Mr. Mercedes (Bill Hodges Trilogy, #1)

If I look back at all the books I have read in my life, I think I can say with confidence that Stephen King is my most-read author. Some of his works make me kinda cringe a bit now, but all in all, I just love his writing. Over the years, he's been branching out into many genres, away from just being a horror writer, and Mr. Mercedes is crime fiction, not horror. Sometimes it didn't even have that feeling of a Stephen King novel.

All in all, I really enjoyed it. Bill Hodges is an overweight, retired police detective who's in his 60s and struggles to find a reason to live. In comes Mr. Mercedes, a killer he was never able to catch in his active time, who ran a Mercedes sedan into a crowd, killing many people. Mr. Mercedes is trying to taunt Hodges into committing suicide. Little does he know that this will kick Hodges back into gear, as he renews his efforts to find Mr. Mercedes.

The novel reads as a back and forth. We early on get the PoV from the killer, who is a young man with a somewhat disturbing relationship to his alcoholic mother, and get to experience how his life gets more and more out of control. It is a bit of a nailbiter at the end there.

As mentioned above, I really liked it. I liked the cast, especially the highly unlikely 'investigator' Holly, a neurotypical woman in her 40s, Hodges' young helper Jerome, etc. Looking forward to reading the two next books, plus Holly, King's most recent book.

I hate myself a little for that title.

Every time I read a King novel, I'm somehow freshly reminded at how good he is at writing characters. Each one is incredibly unique, and frankly I don't know how he continues to do it despite his astoundingly prolific career that's now several decades long.

Mr. Mercedes is a departure from my normal King read. I usually pick out a classic horror every October to read, but my step-mother-in-law (I know, it's the best I can come up with), said I absolutely had to read this series. Without any spoilers I can confidently say that she has a severely, and wonderfully, twisted mind. This is roughly the equivalent of a an incredibly well down Netflix adaptation of a true crime story.

There are no bumps or jumps in the night, no creepy crawlies, or murderous clowns. The accuracy and...probability of this story is what chills me to my bones. The growth of Detective Hodges, and even his failure in growth and recognition thereof, is such a beautiful depiction of someone struggling to come to terms with the failures in their life.

Everything I want to say about this book is a spoiler, but suffice to say King's characters, emotions, and brutality are all present, and in a decidedly unique (from my experience with his novels) manner.