It’s disturbingly detailed but never crosses over into Nazi experimenting or rapist’s basement territory. But it’s nothing compared to the torture that these kids undergo (along with those who had to hold up the hardcover version of It). Clocking in at 561 pages, this hardback edition takes its toll on your wrists when reading for hours on end. In saying that, this book was a page-turner. But when you have accumulated as much fame and content as he has, you have to judge his novels differently.

It’s hard not to review a Stephen King story without referencing and comparing it to others written by the author.

It keeps things light and grounded, even when the more horrific moments kick in. Even when referencing modern pop culture in his characters’ quips and omniscient narrator’s descriptions, he sometimes misses the mark. His voice maintains the same wisecracking tone of King’s early work. This story explores good versus evil, the will to survive, and the power of friendship. A cross between Firestarter and The Shawshank Redemption (at least the film adaptation of his short story), King blends the supernatural with very basic themes of human determination and survival. The Institute reminds me of the classic Stephen King stories from the past.

Using his intelligence, the group’s combined abilities, and his allegiance with one of the Institute’s Staff, Luke comes up with a plan to escape his prison, expose the Institute to the authorities, and save his friends. Once the tests bring about the vision of colorful dots, the “patients” are transferred to a building called the Back Half and are never seen again. What The Institute plans to use them for is even more of a mystery. Almost daily, they’re made to undergo painful, embarrassing, and cryptic physical tests which draw out their supernatural abilities. There, he meets other extraordinary kids who have been abducted from their homes. He wakes up in a place called The Institute. Then, one night, Luke is kidnapped from his home. But his abilities are so weak that he thinks nothing of it. He’s an easygoing kid who, on occasion, can make small objects move with his mind. Luke Ellis is a 12-year-old Minnesotan with a genius-level IQ and his sights set on starting college. And I knew that, whether this was a straightforward horror tale or a psychological thriller, it was going to capture my interest. I love adult stories with child protagonists. Something about that boy sitting in a train car resembling a bedroom called to me. From the time I saw the cover reveal for Stephen King’s The Institute, I knew that it wouldn’t be a book that I borrowed but bought to own.

The institute stephen king pages