This book had been on my radar since it first came out a couple of years ago (2023). When I saw a copy at the library, I decided to check it out and I was glad I did! I've been a King fan for years ever since reading Carrie and 'Salem's Lot back in the 70s. I really enjoyed his Mr. Mercedes trilogy along with The Outsider and If It Bleeds which all featured Holly Gibney, the singular young woman turned detective. So I was anxious to read this one with Holly as the titular character and focal point of the story.
In this one, Holly is still running the private investigative office, Finders Keepers, when she gets a call from a distraught mother, Penny Dahl, whose daughter has gone missing. This novel takes place in 2021 when the second wave of COVID is prevalent. Holly's mother has recently died from the disease and her partner, Pete, is also sick with it so Holly is reluctant to take on the missing person case. But Penny's desperation is enough for Holly to at least take a look. As she delves into the case, she finds that other people in the same vicinity have also disappeared over the past few years. Are the disappearances related? And how could a pair of married octogenarians who are ex-professors and live in the neighborhood, be a possible focal point for the case? Can Holly match wits with this couple?
As usual, King kept me turning the pages and surprising me with what was really happening to the victims in the novel. In this one, Holly's character is fully developed including a look into her backstory. And the evil in the novel is shown in a very unexpected way related to old age and dying. This one did include a lot of King's political points of view but I didn't feel it distracted from this very compelling and outstanding novel. Hopefully, we haven't seen the last of Holly Gibney!
In this one, Holly is still running the private investigative office, Finders Keepers, when she gets a call from a distraught mother, Penny Dahl, whose daughter has gone missing. This novel takes place in 2021 when the second wave of COVID is prevalent. Holly's mother has recently died from the disease and her partner, Pete, is also sick with it so Holly is reluctant to take on the missing person case. But Penny's desperation is enough for Holly to at least take a look. As she delves into the case, she finds that other people in the same vicinity have also disappeared over the past few years. Are the disappearances related? And how could a pair of married octogenarians who are ex-professors and live in the neighborhood, be a possible focal point for the case? Can Holly match wits with this couple?
As usual, King kept me turning the pages and surprising me with what was really happening to the victims in the novel. In this one, Holly's character is fully developed including a look into her backstory. And the evil in the novel is shown in a very unexpected way related to old age and dying. This one did include a lot of King's political points of view but I didn't feel it distracted from this very compelling and outstanding novel. Hopefully, we haven't seen the last of Holly Gibney!
This would have been a whole lot better if he didn't have Holly spouting his own political beliefs. We can read enough of that for free in the articles he writes or on social media. I don't need to pay to hear it. I read to escape this crap. He ruined the book, and maybe my favorite character, for me.
