A Goodreads user
asked:
Hey! Does this include any spoilers for the Bill Hodges-Series? Would you recommend reading the three books before 'The Outsider'?
To answer questions about
The Outsider,
please sign up.
Laura L.
Yes, there are. If you plan to read the Bill Hodges trilogy and don’t want to be spoiled then read them before you read this book.
Dan
I had no idea about the Bill Hodges series before reading this. I loved this and it has inspired me to now read the Bill Hodges series. I'll write back to let you know if I have put the cart before the horse... BUT, as someone who doesn't know what they don't know about the Bill Hodges series, this book absolutely stands on its own two feet.
Stefan Koepeknie
You will like this one much more if you have read the trilogy.
King could of named this "part 4" of the Bill Hodges books and few would disagree.(without a certain main character)
King could of named this "part 4" of the Bill Hodges books and few would disagree.(without a certain main character)
John Paul
You might not understand what a happy slapper is and how useful it can be apparently.
Jackalopes Reading
Yes. I recommend reading the BH trilogy first or, better yet listen to the trilogy on Audible and then read/listen to Outsiders. The books are all narrated by Will Patton. He has a homey, Bill Hodges feeling to them. Listening to the audio for all these books, including The Outsider, gives it a feeling of coming home, even though Outsider only brushes by the BH books. And, of course, you have to see the miniseries. It all works really well: written, audio, and visual.
Patti
There's one scene where a character opens mouth and blurts out a huge data dump of major plot twists from the Hodges trilogy. Spoilers would be a gentle word.
Donna Prather
If you know the name of the books of the trilogy, then you know the biggest spoiler, already. But, yes,I would recommend you read the trilogy first. You will understand Holly's character, and you will enjoy the references much more.
Dennis Keefe
Well damn, i just finished reading this and had no idea there was a whole series about Holly and Bill Hodges. Now i guess i have to read those books too and pretend i don’t know certain things.
Chris Plambeck
Outside definitely stands on its own, but has a nice bonus for those who've read the Bill Hodges Trilogy. Hopefully with more to come :-)
Jennifer Lynn
I wouldn't call them spoilers but there are many references to the Mr. Mercedes series. But so much more details in those books that what they give you in The Outsider will make you want to read the trilogy too!!
Rhema
I read The Outsider first. This encouraged me to go after the trilogy. Two down, one to go. In my opinion, it's not a big loss if you read The Outsider first. But, if you have zero tolerance for spoilers, or even references to the trilogy, I suggest you read the trilogy first.
Happy reading!
Happy reading!
Joe
Yes, massive spoilers in this book for the Hodges series. Spoils who lives, who dies, the actions of each antagonist, and reveals the solution to the mystery of Book 3 / End of Watch. If you don't intend to read the Hodges series, it is not needed for this book.
Jerika
I didn't even realize this book wasn't a stand-alone, until I came to this page. Obviously, I can't speak to how much you'll like The Outsider if you have read the other three, but if you haven't, it's pretty great and really enjoyable. I basically devoured it in one day. I just thought the cases the characters were talking about happened in their history, not realizing they were already books.
Nancy
Oh man, now that you said that I can put the entire story together - that stinks. You need to mark that question as a spoiler for those of us that read the trilogy.
Dana
Read the Bill Hodges series anyway. It's guuuuuud!
Susan Sherwin
I think you'd understand the Holly character better if you read the trilogy first.
Roni Shane
Yes. read the 3 books before this one and then read the 4th
Christine Baluk
I read here that I should read the trilogy first because of spoilers. So I waited to read this one until after I read the trilogy. I'm 1/3 of the way into The Outsider without any reference whatsoever. Guess it's coming but you truly don't -have- to read the trilogy first like I thought.
Eeps
Id read the Bill Hodges trilogy and skip this steaming pile.
Ravi
Yes. It Does. Do read them before this one, if you intend to!!
Courtnay Bourque
I am only 3/4 of the way through this book, but yes it definitely gives away spoilers of the Bill Hodges series. Also I would say those are quick, fun reads so definitely worth it to read them before coming to this one! I have read most King books and those are some of my all time favorites. Once Holly (from Bill Hodges series) appeared this story became way more exciting to me!
Michael
I had only read the first book in the BH trilogy and did not know this was related. So, yeah, lots of spoilers here, as it takes place AFTER that trilogy. Spin-off would probably be the best word to describe it.
Leon Volfovsky
I've read Mr. Mercedes and Finders Keeper, but decided to read The Outsider before End of Watch. I didn't know that is sort of a sequel. Some spoilers were mentioned, it will be best to finish the Hodges series first. I personally didn't care too much.
Ron Deprez
The other three in the series are better than The Outsider in my opinion.
Yes there are spoilers.
Yes there are spoilers.
Stephen Brown
YES! Do not read this before the trilogy. It explains everything that happens. EVERYTHING!! People who have commented less black and white than this should be heavily ignored. The spoilers are awful. Plus, the book is awful, so you should read Mr. Mercedes and End of Watch, and ignore this book and Finders Keepers. I review all 4.
Adrian Prepelita
I wouldn't recommend reading the Bill Hodges books at all. Maybe beside the second one, it was ok and didn't had a lot in common with the other 2.
Maria Rose
There aren't many references to the Bill Hodge- series, that you would have needed to read before reading this novel. I just finished this book today and this book only links Holly, whose background reference is her association with Bill Hodges in creating the Finders-Keeper detective agency. This book will make you want to read that trilogy to follow Stephen king's cookie reference.
Iza
I like the trilogy much better than this one.
Angela Jones
Yes it does include spoilers and highly recommend reading the other 3 books as they’re great!
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more
Jun 06, 2018 11:01AM · flag
Oct 24, 2018 01:02PM · flag
Jul 09, 2022 06:25AM · flag