Misery

Written by Stephen King

Narrated by Lindsay Crouse

The #1 New York Times bestseller about a famous novelist held hostage in a remote location by his “number one fan.” One of “Stephen King’s best…genuinely scary” (USA TODAY).

Bestselling novelist Paul Sheldon thinks he’s finally free of Misery Chastain. In a controversial career move, he’s just killed off the popular protagonist of his beloved romance series in favor of expanding his creative horizons. But such a change doesn’t come without consequences. After a near-fatal car accident in rural Colorado leaves his body broken, Paul finds himself at the mercy of the terrifying rescuer who’s nursing him back to health—his self-proclaimed number one fan, Annie Wilkes. Annie is very upset over what Paul did to Misery and demands that he find a way to bring her back by writing a new novel—his best yet, and one that’s all for her. After all, Paul has all the time in the world to do so as a prisoner in her isolated house...and Annie has some very persuasive and violent methods to get exactly what she wants...

“King at his best…a winner!” —The New York Times
“Unadulteratedly terrifying…frightening.” —Publishers Weekly
“Classic King…full of twists and turns and mounting suspense.” —The Boston Globe

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
• Release date: Jan 1, 2016
• ISBN: 9781508217145

Stephen King

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. 

Reviews for Misery

[Jeanne E Payne · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Terrifying book! I've read this every two or three years since it was published, but now some time has passed. The narrator Lindsay Crouse does a fantastic job as Annie Wilkes! The first time Annie lost her cockadoodie temper I jumped! Paul Sheldon and Annie Wilkes are two characters you will never, ever forget.

[Kersty Sevey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good narration, but I didn't like the random chimes and music in between chapters or during chapters. It was very distracting.

[Queen Junk · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Excellent story, but I wish the reader didnt read with such a repetitive melody, or read Annie's lines with a Kathy Bates impression.

[Andrew Grau · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

EXCELLENT! Thrilling and vivid, one of Stephen King's best! The metaphors and imagery are very poignant.

[Najma telola Gebril · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved the book and the narrator gave a fantastic performance.

[Jason Ford · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good book , classic. I Highly recommend to other readers.

[saniteeis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The narration is fabulous. What a wonderful way to revisit “old friends.”

[Scott A · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This wasn't my favorite Stephen King book, but it was really well-written (and well-narrated) with lots of suspense, and that lady was crazy! I mean you can't understand how a crazy woman can be described in a way that you can feel until you've read this.

[Gina Occhiogrosso · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of the best! Never underestimate the power of the words.

[Yogesh Suresh Rege · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A masterpiece, never lost the grip, from start to finish!!

[xerox404 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I think the book is great but I'm curious why the audiobook quality is so poor.

[Victoria Feathers · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

1000/10 on the edge of my seat the whole way through

[Elisa Joy Hall · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story was pretty good. I felt like the narrator had a nice voice, however she could have been a bit more animated with the characters. Some times I felt like I was listening to a bedtime story...

[Jeannete Coronel · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

All I can say is that this book was amazing. This was my first Stephen King novel, and it was such a good introduction to his work. I was at the edge of my seat through most of it.

[Mack · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I listened to this audio book while being an at home caregiver… a little too unsettling for this environment lol.

[Keith Walker · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Absolutely fantastic! Crouse does an amazing job bringing the characters to life.

[Brandon · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

That was very gruesome. I almost threw up. Annie truly is a monster only rivaling Pennywise the clown.

[Luke B · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Awesome book, so well written. My first time reading King and I was not disappointed

[1428elm · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There’s not much to say about Misery that hasn’t been said before. This is classic King from start to finish. If you haven’t gotten around to reading this yet, I highly recommend you do.

[Shawn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of my favorites by King also one of my favorite books all time highly recommended

[Cia Leest · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Very suspenseful, very scary but this novel was really too gory for my taste.

[Phương Phương Thảo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A classic psychological thriller! One of the best I have ever read.

[Bailey Fletcher · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story is great but what is with all these weird chimes and sound effects? It’s very distracting.

[Diana Cadahing · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was reading this with the book and if not for this audio book, I wouldn't have finished it. I found Stephen King's prose too wordy at times, and this really helped me understand it without having to read through a passage multiple times. Kudos to the narrator for a job well done.

[Margaux Lauren · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Good as always. The story is so creepy, and such a full narrative built from two characters is fascinating. The end is such a well written scene.

[Gary · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What an amazing novel. So much more to add than the movie. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Definitely worth the read. Having seen the movie first, I constantly pictured Kathy Bates as Annie while listening.

[Londy 333 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great story and storyteller. So far one of my favorite King novels.

[Rlynoyb · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

How do you write a review for this crazy, scary, thrilling, twisty book within a book within a book? I .... can.... Sort of stole that from the book. I loved the movie version of this book so I really wanted to listen to the audiobook. The narrator was fantastic and really brought the characters to life. The story of course gives you the inner workings of Paul Sheldon's mind, something a movie cannot do. Annie of course is bat crap crazy but I think she also becomes a bit of an inspiration to the author, she is after all his bee goddess. Thank you Stephen King for sharing your talent with your humble readers and number one fans.

[Kyla Balcom-Pyles · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amazing, had me hooked and I listened to the full thing in 3 days. the audio quality is perfect as well

[Jennifer Cress · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It was great! It drew me in from beginning to finish. Captivating thriller.