MR. MERCEDES (Bill Hodges Trilogy #1) by Stephen King ⭐⭐⭐⭐

(Original review written July 24, 2019)

For the King, even his more mid-level stuff is just leagues ahead of most other writers. I really enjoyed his take on the detective genre, but will say it wasn’t his top tier out-of-this-world stuff. Just another solid King read.

King is known for the supernatural horror work that he pumps out like candy year after year, and for great reason: they are insane and thought-provoking and on another level. But with this he shows off what I consider to be his greatest strength, and that is creating a world that could be just down the street with characters like people you’ve met before and dialogue that actually feels like something a human would say.

He infuses little snippets of life, from tv shows that are in the social consciousness to describing a sensation or feeling that you may have thought was unique to you until you read it in his words. How does he tap into that source of humanity that we all share, and so effortlessly? I’ve never understood, but it’s a gratifying thing to consistently see in his work.

His natural ability of painting a picture of reality -- along with scaring the shit out of you -- create a truly menacing premise and antagonist that may scare you more than vampires and shock you more than most other things you’ve read. It’s another unique King experience worth having.