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Once again, the world as we know it is coming to an end in a Stephen King novel. It’s not biological this time, but technological. Could terrorists rewire our minds through cell phones? Let’s just say I’m not rushing out to buy one. (No, really, I don’t own one.)
On October 1, at 3:03 PM, Eastern Standard Time, The Pulse begins. Clay Riddell is walking along a Boston sidewalk, swinging a sack with a gift for his estranged wife in it and minding his own business. He just landed a comic book deal, and he can’t wait to head toward Maine to tell his wife and son the good news. Life is grand for the first time in a long while. But suddenly the people around him start going insane. Chaos and carnage reign because people everywhere answer their cell phones, reducing users to their barest nature.
Clay meets up with a few survivors, who didn’t own a cell phone or didn’t have it turned on, and they figure out that everyone went nuts with a cell phone stuck to their ear. The small group strikes out toward Maine to find Clay’s wife and child, knowing they could be dead or, worse, ripping out throats with their teeth. Because the day belongs to the phone-crazies, the group travels by night on foot or by vehicle—if they can find one that runs and the roads aren’t too cluttered with accidents. Then the crazies begin to evolve, grow smarter, as if the computer in their brain is rebooting—but not resetting to what they were before—making you wonder if the group will survive another day, let alone a trip to Maine.
Though nowhere as long or as in-depth, Cell reminded me of The Stand—but I wouldn’t recommend comparing the two, or you might end up disappointed with Cell. I always enjoy Stephen King’s novels, and Cell is no exception. Though the book is a bit gross at times, he draws you in, makes you fall in love with his characters, and then breaks your heart once or twice, maybe more—as seems the norm for Mr. King, not all the good guys make it out alive. You can always count on Mr. King to invent new and horrifying ways for you to die or lose your marbles—but you can also count on one heck of a thrilling, chilling ride through the graveyard of Stephen King’s imagination.
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