The concept of an artist whose paintings control the world around him isn’t a new one by any stretch of imagination, but the subtlety and gravitas of King’s handling of it, for the first part of the book, lends the trope a new mystique.Įven more important than the supernatural, the mundane miseries of human existence decide the course of Duma Key’s beginning and middle. As the Overlook Hotel offered a way for Jack Torrance to shift all blame away from himself in the Shining, Edgar Freemantle’s art in Duma Key allows him to escape his crippled body for a time and to make his mark on the people and places once dominated. In line with those, Duma Key’s great terror is a – literal – projection of the character’s inner being into the outside world. The Shining’s manipulation of Jack wasn’t terrifying because a hedge moved, but because of an, otherwise innocent, alcoholic’s self denial and rage Pet Semetary wasn’t scary as a zombie story, but was horrifying because of what it said about a father’s love. All of his greatest monsters have been so great because of what they represented within the characters. The horror aspect of Duma Key is relatively laid back in the first two thirds of Duma Key, and, when it does surface there, stems entirely from the characters. It would be easy to say that this kind of thing takes you out of the world of the story, but I think that, if done well, it doesn’t do that at all – it takes the story to your world. Characters quote lyrics at each other, discuss politics, name drop famous artists and actors, and mention brand names. Other authors may reference popular culture King pours gallons of it into his books. A lot of this is due to King’s endless connections to the real world.
This part of the book feels so real that I could conceive of it taking place across the street…or, well, taking place in Florida. The supporting cast is painted with equal skill, and each character is as fully realized as Edgar, from his ex-wife, Pam Freemantle, to his new friend, Wireman. Edgar Freemantle is well drawn, both in his hurts and his triumphs.
This part of the story is vivid and lifelike. While there, he decides to try his hand at art and discovers that he’s actually quite skilled. On the other hand, the horror elements are a complete mess when the book switches over from trying to draw you in to trying to scare you, it messes itself more than a little bit.ĭuma Key is the story of Edgar Freemantle, who, crippled in a construction accident, is forced into an early retirement in Florida’s Duma Key. On one hand, the characterization maintains that beautifully down to earth grace that King’s made to seem effortless throughout his career. Stephen King’s Duma Key epitomizes the strengths and weaknesses of later King. When it comes to the past, we all stack the deck.
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