The blurb:

In a small New England town, over half a century ago, a shadow falls over a small boy playing with his toy soldiers. Jamie Morton looks up to see a striking man, the new minister. Charles Jacobs, along with his beautiful wife, will transform the local church. The men and boys are all a bit in love with Mrs. Jacobs; the women and girls feel the same about Reverend Jacobs—including Jamie’s mother and beloved sister, Claire. With Jamie, the Reverend shares a deeper bond based on a secret obsession. When tragedy strikes the Jacobs family, this charismatic preacher curses God, mocks all religious belief, and is banished from the shocked town.

Jamie has demons of his own. Wed to his guitar from the age of 13, he plays in bands across the country, living the nomadic lifestyle of bar-band rock and roll while fleeing from his family’s horrific loss. In his mid-thirties—addicted to heroin, stranded, desperate—Jamie meets Charles Jacobs again, with profound consequences for both men. Their bond becomes a pact beyond even the Devil’s devising, and Jamie discovers that revival has many meanings.

I haven’t read many Stephen King books; I loved his memoir On Writing and I remember reading his time-travel novel about trying to prevent the assassination of JFK, 11/22/63. Other than those two, I have not dipped into any King books.

Until now, that is.

Revival caught my eye with its cool cover – flashes of lightning over a circus tent – so I thought I’d give it a go.

I was expecting a tense, exciting thriller, peppered with horror, but this book left me cold.

To be honest (whisper it) I found it a bit boring. There seemed to be too much backstory before we get to the action; I didn’t really care about the main character, and the bad guy wasn’t creepy enough.

Perhaps Stephen King books just aren’t my thing.