Just who (or what) exactly is The Outsider?
The Outsider – the blurb
A horrifying crime.
Water-tight evidence points to a single suspect.
Except he was seventy miles away, with an iron-clad alibi.
Detective Anderson sets out to investigate the impossible: how can the suspect have been both at the scene of the crime and in another town?
Two places at once
The Outsider felt very much in the same vein as Mr Mercedes. Stonking crime with a touch of the supernatural that is hallmark King. A warning to those that haven’t read all of the Hodges trilogy though, The Outsider is not a follow on but it does contain spoilers so if your reading out of order be careful.
As with Mr Mercedes it was the crime part of the story that really pulled you in. How can a man be in two places at the same time? As you work to unpick that little problem a whole host of characters are added in to the mix. I liked them all but did initially find the numerous men difficult to distinguish. Another warning the violence is quite descriptive and does involve a child. If you can cope with this you are in for a treat especially when Holly Gibney arrives. If there is any criticism it was a little long but again that’s classic King and I didn’t mind. Unlike some of his works the ending here held, the supernatural didn’t go too extreme and you could go with it even if you didn’t believe.
The Outsider is a cracking read and I really recommend it. I just wish I’d read it after Finders Keepers and End of Watch.