Gerald's Game

Gerald's Game is a 1992 suspense novel by American writer Stephen King. The story is about a woman whose husband dies of a heart attack while she is handcuffed to a bed, and, following the subsequent realization that she is trapped with little hope of rescue, begins to let the voices inside her head take over.

The book is dedicated to King's wife Tabitha and her five sisters. Originally, the book was intended to be a companion piece to King's novel Dolores Claiborne, with the connecting theme of two women in crisis caught in the path of an eclipse, though this aspect was greatly reduced by the time the books were published. The book was adapted into a 2017 film directed by Mike Flanagan.

Plot

Jessie Burlingame and her husband Gerald, a successful lawyer, travel from Portland to their secluded lake house in western Maine near Kashwakamak Lake for a spontaneous romantic getaway. The titular "game" involves handcuffing Jessie to the bedposts during sex, a new practice that Jessie only pretends to enjoy, though Gerald finds it exciting. This time, however, Jessie finds herself reluctant after being handcuffed and asks to stop. She is ignored by Gerald, who pretends her protests are only part of their game. Realizing her husband is deliberately feigning ignorance and that he intends to rape her, Jessie lashes out, kicking Gerald in the stomach and groin. The shock causes him to have a fatal heart attack. He dies, leaving Jessie handcuffed to the bed.