Jaclyn’s Review: The Outsider by Stephen King

The Outsider
written by Stephen King
published by Scribner, 2018

find it here: (affiliate links) Barnes & Noble, Amazon, Apple Books, Target, Walmart, Kobo, Book Depository, Goodreads

Did I enjoy this book? Seriously, I have to stop reading horror books. The problem is that I know I enjoy Stephen King’s writing. When Goodreads came out with their “best books of 2018” list, I started reading as many of them as my library had available. I wasn’t discerning enough on the genres. Sigh. I was not disappointed in the writing–Stephen King is phenomenal. The story was scary. Who’s suprised? I’m probably not going to be able to sleep tonight, just because I’m thinking about the story to write this review. I hesitate to say that I “liked” this book, because it was super scary, and I’m a big scaredy cat. However, it was a good book; the writing and plot were exactly what you would expect from such an accomplished author. Ironically, my only complaint is that the creepy Outsider ended up not being so creepy and scary at the end of the book. It seemed like he had an opportunity to end the story in a way that would haunt me for the rest of my life and instead took the easy way out (so now it will only haunt me for a few weeks).

Would I recommend it? If you are a fan of scary stories, Stephen King is great and you should read this book. If you are REALLY into scary stories, this might actually not be scary enough for you. If you are not into scary stories, skip this one.
 

 

About the book – from Goodreads: An unspeakable crime. A confounding investigation. At a time when the King brand has never been stronger, he has delivered one of his most unsettling and compulsively readable stories.

An eleven-year-old boy’s violated corpse is found in a town park. Eyewitnesses and fingerprints point unmistakably to one of Flint City’s most popular citizens. He is Terry Maitland, Little 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 add DNA evidence to go with the fingerprints and witnesses. Their case seems ironclad.

As the investigation expands and horrifying answers begin to emerge, King’s propulsive 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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** This post first appeared on Every Free Chance Books (everyfreechance.com) on August 27, 2019.