The Outsider: A Novel

Wow - King at his finest - a wonderfully creepy and un-put-downable book! The first 20%-30% is relatively "normal," a good read styled like the best whodunit by a masterful writer who makes the most desultory reader care about the characters. Then it starts to get a bit weird. I read something that King said in an interview (or maybe it was an article) many years ago about how he writes. I have paraphrased it: " ...first I make sure that the characters are introduced and that everyone loves them. Then I let the monsters loose."Yep, that's exactly what he does, and he does it better than anyone else. King is my age (now into his 70's) and he is still at the peak of his powers. My favorite book of all time is The Stand - like a banquet for a Constant Reader - and this newest outing puts me in mind of the feelings I have every time I reread The Stand.It was loads of fun and a nice surprise to meet up with characters we Constant Readers already know from the recent and terrific Bill Hodges Trilogy. It was also stunning to have characters within the story whom we have just recently grown to love unceremoniously and brutally killed off. Only King can pull this off without losing his reader, and he rarely does it - but he does it here. Where you're reading The Outsider, anything can happen.My only complaints with a couple of King's older novels were the endings. Never, never a cliffhanger, but sometimes the story seemed to just stop. Not here - absolutely not here. Meticulously plotted, the story marches relentlessly to the ending, which is a face-off comparable to some of the best stuff I've read.I abosolutely loved this one. It was amazing. Mr. King, you've still got it!!

I enjoy writing as much as reading, and Stephen King is the person responsible for that. It's been a while since I've read for fun, so this has been a great break to take over Christmas.Overall? The story was extremely fun. The plot kept me in suspense, and there were plenty of enjoyable characters as well as deplorable ones.HOWEVER, there were moments I had to pause and walk away. One of which came in the very second or third paragraph. I understood King was trying to set the scene, but the use of two black teens saying "it's the five-o" was undoubtedly shoehorned in. Nobody says that. Another instance like this came from the one Mexican character (who was definitely used for the sole purpose of feeding us lore that inspired King).He said "ese" at least five times, which is five more than I've heard any of my Mexican relatives say it. Again, nobody says that.Then the infamous Willow Rainwater. She talks about putting on her buckskins and feathers and "goofy dancing." Just because you have an indigenous character saying something... abrasive, doesn't make it okay. There really was no reason for any of those details, and in moments like that, Stephen King's age shows.If he ditched the poor efforts of inclusion (just cast those people into the roles when it inevitably hits the screen, or maybe write those characters the way he does any of his others - the main characters, basically), and stuck to the question of whether or not the police were wrong in what they did, it would've worked more effectively as a political/topical think piece.Now for the story itself, the other reason I can only give this four out of five (and there are spoilers ahead): the build up was so fantastic, only for the ending to be a flatline. Admittedly, endings are ridiculously hard. Saying SK can't write an ending is a tired trope, but this is just another stack of evidence against him. Truthfully, when they finally revealed Ralph Anderson's son (Derek) was the same age as the murdered boy who started this whole thing, I thought that was the nail in the coffin. Anderson had been warned multiple times to stop digging, and I was convinced that he would return from his heroic adventure to find his son murdered the way he found the Peterson boy.Alas, that didn't happen.Maybe SK got tired of writing depressing endings. Maybe he threw in the towel. All of it happened too abruptly for me to say. Initially, I was hoping that there would be no monster or supernatural element. I hoped that those doubts would be effectively squashed by the end, when we realize that this horror was just a tragic, real thing that happens.Complaints aside, it was a solid read and kept my interest for the three days it took to finish.

In true Stephen King fashion, this was one incredible story!A bit more paranormal than others by King that I've read, but it's been a while. I used to read everything he published, but the last one several years ago gave me nightmares for months. They are just so believable!!But, The Outsider has renewed an interest in his writings, and I'll be searching for another very soon!

Interesting how this book story line segues from one topic to the next and completed tied up all loose ends while managing to introduce a character from previous books. Very thrilling from beginning to endThe Bill Hodges Trilogy by Stephen King features a fascinating blend of crime, psychological tension, and complex character dynamics. Holly Gibney emerges as a standout character, evolving significantly throughout the series. Her intelligence, resourcefulness, and unique approach to problem-solving provide a fresh perspective . Her and Detective Anderson’s storyline were both well written

I’ve loved Mr. King’s writing for more than 4 decades now, and he never disappoints. “The Outsider” is suspenseful in classic King style, with just the right amount of humor and horror mixed in to make it feel balanced - well worth the read.