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Joyland

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Joyland

By: Stephen King
Narrated by: Michael Kelly
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About this listen

"I love crime, I love mysteries, and I love ghosts," says Stephen King, who has combined these elements into a wonderful new story. Joyland is a whodunit noir crime novel and a haunting ghost story set in the world of an amusement park.

It tells the story of the summer in which college student Devin Jones comes to work as a 'carny' in small-town North Carolina and has to confront the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and the way both will change his life forever. It is also a wonderful coming-of-age novel about friendship, loss, and your first heartbreak. Who dares enter the funhouse of fear?

©2013 Stephen King (P)2013 Schuster Audio Coming of Age Crime Crime Fiction Fiction Genre Fiction Ghosts Historical Horror Modern Detectives Mystery Traditional Detectives Haunted Scary Heartfelt Tear-jerking Detective Fantasy Paranormal

Critic Reviews

"A beautiful book, warm and honest, about a boy becoming a man, and his tempered transformation really does pack a punch… In short, Joyland is a joy." (Niall Alexander, Tor)
"An engrossing and ultimately uplifting tale" (Rhian Drinkwater, SFX)
" Joyland describes being young with the necessary vigour, and the slow agony with which a broken heart heals with the necessary tenderness." Laurence Phelan, The Independent)
"What makes King special is that he's an unusually imaginative horror writer who's as interested in characterisation as he is in fright." (Tom Cox, Daily Express)
All stars
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I really enjoyed joyland but I always love Stephen's Books
Thank you and Thank you Michael Kelly for reading to me much appreciated 💜💜💜💜

Joyland by Stephen King

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Stephen King never fails to enthral and entertain, and Joyland is no different. Beautifully woven characters and plot; the tale draws you in almost instantly, not relinquishing it’s hold until the final word is spoken.

Loved the narrator. He was not someone with whom I was familiar, prior to Joyland, but any concerns I may have had evaporated as soon as he began to speak.

Overall, while not one of King’s epic sagas, and with only a smattering of the supernatural, Joyland is unwaveringly poignant. A tapestry of character richness, woven into a heart wrenching yet spellbinding tale to the very end.

Absolutely would recommend! Bravo!

Loved it! Another King classic!

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While not as harsh and deep as some Stephen King novels I still thoroughly enjoyed ‘Joyland’.

I realise there are more ‘gritty’ Stephen king novels, and that may have been a ‘put off’ for some but I found Joyland to be true and accurate to the ‘back cover description’, and written well as usual. I’ve got just about every Stephen King novel in my collection of over 40 years, and this is a great addition.

A thoroughly enjoyable read

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I’ve listened to this book a couple of times, I don’t exactly know why I like it so much but there is just something so poignant about how it captures both melancholy and joy.

The narrator was perfect, a lovely performance and a great voice to listen to.

I loved the feeling

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Set in North Carolina 1973, Joyland is a story of a young adult, Devon Jones. After leaving town for a summer job at an amusement park, Devin Jones finds himself learning new things on his new journey. On his first day, Dev meets with Rozzie, the fortune teller, who prognositicates his future and warns him for what lies ahead. With the rumors of the amusement park being haunted going around, Dev launches his own private investigation into the murder of Linda gray, a customer who got killed in the amusement park years ago. On a day off, Dev and his buddies, Tom and Erin, decide to visit the haunted house at the amusement park, themselves. While Dev and Erin find nothing out of the ordinary, Tom claims to have seen someone in the dark. As the summer ends, Dev decides to take a year off from college and work at Joyland instead. Tom and Erin go back to college, leaving Dev alone. Dev, instead, meets new people like Mike and Annie. Dev starts to realise that Rozzie wasn't wrong because he senses something in Mike. Meanwhile, suffering from a terminal illness, Mike urges to visit Joyland once before he dies. His visit to the Joyland unravels a lot of mysteries for Devin. Joyland is a coming of age story of Devin Jones who suffers from a heartbreak and realises that there are bigger things in the world than losing a relationship. It is a very engaging read, written in an informal manner. I loved the intrigue and the suspense. It really hooked me in and kept me engaged. My first Stephen King novel didn't disappoint me, after all. Although, if you are looking for something gruesome and extremely supernatural, you might not be satisfied. But it is a good crime fiction and worth a shot.

What a beautiful journey!

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I feel like I’m against the majority here, but I enjoy this era of King.
I really enjoy when king writes something grounded with a hint of the supernatural and its not the main focus.
The Main character is very relatable but the supporting ones are little cliche.
As always the heart of the story revolves around a child who has a gift. Although not the plot, its the catalyst.

Classic Noir

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This is not one of the more eventful storylines of Stephen King classics. This is more subtle, but it is brilliant. It is not the story that matters so much but the way the story is told. It is the voice of the narrative, and I am not talking about the narrater reading the story,though he does a real good job too. Stephen King is always at his best when describing things from the POV of some small town coming of age youth ,kicking the dirt and hang around. This story paints a picture of a real Carni atmosphere.

Stephen King at his best

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Fine writer, fine narrator. This is a sweet and sentimental story. My favourite parts of the writing were in the first half. Narration is fantastic throughout.

Sentimental journey

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Perhaps not King's most memorable, but very enjoyable. Good narration too. His character voices were solid except for one which I think didn't quite work.
Set in 1973, I think a few details were a bit anachronistic - for example, the main character at times just seems a bit too modern in his outlook and speech. And I don't think it was deliberate, as may be the case in some of his other books.
Otherwise I think the book flowed well, in that easy, organic way that King's writing generally does. It's a touching story with a sense of nostalgia that isn't heavy-handed.
Overall I enjoyed both the book and the performance and recommend it, especially if you like the idea of a Stephen King book that is a bit more compact than his usual offering.

Easy to get into

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Narrator was perfection. Beautiful storyline and friendships. Loved Loved every second with this book!

Perfect

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