Finders, Keepers by Stephen King (2015) (read in 2016

Disclaimer: these are notes I took while reading this book. They include citations I found interesting or enlightening or particularly well-written. In some cases, I’ve pointed out which of these applies to which citation; in others, I have not. Any benefit you gain from reading these notes is purely incidental to the purpose they serve of reminding me what I once read. Please see Wikipedia for a summary if I’ve failed to provide one sufficient for your purposes. If my notes serve to trigger an interest in this book, then I’m happy for you.

This is the sequel to Mr. Mercedes, reuniting the trio of detectives that formed at the end of that book: Holly, Jerome and Bill Hodges. They are a fun team to watch, typically interesting King characters. The story is good but feels a bit too well-oiled, especially if you’ve read a lot of Stephen King books. You know where it’s going and how it’s going to end. The bits of foreshadowing with Brady are eerie and quite well-done—much more like his best of old.

This story follows (yet another) avid fan (Morris) of a noir-mystery writer (think Roth and Updike with a bit of the reclusive Salinger) who feels betrayed by how his hero’s character was made to end. He’s such an avid fan that he breaks into the writer’s home with two cohorts in order to rob him of supposedly large amounts of cash. He discovers a final novel with his hero in it, unpublished for decades. Enraged, he kills the writer for the multiple betrayals of this fictional hero, getting away with the crime and stashing the novel away where he can read it in peace. Before he can read a single page, though, he goes on a bender and rapes a girl. He is caught and sentenced to decades in prison.

Fast-forward twenty years (or so) and Pete, a young guy in his last year of high school, discovers the book hidden in a trunk. He, too, is an avid fan of the writer and immediately recognizes the book for what it is. He also makes good use of the money stashed with the book to anonymously get his family through tough times. As you would expect, Morris is eventually paroled and comes looking for his book and his money, both of which are gone. He quickly ascertains what happened and pursues Pete. The detective trio are hot on his trail, trying to save Pete and solve the mystery.

Citations

Mr. Ricker is the inspiring English teacher.