Doctor Sleep
by Stephen King
★ Top 25 book of 2013 · #11 on Best Books of 2013
Decades after surviving the Overlook Hotel, Dan Torrance, now sober and working at a nursing home, meets twelve-year-old Abra, whose shining is extraordinary. Together they face the True Knot, a murderous band feeding on children's gifts.
Best for: Horror fans who loved The Shining and want to follow Dan's story
Doctor Sleep is #11 on BookWard's Best Books of 2013, out of 45 2013 books that cleared our data bar.
What Doctor Sleep is about
Dan Torrance was the frightened boy at the Overlook Hotel in The Shining. Decades later he is a drifting adult, still haunted by that place and struggling with the anger and drinking he inherited from his father. In Frazier, New Hampshire, he finds a steadier life through AA and work at a hospice, where he comforts the dying and earns the nickname "Doctor Sleep".
Then he connects with Abra Stone, a young girl whose gift is the brightest anyone has seen. That brings her to the attention of the True Knot, a band of quasi-immortal nomads who feed on "steam", produced when people with the shining die in pain. Dan must decide whether to face his past in order to protect her.
Stephen King's sequel is dark and eerie, but it is also about recovery, inherited trauma and the quiet comfort one person can offer another. It suits readers who loved the original and want to know what became of Danny.
Doctor Sleep on the Best Books of 2013
Doctor Sleep came out in 2013. Of the 45 books first published in 2013 that met BookWard's data bar, it ranks #11 on our Best Books of 2013 list.
Why it made the list: 562 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (47 ratings). The list ranks each year’s books on how many readers have picked them up, how highly readers rate them, and how many are reading them right now.
Nearby on the 2013 list
- The Elite (the Selection #2) Kiera Cass, #9
- I Am Malala Malala Yousafzai, #10
- Crazy Rich Asians Kevin Kwan, #12
- The Ocean at the End of the Lane Neil Gaiman, #13
See all Best Books of 2013 Best books by year
More years: Best Books of 2012 Best Books of 2014.
The numbers behind it
- Readers: 452 want to read it, 15 are reading it now and 95 have read it, according to Open Library.
- Ratings: 4.2 out of 5 from 47 Open Library ratings.
| Signal | This book (0 to 100) | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | 80 | 55% |
| Reader love | 73 | 25% |
| Being read right now | 47 | 20% |
Questions about Doctor Sleep
When was Doctor Sleep published?
Doctor Sleep by Stephen King was first published in 2013.
Was Doctor Sleep one of the best books of 2013?
Doctor Sleep is #11 on BookWard's Best Books of 2013, out of 45 2013 books that cleared our data bar. 562 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (47 ratings).
Why is Doctor Sleep on the Best Books of 2013 list?
562 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.2 out of 5 (47 ratings).
More of the best books of 2013
- House of Hades Rick Riordan, #1
- Hard Luck Jeff Kinney, #2
- Crown of Midnight Sarah J. Maas, #3
- The Screaming Staircase Jonathan Stroud, #4
- Unravel Me Tahereh Mafi, #5
- The Goldfinch Donna Tartt, #6
See the full Best Books of 2013, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.
How we know
This page uses public data: Open Library reader counts and ratings, and Wikipedia page views for recent years. The description is paraphrased from real source text. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Lists update monthly.
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