good actually. Besides Steven King said at the end where you decided to read on or not, that the story was about the journey and about how Roland opened his heart to a new ka tet, not about the tower or the Crimson King. That's why I decided to stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patch Posted June 23, 2008 Share Posted June 23, 2008 I don't know which is the lesser of the two evils a) Starting a duplicate thread b) Resurrecting an old thread so I apologise in advance for this. I noticed the other day that I had a Stephen King book called 'Wizard and Glass' on my bookshelf. It's from a time long past when I was subscribed to a book club - you know, the sort where you have to buy a book every month or they send you rains of fire and destruction instead. I had no idea it was part of the Dark Tower series until just now. The cover says it can be read as part of the series or as an independant novel. Here comes the question. Ignoring the quality of the series as a whole for a minute, should I read it as a standalone novel or would I enjoy it more if I read the others first? I haven't read any of them yet. Mr. darksnowman will be along in a moment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksnowman Posted June 23, 2008 Share Posted June 23, 2008 Mr. darksnowman will be along in a moment... Well, it took me a few hours to get here... but I'm here now! If I'd left it much longer I dare say this thread would have dropped off the first page and I would never have noticed it. Funnily enough, I was reading down the thread thinking it was a new thread, then came to my own post... then looked at the date on it! Blast from the past. Wizard & Glass is my favourite of the series. It says in all the first four that you can read them as stand alone novels but then from five on to seven King wised up. All of them have an "intro" which catches you up on proceedings so far but I honestly wouldn't recommend reading these books out of order, relying on the opening argument to catch you up. Having said that... if any of the series could be read as a stand alone entry, then its Volume IV: Wizard and Glass. Basically this book is one big flashback story where Roland is telling his gang (ka-tet) about his coming of age as a gunslinger with his original ka-tet. So if you skip through the opening which wraps up the cliffhanger ending of Volume III and find where the tale of Mejis starts and read all that (which is the majority of the book) then you should get plenty of enjoyment. The Mejis story is beautiful and was infact King's first attempt at writing a proper and respectable love story. Ideally Patch you should read I-IV. The last three books are great, but they hark back to alot of Kings other books and characters that it might end up being really confusing as to whats going on. Hope that helps, the Dark Tower rocks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patch Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Thanks for the comprehensive info, very useful. I'm coming to the end of the 'Tales of the Riftwar' novels by Raymond Feist, so I'll be starting something new soon. I saw Wizard and Glass and figured it's about time I read a Stephen King book. It's maybe not his best work, but it's the only one I've got at the moment. I think I'll invest in the first three books based on your advice. I assume you have all the books in the series? Do you have all hardback or paperback or a mixture? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninty 182 Posted June 24, 2008 Author Share Posted June 24, 2008 If you're gonna read the first three then be warned that the first one is quite slow so don't be put off. By the second you'll be hooked though. The wizard and the glass could definately be read on its own, its like a story within a story and without having read any of the other books you'll definately enjoy it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksnowman Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Hile, Patch! Got me a mixture of paperback and hardcover, kennit. I started out with getting books 1-3 in a package, not really knowing what they were. I didn't even realise it was a series because from looking at the back I figured they were standalone stories just connected somehow by this Dark Tower. I started with the Gunslinger (its book one, so why not!) and I didn't enjoy it. It was unlike anything I'd read before and unlike anything S. King had ever done too. I forced myself through it and thankfully it all clicked when I was reading the very last part so I grabbed The Drawing of the Three and started into it the same night! From that point I was hooked and never looked back, reading through books 2 and 3 in a matter of days and not knowing whether four was out or where to go next. It was them pre-Internet days, see. I Borrowed Wizard and Glass a few months later off my cousin (didn't know he was a fan til then) and read it as fast as possible... but that took a while due to school. After finishing it, the wait for Volume V commenced and I became a true Tower Junkie from then on out. Scouring the Internet for info... any snippet at all, and reading through any other of SK's books that are connected to the Dark Tower just for even the slightest of fix. Anyway! I said I have a variety of copies so here it is: The Gunlinger (original and unrevised), The Gunslinger Revisited/ Revised (its all you can buy nowadays, so its what you will get. Its an easier read and includes some things that bring it more in line with what happens later in the series.), Le Pistolero (The Gunslinger in French). The next few I have in a similar paperback edition to the original Gunslinger, then Vol V I have in hardback as well as a paperback and another hardback. Dunno why I bought it in paperback but the second hardcover is a proper First Edition with (limited edition?) art on the cover. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to get it! Vol VI I have in hardback and VII I have twice in hardback. The second was bought for the same purpose as the second hardcover of Vol V... First Edition with the cool art. I got them both in Virgin Megastore in Paris and figured I would likely never see them on a store shelf ever again, lol. Volume VII is still wrapped in plastic... could be a nice little earner some day. Aside from all that there is a concordance (or two... but I think you can only buy the complete concordance now, rather than get it in two parts) and there is the comics. Yep, Marvel are doing comics of it all. I've got the first lot in hardcover book form- The Gunslinger Born. Rather than being original stories, it covers Roland becoming a Gunslinger and the Wizard and Glass story of what happens in Mejis. So then, that covers alot of my personal Dark Tower experience. I didn't mean to ramble on as much but in my defense, you did ask! Basically, its a fantasy western sort of story with links to the real world. When you open The Gunslinger and read, "The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed." You will know if you are gonna enjoy the ride... which you better! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan_Dare Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 what's this series even about? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patch Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 If you're gonna read the first three then be warned that the first one is quite slow so don't be put off. By the second you'll be hooked though. The wizard and the glass could definately be read on its own, its like a story within a story and without having read any of the other books you'll definately enjoy it. Cool, thanks. I would have read it on its own if not for darksnowman's enthusiasm. Anyway! I said I have a variety of copies so here it is... That was . . . thorough! So from what I gather: The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger - PAPERBACK The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three - PAPERBACK The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands - PAPERBACK The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass - PAPERBACK? The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla - HARDBACK The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah - HARDBACK The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower - HARDBACK I just wondered how much of a collector you are as I have a mint unread Wizard and Glass in hardback. This is the cover I have: [ATTACH]2114[/ATTACH] Here is a list of all the covers: Wizard and Glass Covers PM me with your address if you'd like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninty 182 Posted June 24, 2008 Author Share Posted June 24, 2008 I have a first edition hardback copy of Song of Susannah. Is that worth anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darksnowman Posted June 24, 2008 Share Posted June 24, 2008 Yeah that red hardback is the one I have, Patch. Many thanks for the offer anyway man! Is your Song of Susannah the purply one, Ninty? If its a first edition then that means it will be probably worth something in the future- first editions are the fairly limited first prints, so having those two words printed inside will make your books rare. This trip down Dark Tower memory lane kinda makes me wanna embark on another reread. I read a few passages from Wolves of the Calla last week actually... but a run through from the Gunslinger to the Dark Tower could be on the cards... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninty 182 Posted June 25, 2008 Author Share Posted June 25, 2008 Is your Song of Susannah the purply one, Ninty? No it's the turquoisely one If its a first edition then that means it will be probably worth something in the future- first editions are the fairly limited first prints, so having those two words printed inside will make your books rare. Woo. Back of the net! I know it was in the series, stuff about first editions and rare books (unless it was in another Stephen King one), but I didn't know whether to take it seriously or not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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