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Revival

Revival

HorrorLiterary Fiction
Pages
478
Published
2014
Language
English

Synopsis

Decades ago, a charismatic preacher and his wife captivated a small New England town before a dark tragedy led to his banishment. Years later, Jamie, a musician haunted by his own demons and addictions, finds himself reunited with the disgraced Reverend Jacobs. Together, they forge a pact that will reveal the terrifying true meanings of revival and confront the ultimate battle between good and evil.

Prose complexity
5/10

Vibe

DarkTenseMysteriousThought-Provoking
Redemption ArcMorally GreyMentor FigureSacrificeComing of Age

Genres

Horror Literary Fiction Thriller Contemporary Literature Suspense

About the author

S
Stephen King

Stephen King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author whose work has defined popular horror fiction for more than half a century. Born in Portland, Maine, he grew up in poverty after his father abandoned the family, and credits his mother's resilience and a voracious reading habit as the foundations of his imagination. He began selling short stories to men's magazines while working as a high school English teacher, and published his first novel, Carrie, in 1974—his wife Tabitha retrieved...

Characters

Jamie MortonProtagonist
Charles JacobsAntagonist
All characters in Revival

Frequently asked questions

  • What is Revival about?

    Jamie Morton first meets Reverend Charles Jacobs when Jamie is six years old. Jacobs reappears at key points in Jamie's life over the next five decades—as a faith healer, a carnival exhibitionist, and finally as a man obsessed with electricity and the power it holds over death. The novel follows their relationship across Jamie's entire life.

  • What is the novel's central obsession?

    Jacobs's obsession with what electricity reveals about the space between life and death—whether something persists after consciousness ends—drives the plot. He can heal people using electrical treatments, but the cures have side effects that become apparent only years later. His real goal is not healing but revelation: he wants to see what lies beyond death.

  • What literary tradition does Revival draw on?

    King has cited Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Arthur Machen's 'The Great God Pan' as primary influences. Revival is in the tradition of gothic scientific horror—the scientist whose obsession with forbidden knowledge destroys everyone around him. The ending is explicitly Lovecraftian in its vision of what lies beyond death.

  • Is Revival King at his most bleak?

    Many readers and critics consider Revival one of King's darkest novels—the ending offers no consolation and the Lovecraftian revelation is genuinely disturbing. King has confirmed he was writing against the idea of a comforting afterlife. He has said Revival is about the horror of being right when you wish you were wrong.

  • Is this book part of a series or a standalone story?

    This is a standalone novel that does not require reading any other works to understand the plot, though it contains subtle references and Easter eggs that connect to the broader Stephen King multiverse.

  • Are there any film or television adaptations of this book?

    While multiple high-profile filmmakers have attempted to develop a screen adaptation, the project has faced significant production hurdles and remains unproduced.

  • What inspired the writing of this novel?

    The author has cited Arthur Machen's The Great God Pan and Mary Shelley's Frankenstein as primary literary influences for the story's exploration of obsession and the afterlife.

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