Now an HBO limited series starring Ben Mendelsohn! Evil has many faces…maybe even yours in this #1 New York Times bestseller from master storyteller Stephen King. An eleven-year-old boy’s violated corpse is discovered in a town park. Eyewitnesses and fingerprints point unmistakably to one of Flint City’s most popular citizens–Terry Maitland, Little League coach, English teacher, husband, … League coach, English teacher, husband, and father of two girls. Detective Ralph Anderson, whose son Maitland once coached, orders a quick and very public arrest. Maitland has an alibi, but Anderson and the district attorney soon have DNA evidence to go with the fingerprints and witnesses. Their case seems ironclad.
As the investigation expands and horrifying details begin to emerge, King’s story kicks into high gear, generating strong tension and almost unbearable suspense. Terry Maitland seems like a nice guy, but is he wearing another face? When the answer comes, it will shock you as only Stephen King can.
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King is arguably as much an American icon as the ’68 Fastback or a classic red and white Plymouth Fury. All of these glories are on full display in his latest mystery-horror hybrid… you’re in for one hell of a ride.
Absolutely loved THE OUTSIDER by @stephenking – Murder, baseball, and gut-wrenching suspense. This is classic King at his best.
In turbulent times a good book saves the day. Well, they make for a good distraction. I’m avoiding the news and thus reading much more and I classify my choices by entertainment value, trying to figure out what’s going on and books I read for work. I always try to read better writers, to lift my own craft to a higher level.
I got to 100% on my kindle on this book in a bit over a day. That’s always a good sign for me in that as entertainment the book works well, the characters hooked me and the plot never dropped me. King’s the master of that POV from on high, so you can stop and think about a sentence such as: “Strange the things you noticed when your day—your life—suddenly went over a cliff you hadn’t even known was there.” And then you go write back into the story of someone else falling off that cliff and not the day you did.
i love this book
King does it again. What began as a straight-forward “who-dun-it” perplexing crime investigation takes a wild turn with inexplicable body doubles, innocent victims, rush-to-judgement debacles, guilt-ridden do-gooders, and–of course–a bad guy way more BAD than anyone can believe. Highly recommended!
The way the book starts, you might find yourself wondering if this is more of a Bill Hodges kind of spooky thriller, but rest assured horror fans…with this book, Mr. King has welded a thriller and a horror story into a gripping tale of “what if.” It asks interesting questions about the US justice system and about the power of belief. It’s the kind of story that you can imagine happening (perhaps without the supernatural element) and the terror comes from imagining being in the predicament that the characters find themselves in.
I enjoyed every page of this book and recommend it without reservation.
I must start by saying that I am a huge fan of Stephen King. I believe I have read everything he has published. The Outsider kept me up late into the night trying figure out what was going on. I was totally shocked to find very familiar characters emerge later in the story. This is a great mystery with supernatural touches. Read it far too quickly, I couldn’t stop. I will reread to pick up those subtle Stephen King touches that make his writing so incredible. Yes I loved this book!
King at his best. He blends crime and a bit of horror into the mix. But murder is horrific. And no one can create the hybrid story quite like King. Good stuff.
I enjoyed the Bill Hodges trilogy but I think this is his best work since 11/22/63. An excellent read and the less you know about it going in the better!
The King has done it AGAIN!! This book is awesome! I loved all the characters. Stephen King is such as amazing story teller, he makes the characters stand out in their own way with their unique personalities. Not only that, but this book is creepy and twisted!
Sort of a spoiler:
It was great to have Holly back!!! I love her!
This is the Stephen King of old. The twisty your afraid to turn the page ,but you know you are going to. Excellent characters. Could this happen to me ? Of course it could take Stephen hand for a journey to The Twilight Zone!!!
As a rule, I tend to avoid books which have abuse of children as a theme. Right at the start of The Outsider, a child is brutally assaulted and murdered, and King goes into a little too much detail. Fortunately, this aspect then becomes secondary to the plot, and I felt more comfortable reading it. I add this paragraph in case other readers feel the same way.
As usual, an excellent book by King, with enough police procedural to keep the crime enthusiast happy.
Do you have a doppelganger somewhere in the world? What would the consequences be if they were bad? Or is this a story about a doppelganger? Is there evil within all of us?
I enjoyed it, but didn’t love it as much as some of King’s other books. I can’t really give an overall review without revealing the plot.
Let me just say that I’ve missed Stephen King.
Not that he went anywhere, of course. In fact, King is one of the most prolific writers of my lifetime, and a great one at that—a master of characterization, mood, and plot, often maligned by the literary elite simply because of the subject matter of his books. Even this is a bit of a misunderstanding. I recently informed a friend who was signing the praises of the film “The Shawshank Redemption” that it was based on a novella by King, similarly titled “Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption.” Even though I thought this common knowledge, the person I was speaking to was shocked. I then went on to tell them films like Stand by Me were also based on King’s non-horror work.
To go back to my original point, however, I’ve missed the slow burn of a fat, densely written Stephen King horror tome. There’s It, there’s Under the Dome, and of course there’s The Stand. It’s been a while since I’ve read a book of his that looks intimidating to onlookers, and which becomes laborious to hold in your hand hour after hour. But it’s been amazing to see that the man has not least a step, and that it’s a solid 200-300 pages before we’re really pulled in to what’s going on with what is, up that point in the book, solely a murder mystery.
What hooked me at the start as a page turning whodunnit, small town murder mystery, eventually evolved into something else more King-esque, and satisfied my need for both types of writing. I won’t give away any spoilers, save to say that King does what he always does—create fascinating small town dynamics, terrifies in ways both subtle and overt, and taps into the deepest layers of human psychology in order to weave what was an excellent story.
Check it out. You will not regret it, I promise!Stephen King
King has provided a masterclass in writing once again, and although the plot is classic hair-raising mystery and suspense, he excels in drawing the reader characters they fall in love with this. He may be the king of horror, but for me he is the master of human nature.
This was a real page turner! Yes, it was fantasy….wasn’t it?? Typical King by keeping one on the edge of your seat until the final pages. I have no issue with the guts and gore, but if you do you might want to think twice about this one. Loved it and would recommend it to those of you who think you can handle it.
I absolutely love this book. I’ve been reading S King since I was young (er). This reminds me of his earlier works. Nobody develops characters as well as him. He’s a master story teller. I always look forward to his quirky townspeople. I imagine they’re in every small town USA but, we just don’t look beneath the surface.
Suspense at its finest. The man has really honed his craft. So many what if scenarios and questions leave the pages turning faster than you can keep track of. Highly suggested.
577 pages
5 stars
I have read Stephen King during his entire writing career. Sure, he has written some clinkers, but by far most of his books have been absolute solid gems. This novel was no exception.
A young boy is horribly attacked and killed. His murder sets in motion events that go beyond our basic understanding of how the world works. When a spotlessly clean and well liked boys’ baseball coach is named as the suspect, the town goes wild. He and his family suffer a very public arrest; basically a move to publicly humiliate the man.
DA Bill Samuels is insufferable as he struts about and taunts the suspect with all of the evidence he has against him. But, does he really? Have evidence?
A person can’t be in two places at the same time. A basic axiom of one’s understanding of of time and place reality. So, when a video is shown that proves that the suspect was nowhere near the town or the boy on the day he died, Detective Ralph Anderson begins to question the truth of DA Samuels’ facts. But, DNA doesn’t lie…does it?
This book has an interesting cast of characters. Some old “friends” are back, like the remarkable Holly. I liked Ralph and especially his wife Jeannie. She was a bright, perceptive woman. I liked, for the most part, the rest of the “good guys.” I am hoping that Ralph quits the police department and works with Holly instead. He is a brilliant and dogged investigator and would be a great addition to Holly’s team.
This book posits some interesting ideas about the nature of reality and what one chooses to believe. A closed mind can be dangerous.
Well done, Mr. King, well done!
Stephen King has proved it once again that he is the king of horror. I listened to it as an audiobook and from the very first opening scenes, I had some major trouble hitting pause. In the end, I began to use this audiobook as a reward for completing the work I planned for the day and I must say, it was one hell of a motivation!
The story begins with a gruesome murder and public arrest and from there, the tension only keeps growing. Along with the lead detective, defense lawyer and the prosecutor I kept trying to find a logical explanation to the fact that the supposed murderer could not have possibly committed it as he was miles away at a convention where he was actually caught on film and yet it was his DNA and fingerprints that were found at the crime scene. But what if the only explanation, when every rational one doesn’t seem to fit, is supernatural? Can there indeed be an outsider, who lurks among us without us noticing and can assume any identity he likes to terrorize another quiet town?
The plot charged with suspense, the unforgettable characters, the resolution that will leave you speechless – I can go on and on about the things that made it such a riveting read, but I’ll just say, read it – you’ll thank me later. I seriously hope they’ll make it into a movie or a series. Absolutely fascinating!
Stephen King (AKA King of Horror) how about the king of entertaining? Kept me turning pages. This is not a horror story. So many know him for IT and The Shinning. His crime novels such as Mr Mercedes and now The Outsider are the best!