Stephen

Stephen asked:

I'm a dedicated King reader but, to be honest, not a big fan of the character Holly Gibney. Anyone else with me on this?

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6 years ago
130 answers

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Leslie Powell-Mccarty No, I'm not with you on this. I love the Holly Gibney character!

Kristofer I am with you 100%. I can't stand her and wish he would retire her character. The Mr. Mercedes series was terrible. The outsider was better, but then Holly appeared and ruined that for me.... Reading If it Bleeds now, but not looking forward to annoying ass Holly again.

Kalam Nichols Sorry. I love Holly in all her quirky glory! Didn't realize the connection so I read The Outsider first and then read the MM series. Liked her even more when I after I got her backstory.

Alex Skinner With every fandom, there's idol worship. Since King likes Holly, and keeps writing about her, many of his "fans" (worshipers) will also love Holly as that's the only reason they need. Holly sucks and is obnoxious to read about. I wish he'd quit it.

Donna Bijas Loved Holly Gibney and was happy she showed up in The Outsider. Look forward to the next one. I thought she was a very strong character even when she was afraid. Such a progression from the Mr. Mercedes series to The Outsider.

Stef Mr. Mercedes was the first book I read from Stephen King and it got me hooked. Though I have read other books, the trilogy is still my favorite. And I did love to see Holly back in the Outsider. Can't wait to see her again.

Bruno Neute No...Not with you on this one at all (2)

D G I agree, I don't think King has the talent and nuance to write a strong female lead. He admitted this when he threw away his first draft of Carrie before his wife agreed to help him with the nuance, and I think it's true today.

Sophia O. I don't agree, I've loved her character development and think she still has a lot to offer.

Rick English My wife and I really like Holly. We were sorry to see a different actress play her in "The Outsider". While Cynthia Erivo did a great job, she did not, in our opinion, play the same character as the character played by Justine Lupe in the Mr. Mercedes series.

Gary Oefinger One Holly story is enough. Yes I am with you!

Mike Marsbergen Yup, with you completely.

D B Honestly, it's not the character I have a problem with, it's the use of "poopy" and other near-curse words. It is so cringe-y.

Also, the relationship dynamic with her mother is not at all interesting to me (though I can see WHY someone would like it, I guess) and made the title story of If It Bleeds DRAG.

Shelly Harris No. I politely disagree. I love Holly! She demonstrates strength despite her awkwardness and challenges. She is an inspiration.

Janice No. Not with you on this one at all.

Arielle I'm with you 100%. Let Holly go, please!

Marshall Hawkins Totally with you. Not a fan of the MM trilogy at all. I tried hard to like it. When I get the courage I will eventually try the Outsider and maybe she will grow on me.

Beverley Ann Totally agree about Holly Gibney. I disliked her from the first time she was introduced. Totally unrealistic character development and irritating beyond words. I normally really 'like' his protagonists but she doesn't come across as endearing, try as SK may to make her so.

Carole Yes! I thought she spoiled the book 'The Outsider', it was brilliant until she came into the plot, then it went drastically downhill. She's irritating and unbelievable.

Dror Moreno the most loved charterer SK ever created (Subjective expressed :) ).
try hearing the Audio-book version of the bill Hodges trilogy it might change your mind.

Phobos Yup. It's a terrible character.

Richard Oosse On paper, I can't stand the character but in HBO's recent version of "The Outsider," I thought the Gibney portrayal by Cynthia Erivo was fantastic.

Eli Holly Gibney and the whole Bill Hodges trilogy (tetralogy?) has ruined the last five or so years of King's bibliography. It isn't necessarily his characters, it's the change of his author's voice. Whenever he writes those stories/characters, it feels like he's writing for some terrible CBS procedural. Garbage.

Alesha Montgomery I like her. King writes about 700 novels and short stories a month. Its in the numbers that there is going to be some character or theme you do not enjoy.

Jared Yes, can't stand her. I thought we were done with her after the Mercedes trilogy, then she showed up in The Outsider and nearly ruined that book for me.

David Winograd No! Holly is a wonderful character, and Will Patton’s VO performance deepened the character further.

Mary Parisi I love Holly. she is such a well-defined character. Strong and flawed. Just like a normal person. I haven't finished "If it Bleeds" yet, but I loved how she transitioned from the Bill Hodges novels to "The Outsider.

Happy Latitudes I don't dislike Holly but I don't find her entirely credible as a character. Holly clearly has autism or asperger's, which isn't a problem in itself, there are lots of books with appealing autistic protagonists. It's just that Holly is incredibly perceptive for someone with her disability, which is honestly hard to buy into....the definition of autism almost precludes having the ability to strongly empathize with others.

Travis Sutton I agree with you. I did not like the Mr. Mercedes series and I want it and the characters to go away! I hate that King keeps reprising Holly.

Jessica I love Holly. She is so quirky and awkward.

Theresa I'm also a very dedicated SK reader. Loved the Mr. Meredes trilogy and Holly Gibney. I thought it was great that some attention was given to mental illness (her anxiety issues). As a society I feel we tend to shy away from the whole topic of mental health!

Tameekah She is the worst character in the Bill Hodges trilogy, in my opinion. “Poopy” and “fracking” made me want to throw her from a window, of a moving car. I didn’t know she showed up in other books but I know I won’t be reading those. I can’t take anymore of her and The Outsider was difficult for me to get into. I’ve tried maybe four times now. 😂 Over it. I am so glad more people find her insufferable because I’ve noticed it’s not a popular thought.

Y’all are my people. ❤️

Cameron James I personally like the character, but everyone is going to have a different take.

L. I loved the Holly Gibney character. She was real. Someone took a chance on her, with all her quirks and anxieties and she blossomed into a good and loyal friend.

Forestp1 I like the Holly character

Rebeca I'm with you on this! I'm not a big fan of her either, I mean, I don't hate her but I can't see why everyone seems to love her so much.

Rick Mades I actually love the Holly Gibney character, the growth, the strength, the coping skills and more. It humanizes her.

Dianne Reissig-peabody No. I love Holly. She's quirky and imperfect. I loved the Bill Hodges trilogy. The Outsider wasn't one of King's best works, but I liked the fact that Holly was in it.

David Greenwood I did the same as Kalam Nichols. I read Holly in the exact same order. I think it made for a more interesting experience reading the Outsider before the Mercedes storyline.
And no, I'm not with Stephen who is not a big fan of Holly. Come on dude! She keeps the story engaging even when there's nothing going on.

Tracy Brower Totally with you. She is so lame. I appreciate complex characters and those with issues but I find her so annoying!!

Krist I'm with you one hundred percent. I can't stand the girl. I have good 'Hollyhope' we won't see her ever again. Btw, I thought the 'Mr. Mercedes' trilogy is among the worse books King has ever written. (And a big part is due to Holly, imo.) A Belgian fan.

Steph i am! i think she's boooooring!

Michael Morrison Sorry, but like Holly.

Dave Clark Yes. I generally love King's characters, but she doesn't click with me. I can't quite put my finger on why. I think it's the way she's depicted as being a person who was very introverted (due to the relationship with her mother, who I think is a very well developed character) but has come out of her shell ... but she still seems really bound up, and kind of bland also.

Daniel I personally like Holly. I like how the same character keeps appearing in the different stories. I like how everything seems to tie together in some way.

Stephen Well it looks like I have to eat crow as just about every reply rejected my viewpoint.

Love (lovesworldofbooks) Holly is awesome. I love her 😍

Brady Gorman Nope......Nope again because I can't make this short.

T J

This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)

Flighty_Z Fully with you on this!

Puddin she seems to divide the fans -- love or hate - no middle ground - so American! I think this trilogy was written by algorithms on auto-pilot.

Mark McDevitt I can’t stand her, probably the most annoying character SK ever came up with

Mandie I liked her in the Bill Hodges trilogy, but ABSOLUTELY LOVED her after watching the Mr. Mercedes series. I think that is what sealed my adoration of Holly Gibney.

Sarah I love Holly Gibney.

Ekrem Not me. I love Holly, with all her quirkiness and whatnot!

Don By looking at the comments, we have men vs women thing going on here (for the most part). Unfortunately, guys, in today's culture we do not have a chance. And for anyone to suggest that Tabitha King helped improve any of the earlier King stories, to quote McEnroe - "YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!!!!"

Thijs I have listened to the audiobook, and I dislike the way the narrator does her voice. It makes her look retarded. Other then that I love her character. A vulnerable but strong character that I think is great representation for people in a similar situation.

E. If Holly were a real person, I would feel sorry for her. But as a character in a story, particularly as the main character, no, she doesn't work for me.

Sheila I'm not a big fan either. As much as I love Kind, there are just some characters I'm not into. Overall, that may be part of the charm of his world. Everyone isn't all loveable but overall it works.

Tracy I like Holly, with all her quirks.

Lucas Anti Someone please explain to me how Holly is 45 in Mr Mercedes but 33 in If it bleeds, which comes after MM. I could be wrong but I could swear I read that. Seems King would not overlook this detail.

Lu Todisco Holly Gibney is Great! I loved her character.

Brock Wilson Definitely not with you! I admire Holly for her strength and courage as she becomes more confident in herself despite her mental illness. I also am a big fan of her quirks and film-buff tangents she sometimes goes off on.

Nanci Ugh. She's so irritating. Trying WAAAY too hard to be cute. Nobody that age would act like that! Why is someone in her thirties trying to be twelve? Nobody would put up with that sort of thing in real life. It's not attractive, at all. (Sorry if I'm late on this thread. I'm watching Mr. Mercedes currently....)

Bee I love Holly Gibney as a character and I love the way she was brought to life by both actresses in The Outsider series and the Mr. Mercedes series.

Micklemas Respectfully, I disagree sir. But thats OK :).

Jeffrey Milo I actually love the Holly Gibney character. My disappointment was that "If it Bleeds" was a short story and not a full novel. I think we could have easily turned that one story into a full novel.

riceballthief Nope! I love Holly's character! She's so quirky and definitely adds interest to the storylines.

Jelena I loved Holly in The Outsider!

Jan Basson I am not with you at all. Love the Holly Gibney character.

Rachel S. I agree with you. She is not a strong protagonist to me. She gets lucky because she is underestimated. It is not believable to defeat evil that easily. The audio of her is really annoying (poopy).

Luz I don't agree. I love Holly Gibney. She has come a long way baby!

Charlotte I'm totally with you. She bugs the heck out of me! The Outsider was one of my favorite recent King releases until she showed up. I'm upset that she's apparently going to be making an appearance in this as well.

Rachel I haven’t read the Mr. Mercedes books yet, so The Outsider was my first introduction to her. I didn’t Love her character. After reading If It Bleeds, I sympathize and connect with her more. I kinda like her now, lol.

Kayla I'm not a huge Holly fan by any means, for me she's not a good character or a bad character, she's just kind of there. I don't understand the hype of her character. I don't really like King's newer stuff though, not nearly as much as his older stuff. I am still unsure of how I feel about the Mr. Mercedes series and The Outsider though again, it's kind of just there and is only on my shelf because I've been collecting and reading Stephen King's book since I was eight. These are just some of his works that I can't stand to re-read.

Donna Completely agree. Honestly, I forgot her character even though I read the whole Bill Hodges trilogy. I didn't even like her on the HBO version of The Outsider. Just don't get her mindset.

Hans I like Holly, probably one of my favourite King characters. Of course that's my opinion and I totally understand that people might not share it.
But I have to wonder about some of the comments here from people hating a character so much they wish the author wouldn't write about her anymore. Clearly, there are a lot of people who enjoy reading about her and it's not like she is in every King story, so maybe just skip the ones she's in instead of getting worked up? It's not like Stephen King is a slow writer.

Peter Maronge Not I. Glad to see Holly return and deal with an Outsider or is it two?.

Wendy Me either! I was annoyed that her character showed up again. I usually find it fun when he puts his characters from other books in new writing but not this one. She should have stayed a minor actor.

Sorin Ionescu Nope. I love her and was extremely disappointed when they completely changed the character in The Outsider series.

William J. Villineau I like her just fine. Had to stop reading the Outsider a couple years ago because she popped up half way through and I hadn't read the Mr. Mercedes books yet. She's quirky and fin.

Tracy Wilkinson Nope, I love Holly and I loved the Mr Mercedes trilogy, they are amongst my favourite Stephen King novels.

Shelley I missed a whole bunch of King works because I got too wrapped up in life to read for a bunch of years, so If It Bleeds is my first Holly Gibney. I know SK himself loves the character, but I am hesitant.

I might change my opinion as I read the other works with Holly in them, but for now, I really don't like how mainstream she seems. She is too much like other literary sleuths and this felt formulaic other than the over-the-top SK creep elements.
Again, having not read the other works, I would be happy if she stopped here or steady only showed up every 3-4 years.

Emily I'm completely with you!

Dorothy She is my FAVE!!!!

Todd Not with you at all Stephen. I love Holly. I think she's an amazingly interesting and nuanced character, and I thought her portrayal by Cynthia Erivo in The Outsider was awesome.

Walker Nah. Love Holly

Joyce

This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)

Kristi Bushe I don't like the character either and don't understand everyone's obsession with her. She's unrealistic to me. Randomly infusing a character with new skills & personality quirks is not character development. I find myself rolling my eyes whenever I encounter her on the page.

Cindy Absolutely not. I love her. And I wouldn’t call myself a huge King fan. Some of his stuff I just plain don’t care for, but the character is great imo. Made even better for me because I listed via Audible to The Outsider and Will Patton brought her to life in such a fantastic way.

Henry

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Ezra I'm also not a big fan. Stephen King LOVES her though, so we might see more of her. I loved Craig and Mr. Harrigan in Mr. Harrigan's phone.

Charity Fuck. That. Holly Gibney is the best written female autistic character in any book ever. I get so irritated when people call Holly annoying because it feels super personal when people attack a carbon copy of yourself.

Roger Harris Nope. I absolutely love Holly. In fact she's the main reason I keep reading the stories. She's also perfectly cast in the TV series too. I might even quit King completely if he kills her off. She's wonderful!

Mark I'm with you. She's really annoying. I'll probably skip this book due to her presence.

Susan I agree. I didn't even read her story in this collection.

Fabricio Fernandez Yes, I'm with you. I don't care for that character, neither for the entire Bill Hodges trilogy. I didn't read The Outsider yet, but I've watched the TV show and I liked it. Anyway, my next reading is literally the story "If it bleeds", so I will see if it changes my perception.

Steve I'm indifferent but do find her a bit cliched / straight out of central casting.

To your point I can't understand why he is trying so hard to promote her in so many different stories?

Mahmood Ahmad Same here... gibney seems too far-fetched. Not very interesting.

Victoria If that character is in one of these stories, I won't be wasting my money on it. What a garbage character. Honestly, my least favorite Stephen King character of all time, and I have read nearly every single king book. I'm not saying it lightly. She's awful and I wish he would kill her off...wait, does she die in this book? Might be worth reading if she does.

Katherine Vitale Yes. I read the other stories in if It Bleeds and enjoyed them, but gave up halfway through the one with Holly.

Patrick I completely agree

Evelyn I could put up with her more if she stopped saying 'poopey' so much.

A She was okay in small doses. But I find her annoying in large doses. I was very unhappy when she showed up in the Outsider.

Maria Rose Perhaps you are not impressed by her awkward method of dealing with people and obsessive need to solve what appears to be something to solve but that's her strength. May I suggest you watch if you have Netflix, the series called Borderlands, which has a male person detective who has the same type of personality quirks and solves what appears to be the impossible because of the way he connects the dots. Holly Gibney's character is just like that.

Dotti Enderle Yes, but one problem was I listened to the audiobooks, and Will Patton voiced her kind of wonky. Very choppy, if that sense. I might've liked her more if I read her instead of listened.

Boudewijn Hi Stephen, I am 100% with you on this. But to be honest, the main reason why is because the narrator (Will Patton) does a real bad impression. I've listened to the Mr. Mercedes trilogy and the voice he did for Holly was really annoying.

Kenneth Goldman Holly's character grew on me, especially with her appearance in IF IT BLEEDS. I wasn't crazy about the Mr. Mercedes series -- this was more detective work than Stephen King horror, and all the investigative minutia just doesn't interest me. Your mileage may vary, but I like King when he sticks to the genre he does best.

Brian J I'm with you for sure.

Ajay You have to be a bit like Holly Gibney to relate to her.

Daniel Dammerman I agree. I do not connect with the Holly character and was surprised to see her name marketed as a selling point for this collection.

Adam I don’t mind Holly, but I’m just not a huge fan of his detective work. It is only semi-interesting to me. I didn’t love The Outsider. I liked the Mr. Mercedes series better. If It Bleeds story #3 is my least favorite out of the novellas. I did enjoy the other stories and love his books in the more traditional SK supernatural style of The Institute, Insomnia and the Kennedy book (my favorite).

This answer contains spoilers… (view spoiler)

Derrick Good Enjoyed the short story tie in bringing Holly and The Outsider together

Brett Benner No, I love her. She’s the best thing about this book.

Denny Medley Nope - not with you on this either. I love Holly! BUT - she does seem to be a sort of polarizing character - I've seen several posters that absolutely hate the character. But overall - seems like most of the Constant Readers love her.

Laura L. I’m not a fan either. She didn’t bother as much in the Outsider as she did in MM but I could do with never reading about her again.

Anne Meyer I'm 100% with you on this one. I am listening to If It Bleeds, and I skipped through most of the Holly Gibney story because I'm just not interested in her at all.

Leonard Kowalski It's hard to picture who Holly Gibney really is now that the character was cast as 2 different actresses in the Mr. Mercedes and The Outsider Television Series'. Other than that, I don't mind the character.

Damien Hayes Really! I love Holly!

Matt Gleason I love Holly but I kind of dislike Holly + The Outsider. Maybe it'd be cool if she started tracking retro villians. Would be fun send her off after Leland Gaunt or bumping into Danny Torrance somewhere.

Camilla Sjøholm Sorry, no - I love her! :-)

Cindy Canestrari Sorry, I'm a fan of Holly's character.

Michael I sort of agree Stephen. I think she's a little overrated. I loved her in the Mr. Mercedes series, but I seem to sort of be loving her less and less as time goes on. I still like her, though.

Donna Love I LOVE Holly Gibney and hope she comes back soon!

Barbaros Gokdemir So, can you read this book without having no knowledge whatsoever about Holly Gibney? Or should I read the books she was previously featured in?

Samuel I'm not a big fan but I've never found any of Stephen King's characters particularly endearing. They all seemed tailored made for Hollywood movies.

Kimberly She's intriguing and light on the page but honestly, not that rich or special. Perhaps with greater screentime she will get stronger roots but I'm not impressed.

Mark Bradshaw Loved Holly, and I'm very happy there's another story about her to read.

Heidi Dugger Sorry, not at all, I really enjoyed the character of Holly Gibney. A little quirky, but strong & intelligent. Was she in Mr. Mercedes? I haven't been able to get through a lot of the work Mr. King has written since his accident, but I was really caught up with The Outsider. I may have to revisit some of his newer work!

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