Lisey's Story
 First edition cover | |
| Written by: | Stephen King |
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| First published: | October 24, 2006 |
Lisey's Story is a novel written by Stephen King.
After twenty-five years of marriage, Lisey's writer husband Scott Landon dies of a mystery disease. Scott used to go to a place called Boo'ya Moon, a place that both terrified and healed him. Now it's Lisey's turn to visit, to uncover her husband's past and face her own demons.
The novel was partially inspired by King's own brush with mortality after being hit by a car in 1999 and what his wife's life may have been like had he died.
Tropes used in Lisey's Story include:
- Abhorrent Admirer - Lisey has a run-in with John Dooley, an insane fan of her dead husband.
- Abusive Parents - Scott's father abuses both Scott and his brother.
- And I Must Scream - Those who get eaten by the Long Boy don't die. Instead, they are eternally digested while conscious.
- Ax Crazy - Scott's father becomes this after going mad with 'Bad-Gunky'.
- Best Years of Your Life - One of Lisey's sisters comments to Lisey that they want to get together like "the good old days"; Lisey has flashbacks to her sisters treating her like crap.
- Continuity Nod - A character listens to a Mike Noonan novel on tape.
- Eldritch Abomination - The Long Boy.
- Go Mad from the Revelation - Seeing the Long Boy.
- Improvised Weapon - Lisey uses Scott's shovel.
- Lighter and Softer - Compared to King's usual fare. It still gets pretty dark.
- The Lost Lenore - A male example with Lisey's husband.
- Mercy Kill - We are told early on that Scott's father killed his brother and that Scott later killed him. In both cases, we later find out that they had been driven irrevocably insane by the 'Bad-Gunky' and their deaths were mercy kills.
- Most Writers Are Writers - Subverted somewhat from King's usual repertoire as the protagonist is the writer's wife.
- Perfectly Cromulent Word - Lisey and Scott both use made-up or inverted words between them such as 'bool', 'Bad-Gunky' or replacing words like 'afghan' with 'african'.
- Shovel Strike - Lisey uses a commemorative shovel of her late husband's as a weapon.
- Two Lines, No Waiting - A large chunk of the story are flashbacks to Scott's childhood and relationship with his father and brother.