King's great strength is his detailed observation and portrayal of ordinary people. Decent, everyday folk with their loves and hates, joys and worries, the sort of people that live next door without any problems...until King comes along and drops them bodily into some bizarre and terrifying situation and then, in effect, invites us to watch their struggles to extricate themselves. In his novels you can see through the eyes of his characters; you can hear their innermost thoughts, feel their deepest emotions, understand their lives and problems. But I repeat, that is in his novels; written in his fluent and highly descriptive and colloquial prose.

But "Storm of the Century" is not a novel. It is the screenplay of the TV film, and like the film itself, can only show you the exterior of the characters. You can see their actions, hear their words, but you are not privy to their hidden thoughts and fears directly; you can only infer them from what you observe. And that is where this story comes to grief; it is strangely, not frightening at all to the reader, although Kings evident intention is to horrify you with his story of the evil and unhuman stranger that comes to the isolated island community and offers them a terrifying choice.

This stranger, Linoge, is not,(as I have seen suggested) an alter ego of Flagg in Kings "The Stand". Flagg is (to me) the embodument of pure chaos and destruction; his is a kind of mindless, giggling terror, impersonal, pointless and overpowering. Linoge, on the other hand, evinces a dark and malevolent intelligence, aimed murderously at each individual, in retribution for his or her particular personal sins. Linoge is a kind of nemesis. ( As an aside, it is perhaps pity that the actor Colm Feore gave the character such a spooky attraction in the film...or maybe thats just my feeling, given that I admire Mr Feore!) But ultimately, the stark choice offered by Linoge to the storm-bound islanders just isn't as terrible as King would have us think. (I wont spoil the story by giving full details) For even given the natural love and protective impulse of parents, there is really only one rational decision they can make, given the overwhelming promise of anihilation offered by Linoge as alternative to "giving him what he wants...." But the concept is interesting. I only wish King had told us more about the nature of the creature Linoge, and his"work".

It's worth reading, if you enjoy screenplays. King does include many asides and descriptions that a pure script would not need, aimed at the general reader. But the overall effect is not as moving or frightening as much of his other writing.


Gripping, Original a Must for any King fan   August 1, 2000
 3 out of 3 found this review helpful

This is an original screenplay i.e. not a screenplay adapted from a novel/short story. Often any of Kings soirees into the small or big screen have been ultimately disappointing or even poor but this is dealt with by King in his normal superb manner.

Set on a small community island of the coast of Maine during the 'storm of the centaury' a devil type Randall Flagg character comes to town. He brings paranoia and fear to anybody who comes into contact with him. Giving away dark secrets his only constant statement is to say 'give me what I want and I will go away'.

For obvious reasons the characters are not as well drawn as in any of Stephen Kings novels but as a companion to the actual TV miniseries it is really interesting and highlights his adaptability and outstanding talent.

A completist type of book for any Stephen King fan rather than for a casual reader. Really very interesting and original.


Having read the screenplay, I can't wait to see the film   November 30, 1999
 4 out of 4 found this review helpful

Stephen King writes the screenplay to Storm of the Century in the same way he writes all his novels; he hooks you in and makes you feel like you are looking directly at what he is describing. Then, effectively, the shit hits the fan. The sinister Linoge is clearly an apparition of Randall Flagg, which regular readers will recognise from both The Stand, and several others King has written. Storm of the Century manages to horrify the reader, engross him or her and touch them. I must admit to feeling sad at the inevitability of the ending as Linoge chooses his successor. As King describes Mike's torment, you can clearly see it etched in his face, and as a result, hate the rest of the townsfolk for the way they treat him - although in their own way, they had no choice. Some people think that King's work is lame and doesn't really scare you, but that is not the only aspect of his work. The raw emotion you can feel from the characters, and the tension of the scene is written in a way that NOBODY can imitate. In short, I can't wait to see this film, and demand to know somehow when it is going to be released in the UK. King is not only the master of horror, but he is also a master storyteller. As he himself says: It is the tale; not he who tells it.


13 year old girl from NJ   September 1, 1999
This book was extremely good.Having watched the end of the movie first I could really visualize what was happening and it was intense cliffhangers the whole way through.To me it was the greatest book I have ever read and after reading it 2 times since I borrowed it from the library I want to read it again and anticipate doing just that!-