Book Review: The Outsider by Stephen King

Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons!

  As a fan of crime thrillers and horror novels, I love to sit down and enjoy a spooky tale. But when my two favorite genres collide and produce something even more exciting, I take it slow and savor the story.

  The Outsider is written by Stephen King and is published by Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster. In this explosive thriller, we are introduced to Ralph Anderson, a detective with the Flint City police. When a child is found murdered, the prime suspect is local kids coach, Terry Maitland. Eyewitnesses put him at the scene and forensic evidence matches Maitland's own. Ralph, infuriated by the police's findings, arrests Maitland at a local ball game. But their evidence is no match for well-documented proof that Maitland was in another city at the time of the murder. Which begs the question: how can one man be in two places at the same time?

  The case grows exponentially weirder as the supernatural seems to be playing a role. Enter Holly Gibney an expert in all that is weird. Her involvement in the Mr. Mercedes case with Bill Hodges puts her in a position to give the police an alternative profile of something that may not be human. The world of the unseen and forensic science are at odds. Can Ralph and the team solve this mystery before another child is murdered?

  The Outsider was a fantastic blend of the supernatural and suspense. Stephen King brings back his heroine from the Bill Hodges trilogy of books. And from the grand treatment Holly gets, she must be someone special to King. I loved the working chemistry that Ralph and Holly had. Regardless of his lack of supernatural belief, he was very respectful of Holly, as she was to him. The side characters were very interesting and fleshed out very well. I loved the twists the story took and I was surprised several times by events that I did not see coming. It is hard to write a review for this book because there is a lot that can be spoiled if I say too much. Suffice it to say the build-up to the finale was excellent. And the finale was big and full of action and horror.

  Actor Will Patton (Halloween) once again takes to the audio booth to read The Outsider. I used the audiobook in part to read this novel and enjoyed it a great deal. Patton has an excellent pace that builds tension. He does not just read the words, he acts them out as if this were a movie. I love his work on Doctor Sleep, and he does not disappoint here.

  The Outsider was a five-star event for me. It took me a couple of weeks to read due to how much I was enjoying it. I did not want this book to end. Thankfully I will have more Holly Gibney to enjoy in the Mr. Mercedes books. This is one of my favorite Stephen King novels. Once again he has left me with a book that I will be thinking of for a long time after reading the last page. 


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