Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

The Outsider by Stephen King

107 reviews

cestcallie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

I'm an avid reader of horror, and I truly believe King paved the way for a lot of contemporary horror authors. That being said, after a decade of avoiding King in favor of new, different, more diverse voices in the genre, coming back to a King novel felt like revisiting an old family member. A fond reunion with a beloved uncle. But just like seeing Uncle Steve over Thanksgiving, reading this novel was filled with moments where I couldn't stop myself from cringing, feeling some ick, and sighing deeply. But at least he didn't vote for Trump? The story delved into something that felt more like a crime procedural than a horror novel with frustratingly stupid people at the helm. It doesn't really get much better until the monster of the novel is at least mostly unmasked, and the paranormal aspects of the story are centered. These parts were fun, and felt more like classic King work. I liked the story well enough, and while the characters were mostly generic, they were easily relatable and that was enough to endear yourself to them. I didn't love the portrayal of Holly. She does seem to be an established character in the wider King Expanded Universe, so there's a lot I could be missing from her. I do tire of the gifted neurodivergent detective character trope though. It's the Adrian Monk curse, and I think Holly suffered from it in this one. Anyway, if people are into pulp, I'd recommend it. It was fast paced, an easy read, nothing to really digest. But I don't think I'll be thinking about it for much longer than this post. 
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abudd2348's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The book keeps you on your toes. Just when you think you understand whats happening, King comes in with a well placed plot twist to leave you second guessing your initial thoughts.
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meesasoup's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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leweylibrary's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I read this for my book club, and it was alright! It felt like two books really, one a whodunnit, law and order type of thing and then the second something out of Supernatural. Even the focus characters were almost totally different to the point where I honestly wasn't that shocked when
the two guys (the prosecutor aaaand I don't remember the other guy lol) died during the climax of the book
. 

I learned from book club that one of the characters that was basically the MC during the second half is a reoccurring character in King novels, as were some of the other characters, which explains A LOT. One of my complaints while reading was that a character would say something with no context or explanation, and yeah that makes sense now lol. I did appreciate his dog at The Shining movie by one of the characters, I lol'd at that. 

There was definitely some language and one character in particular that felt... offensive. Sure, the town is small and conservative, but that's not a blanket excuse that makes it all okay. Especially the one character, it feels like a lazy caricature of Native Americans. The murder that starts the book off is also explained in... gruesome detail and involves a child, so be wary of that.

The one thing I will say to King's credit is I have never disliked reading one of his novels. They are incredibly readable.
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ok_kenz's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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mokirk's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

4.5

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sjgizmo's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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jackiea3's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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tillyjay's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.25

I honestly struggled to get past the first 60% of this book. The story is very slow and personally I found it rather boring. However, there was a turning point where I became interested which way the story would go. I think if you enjoy slow paced(but quick endings), supernatural books, then this is for you. 
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anniehowe's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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