DERRY, MAINE, Mike Noonan's wife dies unexpectedly. After this tragic loss, the bestselling writer suffers acute writer's block, unable to even face the blank screen of a word processor without being shaken by nausea and panic.
Then the nightmares and the voices start... nightmares of Sara Laughs, their beautiful lakeside retreat. Still Mike is drawn inexorably to their once happy home, drawn to his typewriter and the urge to write again.
But the once familiar Western Maine town has changed. It's now in the tyrannical grip of millionaire Max Devore and his terrifying skeletal bookkeeper. Devore is determined to obtain custody of three-year-old Kyra, his deceased son's child, and is twisting the fabric of the community to this purpose.
When the girl and her young mother turn to Mike for help, he finds himself powerless to resist them. But there are other, more sinister forces at Sara Laughs determined to stand in the way.
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On a very hot day in August of 1994, my wife told me she was going down to the Derry Rite Aid to pick up a refill on her sinus medicine prescription - this is stuff you can buy over the counter these days; I believe. CHAPTER ONE***
(Hodder & Stoughton, I January 1998, hardback, 516 pages, bought from Borders Book Store which has now shut down)
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I've read Bag of Bones several times. It's among my favourite books of all time. I don't think I'll get bored of reading it. This is a corker of a book and showcases how brilliant a writer King is (pardon my fangirl moment while I rub drool from my chin). This is a blend of love story / ghost story / haunted house story. I loved the fact King uses a first person narrator and we get the story from Mike's viewpoint. I really like first person narrators. I cried buckets reading this especially in the final chapters when Mike learns just what darkness lies over the TR when Sara Laughs and just what forces are working against him. This is an incredible novel. I worship it and would recommend it.
5/5
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I'm currently reading through the lists of books with some connection to The Dark Tower from Stephen King's own website, https://stephenking.com/darktower/connections/. According to this link the connections between The Dark Tower and Bag of Bones are:
- KEYWADIN POND: In Song of Susannah this is located near East Stoneham, Maine. In Bag of Bones it is located near Lovell, Maine.
- INSIDE VIEW: This scandal sheet is mentioned in The Waste Lands. It is also mentioned in Bag of Bones.
- SARA LAUGHS: In The Dark Tower, Roland and Eddie learn that Stephen King has bought a house called Cara Laughs which is the scene of walk-in activity in Song of Susannah and a portal that takes them back to their own world. I assume Cara Laughs is based on Sara Laughs, Mike's retreat in Bag of Bones even though both houses are in different locations. This is not mentioned in the link above but from my memory of recently re-reading The Dark Tower.
