Kemper’s review of Finders Keepers (Bill Hodges Trilogy, #2) > Likes and Comments

This is probably a mistake...

I can't wait to read your review. If you hate it, I may avoid it.

Oh, sure. Make me the canary in the coal mine while you're back here safe and sound reading the good Stephen King novels. I see how you operate, ya sneaky Canadian bastard!

Kemper wrote: "This is probably a mistake..."

I can't even bring myself to mark it as "want to read"...

Steve wrote: "Kemper wrote: "This is probably a mistake..."

I can't even bring myself to mark it as "want to read"..."

Me either.

Steve wrote: "I can't even bring myself to mark it as "want to read"..."

That's probably wise. I'm not even sure why I'm doing this considering how much I hated Mr. Mercedes.

I have marked it as to-read, even when I'm reading Mr. Mercedes and experiencing one of the biggest disappointments in my life. I don't know why I'm doing this to myself.

I couldn't even get half way through Mr. Mercedes.

Vane wrote: "I have marked it as to-read, even when I'm reading Mr. Mercedes and experiencing one of the biggest disappointments in my life. I don't know why I'm doing this to myself."

I'd advise you to stop Mr. Mercedes now and save yourself, but I'm obviously not practicing what I preach.

I'll say that the first chapter of this one was pretty good. But then it starts tying in elements of MM after that which makes me nervous.

Poor canary. I'll get the shoebox ready.

Becky wrote: "Poor canary. I'll get the shoebox ready."

Avenge me, Becky! AVENGE ME!

I'll probably be joining you soon enough. So that we can both bear the brunt of the haters asking why we bothered continuing a series that we clearly hated from the start.

You know it's coming. It's only a matter of time.

Becky wrote: "You know it's coming. It's only a matter of time..."

That's why I'm kinda hoping that the toxic gasses will take me down before the trolls can start in.

I may have to join you guys in the hater corner for this one. So far, I'm just meh about it.

First, the corner. Then, THE WORLD!!! MWAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Kemper wrote: "Oh, sure. Make me the canary in the coal mine while you're back here safe and sound reading the good Stephen King novels. I see how you operate, ya sneaky Canadian bastard!"

It's because of you that I haven't considered Insomnia yet.

Brandon wrote: "It's because of you that I haven't considered Insomnia yet..."

Damn, I'm out here taking bullets left and right for you. When I need a kidney someday, you better be there to return the favor.

Kemper wrote: "I'm not even sure why I'm doing this considering how much I hated Mr. Mercedes. .."

Probably for a lot of the same compulsions that got me into a theater seat last night to watch Poltergeist remake. I hope King is kinder to you than that piece of shit dreck was to me.

Brandon wrote: "It's because of you that I haven't considered Insomnia yet. "

BRANDON!!! Do not let Kemper's evil skills of persuasion steal the beautiful reading joy of Insomnia from you! Read it!! Trust your fellow countryman, not the contrary American!

Brandon, are you gonna listen to me or someone who'd willingly go see the Poltergeist remake?

Kemper wrote: "Brandon, are you gonna listen to me or someone who'd willingly go see the Poltergeist remake?"

It was a COMPULSION! It had to be done!! Those sitting in Finders Keepers glass houses shouldn't be throwing smack talk stones.

Trudi wrote: "It was a COMPULSION! It had to be done!! Those sitting in Finders Keepers glass houses shouldn't be throwing smack talk stones.

Yeah, but King's track record is a whole lot better than that of horror movie remakes so I've got at least a fighting chance that there might be something decent in here unlike you going to see that despite a 32% Rotten Tomatoes score....

Oh you and your RT scores. I like to make up my own damn mind thanks! Plus, not all horror remakes are terrible! -- the risk had to be assessed and taken. A) great source material plus B) Sam Raimi's production studio plus C) Sam Rockwell = Trudi had to take the bullet just in case everyone else was wrong (it's been known to happen).

Oh you and your RT scores. I like to make up my own damn mind thanks!

And how'd that work out for you?

Which is why you obviously can't be trusted.

Kemper wrote: "And how'd that work out for you?"

What do you suppose the international sign of giving someone the finger is? I want to make sure the gesture doesn't get lost in translation.

Keep that merciless lawyer logic away from me. It makes me want to stab you.

Trudi wrote: "Keep that merciless lawyer logic away from me. It makes me want to stab you...."

I'm assuming that your hand/eye coordination is probably on par with your movie choices so I'm sure I'll be fine.

I'll put my hand/eye coordination up against your drunken reflexes any day of the damn week smartass. Then we'll see who's left bleeding in the dirt!

You sadomasochist you. No... wait... that would be Stevie who is the sadomasochist because he is the one enjoying inflicting the pain on you. You are just a garden variety masochist. I actually heard somewhere that a downloaded version of Stephen King (that works for porn) is writing this series.

I can't stop myself from reading (I'm a masochist like that), but I think it's because my brain doesn't want to accept Mr. Mercedes is actually written by the same man who wrote The Stand... and it's also really probable that I will still read Finders Keepers.

Haven't read Mr Mercedes yet, but plan to. Read a review that said this one was way better than MM. So there's hope? Maybe?

If you don't like it, you know what they say: LOSERS, WEEPERS!

...

Anthony wrote: "If you don't like it, you know what they say: LOSERS, WEEPERS!

..."

Ha!!

Well, that thread was entertaining. Carry on.

More importantly, how is the book going. Is it everything you dreaded it would be?

Becky wrote: "More importantly, how is the book going. Is it everything you dreaded it would be?"

Review is done. It's not as terrible as MM, but it's got problems.

That.... Spoiler. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat? What? Really???? FFS.

Becky wrote: "That.... Spoiler. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat? What? Really???? FFS."

Yep. I actually said, "You have got to be fucking kidding me!" out loud when I got to that point.

"While I like that he gave something new a try, I also think that he’s just not suited to doing this genre"

We definitely agree on that point -- the weakest elements of both MM and Joyland for me are the mystery/thriller plot setups and their resolutions.

But I will disagree that he's often at his best leaning on a fantastic element. While he does do this, and do it well often, for me some of his best writing has been when there are absolutely no supernatural elements at all -- Misery, Gerald's Game, Dolores Claiborne, The Long Walk, Shawshank Redemption, The Body.

I really do hope this genre experiment ends with the third Hodges book. Though I hear there's going to be a mini- and/or TV series now. Sigh.

(great review)

Becky wrote: "That.... Spoiler. Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat? What? Really???? FFS."

Miss Spoiler-phobe herself read the fucking SPOILER?! What the shit Becky? Arghhh, now I want to read it too!!

I will read them for books I don't care about. Lol

Kemper wrote: "Since this is occurring in the ‘70s, Morris can’t go on Goodreads to complain about it so instead he breaks into Rothstein’s house and murders him."

Haha...Goodreads: saving lives, one author at a time.

I've wanted to die. I've wanted to kill. I'm going to Arbys. Maybe I will.

Dᴀɴ 2.☢ wrote: "Haha...Goodreads: saving lives, ..."

"Enjoy Arbys."

Edward wrote: "Damn fine review."

Thanks.

Trudi wrote: ""But I will disagree that he's often at his best leaning on a fantastic element. While he does do this, and do it well often, for me some of his best writing has been when there are absolutely no supernatural elements...."

Yeah, but I'm talking about the plotting, not the writing itself. And I think even in his non-supernatural ones, he usually has some kind of weird gimmick or hook to hang his premise on. Like Gerald's Game has the lady handcuffed to the bed or The Body has the kids going to see the corpse. Even Delores Claiborne has a murder in it, but they're not trying to solve the murder, the circumstances behind it are being explained. And I could even make an argument that the plot in the movie version of Shawshank is actually better because it's tighter and depends on a sequence of events in the story, not outside elements. (view spoiler)[In the book Andy has the deus ex machina of having a pile money and ID suddenly available with the hand-wave explanation of it being something he set up before going to jail that we never heard about until he needed it for the story to work. In the movie version, it's all tied into him turning the warden's crooked schemes about. That's a lot more satisfying. (hide spoiler)]

I think that's the critical difference, that when he starts trying to pull together a story in which deduction is critical and where people need to know certain things or be in certain places or where things need to follow logical progressions, that's where he gets in the soup.

Like I love The Dark Half, and King actually did create a hybrid of a horror/crime novel there. And I think it works better for him because whenever he needed something to happen to advance the plot, he could fall back on the supernatural elements and not just rely on his own ability to shift the pieces around.

Long story short, as much as I like King, I don't think he would have cut it in the Breaking Bad writer's room.

Kemper wrote: "I think that's the critical difference, that when he starts trying to pull together a story in which deduction is critical and where people need to know certain things or be in certain places or where things need to follow logical progressions, that's where he gets in the soup..."

I'm giving you that one. I am CONCEDING. Oh how it buuuuurns. King has many strengths, but for sure his biggest Achilles Heel is moving plot pieces around effectively using logic, deduction and natural timing rather than relying on coincidence or a fantastical element.

And yeah, no BB writer's room for Uncle Stevie.

You sure have been taking a lot of bullets for the team lately.

King spoils GoT major characters' deaths? I may have read those tweets, but since I haven't watched that show, I may not have understood. Eek.

As for this one, it indeed sounds better than MM (more intriguing, I mean). One question, though: If I DNF MM (I'm very tempted to do so - I can't stand Hodges), will I understand this book? I mean, is it necessary what happened in MM to the plot of this book?

Bugger, just bought Mr Mercedes based on my GR friends being huge King fans. Sounds like I should have read some reviews on specific King books first :-(

Excellent review.

Great review!