Hello again! I’m back with another review. This book I bought from Waterstones in my November haul, which you can read about in my previous post! I was so excited to read this, given the fact that as a teen, Stephen King was one of my favourite authors. I was constantly reading his books and it’s been a couple of years since I read anything by him. So without further delay, The Outsider!
The cover of this book is striking. Very bright, the whole cover just stands out so much. The block lettering, the contrasting colours, everything just screams out for attention. You couldn’t walk past this on a desk or a shelf and not notice it. The patchiness of the writing in the bold font combined with the bold and creepy double silhouette illustration adds a feeling of curiosity and ambiguity to what The Outsider is. It’s the perfect cover to grab a readers curiosity but leaves them with a feeling of mystery of what this book is. What is The Outsider? This book is quite a big book, but I didn’t feel a sense of foreboding about this being a lengthy read, I was quite excited, I was so curious.
The synopsis on the back of the book is short, punchy and so effective. It’s straight to the point and doesn’t give away too much. I’ve included it below for your reference.
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?
Feeling curious yet? I definitely was when I read this! Underneath the synopsis there are also some praising reviews from The Sunday Express, Sun and Guardian that ensure an amazing read.
When it comes down to the actual writing, I wasn’t disappointed. It was just as fun to read as all the Stephen King novels that I’ve read in the past. It did surprise me how it seemed more a crime novel than a horror or supernatural story when I first started reading this. It kept this tone throughout the first few sections. However, we do get a lot of twisty storylines in this story that keeps you guessing and this then brought us a touch of the supernatural and the horror that Stephen King is known for after creating books such as It and The Shining.
King kept me engaged and guessing all the way through and all his characters were so three dimensional. The good guys I couldn’t help but love, the bad guys I despised. I felt the characters emotions as my own as I experienced them in the book. The crimes that are mentioned in the book are quite sensitive and hard to read about but I think Stephen King dealt with them in a sensitive tasteful manner while still providing a realistic narrative throughout the book. I would warn people that the crimes are quite graphic and could potentially be quite upsetting but it isn’t the main focus throughout the book.
All in all, I would recommend this book to crime, thriller and creepy story lovers alike. I was thoroughly entertained by the storyline and it kept me guessing every step of the way. I am looking forward to adding more of Stephen King back on to my bookshelf again in the very near future!
Star Rating /5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Hello again! I’m back with another review. This book I bought from Waterstones in my November haul, which you can read about in my previous post! I was so excited to read this, given the fact that as a teen, Stephen King was one of my favourite authors. I was constantly reading his books and it’s been a couple of years since I read anything by him. So without further delay, The Outsider!
The cover of this book is striking. Very bright, the whole cover just stands out so much. The block lettering, the contrasting colours, everything just screams out for attention. You couldn’t walk past this on a desk or a shelf and not notice it. The patchiness of the writing in the bold font combined with the bold and creepy double silhouette illustration adds a feeling of curiosity and ambiguity to what The Outsider is. It’s the perfect cover to grab a readers curiosity but leaves them with a feeling of mystery of what this book is. What is The Outsider? This book is quite a big book, but I didn’t feel a sense of foreboding about this being a lengthy read, I was quite excited, I was so curious.
The synopsis on the back of the book is short, punchy and so effective. It’s straight to the point and doesn’t give away too much. I’ve included it below for your reference.
Feeling curious yet? I definitely was when I read this! Underneath the synopsis there are also some praising reviews from The Sunday Express, Sun and Guardian that ensure an amazing read.
When it comes down to the actual writing, I wasn’t disappointed. It was just as fun to read as all the Stephen King novels that I’ve read in the past. It did surprise me how it seemed more a crime novel than a horror or supernatural story when I first started reading this. It kept this tone throughout the first few sections. However, we do get a lot of twisty storylines in this story that keeps you guessing and this then brought us a touch of the supernatural and the horror that Stephen King is known for after creating books such as It and The Shining.
King kept me engaged and guessing all the way through and all his characters were so three dimensional. The good guys I couldn’t help but love, the bad guys I despised. I felt the characters emotions as my own as I experienced them in the book. The crimes that are mentioned in the book are quite sensitive and hard to read about but I think Stephen King dealt with them in a sensitive tasteful manner while still providing a realistic narrative throughout the book. I would warn people that the crimes are quite graphic and could potentially be quite upsetting but it isn’t the main focus throughout the book.
All in all, I would recommend this book to crime, thriller and creepy story lovers alike. I was thoroughly entertained by the storyline and it kept me guessing every step of the way. I am looking forward to adding more of Stephen King back on to my bookshelf again in the very near future!
Star Rating /5
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️