Finders Keepers
By Stephen King
Scribner Book Company, Hardcover, 9781501100079, June 2015, 448pp.
*No Spoilers*
The Short of It:
This is the second installment of the Bill Hodges trilogy and it’s pretty good.
The Rest of It:
When I heard that Mr. Mercedes was not a stand-alone novel, and was in fact, book one of a trilogy, I groaned a little. I am not a fan of trilogies as a rule. But, it’s King and you know how I love a good King story. Plus, all that Constant Reader stuff. So I went in with high hopes.
Luckily for me, it’s a keeper. Pun intended.
This story focuses on some of the characters from the previous book, like Bill Hodges, ex-cop/private detective and the people he’s come to know as family but King also introduces a new baddie by the name of Morris Bellamy. Bellamy is obsessed with one particular author and ends up committing some horrible crimes to protect what’s his.
What he does not anticipate is anyone getting in his way. Pete Saubers, high school kid and lover of books unwittingly places himself between Bellamy and Bellamy’s obsession and it creates a very dangerous situation. As a favor to one of his closest friends, Hodges steps in to help.
What I like about this one is that the story is pretty simple, the characters are well-developed and there was none of that sucker-punch stuff I experienced while reading Mr. Mercedes. As the suspense builds, the pace picks up and King takes you along for the ride. I could sense that King enjoyed writing this one and I enjoyed reading it.
As with most trilogies, when you come upon those final pages you hold your breath to see how you will be left hanging, and with this one, I can clearly see where he will be going with book three. At least, I think so.
This book was entertaining, the pacing was good and although I took a long break from it to finish another book, I was easily able to jump right back into it when I picked it up again.
If you haven’t read Mr. Mercedes yet, start with that and then pick this one up. The last book in the trilogy, End of Watch is scheduled to make its appearance June 7, 2016!
Source: Borrowed
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Book Chatter 
Ti, I really enjoyed this one, too. I loved the bookish aspect of it – made it even more fun to read. Talk about obsessed readers – LOL! I can’t wait for the next one which will obviously be Brady-centric – I’m really looking forward to seeing Hodges and Brady battle it out in the end. Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Yes! The bookish aspect was pretty awesome. I liked that about Misery, too. I hope the last book in the trilogy is a good one. I want it to end strong.
I bought this as soon as it came out because I loved Mr. Mercedes and haven’t made the time to read it yet.
I bought it when it came out too but I was reading Atlas Shrugged and that took all of my focus to get through. I liked it better than Mr. Mercedes so if you liked that one you will like this one too.
I have not read anything by this author in ages…ever since the movie Christine…I have been freaked out by him…and that other movie where there were clowns coming out of the sewers? Or…did I imagine that…I probably should not see movie versions and just read his books. I love how you love his work!
Most of the movies, at least the TV ones were horrid. IT was a TV mini-series and it was horrible in my opinion. The book is much better. That’s the one with the clown. Lately though, his new books are just fun. He likes to tell a story and he liked certain characters and he just runs with it whether it fits the mold or not. You’d be okay with his recent works.
I had enjoyed this one as well. Looking forward to #3.
I feel the same way about trilogies, but have Mr. Mercedes on my wish list anyway.
I just started reading this one, so I haven’t read your full review. But I will get to it after.
I have not read these yet but I will get to them next year. I am asking for his new short story anthology: The Bazaar of Bad Dreams for Christmas. I really enjoy his short stories and novellas.
I snagged a library copy of Bazaar for my e-reader so pretty soon I will dive into it! I just need to finish a few other books before I get to it.
As you may remember, I listened to this one and really enjoyed it. Generally I like the idea of a trilogy because I know it won’t drone on and on with endless books to read. I almost prefer them to series. I enjoyed the book theme of this one and I can’t wait til End of Watch, which sounds so ominous. Since I’m not a huge King fan, I am happy to say I’m enjoying his writing very much in these crime fiction books.
King can certainly tell a story and I can tell he had fun with this one.