Insomnia

Stephen King

Jan 2016 · Simon and Schuster · Narrated by Eli Wallach

About this audiobook

A #1 national bestseller—“A yarn so packed with suspense, romance, literary reference, fascinating miscellaneous knowledge, and heart that only Stephen King could have written it. Marvelous—that is, full of marvels” (Booklist).

Since his wife died, Ralph Roberts has been having trouble sleeping. Each night he wakes up a bit earlier, until he’s barely sleeping at all. During his late night walks, he observes some strange things going on in Derry, Maine. He sees colored ribbons streaming from people’s heads, two strange little men wandering around town after dark, and more. He begins to suspect that these visions are something more than hallucinations brought on by lack of sleep.

There’s a definite mean streak running through this small New England city; underneath its ordinary surface awesome and terrifying forces are at work. The dying has been going on in Derry for a long, long time. Now Ralph is part of it…and lack of sleep is the least of his worries.

Returning to the same Maine town where It took place, a town that has haunted Stephen King for decades, Insomnia blends King’s trademark bone-chilling realism with supernatural terror to create yet another masterpiece of suspense.

Ratings and reviews

The music interludes keep getting louder and more jarring each time they happen. I listen to a LOT of audiobooks, but I have never run into one that screws up the experience this badly. They must have not listened to the final result after slapping the music interludes in during post-production. Requires constant volume adjustments every 15 minutes or so (when the music starts) because the guitar is INCREDIBLY loud. I'm not exaggerating. The music blares out at least 3 times per chapter. Please preview this before you buy. I feel like I wasted $28 dollars. I read the reviews, and felt like the music problem would not be a big deal, but unfortunately it is. A very loud and annoying big deal. 4 star-novel, but the full experience is 1 1/2 or 2 stars. I am sometimes amazed at editing flubs that are left in audiobooks (such as the narrator leaving a radio ballgame playing in the background ['The Long Walk' audiobook]) but this is completely unacceptable. Really disappointed.

I regret buying this book. Like others have said, the music is HORRIBLE and distracting and makes it hard to hear the story. I may come back and finish this book, but right now I just can't listen to it anymore.

Random music is extremely loud and jarring. It has no reason to be mixed in the way it is and it is so loud I can't hear what the narrator is saying at times. The book seems good, and I will buy a physical copy, but I can't listen to this anymore. I regret buying it and I will attempt a return.

About the author

Stephen King is the author of more than sixty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes the short story collection You Like It Darker, Holly, Fairy Tale, Billy Summers, If It Bleeds, The Institute, Elevation, The Outsider, Sleeping Beauties (cowritten with his son Owen King), and the Bill Hodges trilogy: End of Watch, Finders Keepers, and Mr. Mercedes (an Edgar Award winner for Best Novel and a television series streaming on Peacock). His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller. His epic works The Dark Tower, It, Pet Sematary, Doctor Sleep, and Firestarter are the basis for major motion pictures, with It now the highest-grossing horror film of all time. He is the recipient of the 2020 Audio Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2018 PEN America Literary Service Award, the 2014 National Medal of Arts, and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King.