By Lou Rera
Stephen King often excels when he depicts true evil turning out to be just another person out of control. In Funland, the mystery involves a murderous journey through a haunted house attraction, with the protagonist Devin Jones trying to solve the mystery of “who is the murderer?”
King is a master at weaving pop culture, everyday events, and memories into his stories. In Stephen King’s The Body (readers who have seen the movie version can refer to it as Stand By Me), he takes us through the anxiety of growing up and resolving interpersonal conflicts with friends, and comes to terms with the concepts of death and mortality.
Funland is all about carnival fun and growing up surrounded by the scent of popcorn and cotton candy, and the good times guaranteed by Howie the Happy Hound. But as we all know, there is a dark side to it all, and in this case, the unsolved murder of a beautiful young woman lies beneath the surface of summer fun.
Stephen King sometimes skimps on aliens and monsters, but he captures the psychopathic nature of a narcissistic killer in this story. His characters are strong and believable. There are very real emotions in the book, involving relationships both intimate and circumstantial. I could smell the sea on many trips to and from Funland. In late summer, when memories are sealed with the promise of a new year, it reminds us that some things are best left in the past, to move on and never look back.
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score:5/5
