A lighter form of King's strangeness- Finder's Keepers and End of Watch


The Bill Hodges Trilogy by Stephen King

Stephen King isn't afraid to kill off a main character.

Oh sorry, should have said "SPOILERS!"

In the first book of the Bill Hodges series, Janey was killed off by the psychotic murderer Brady. By accident. In the final book, Bill himself is the victim. This time cancer is the killer and he is very much the intentional target of cancer.

Sorry, I am getting ahead of myself.

The second book in this series, Finder's Keepers, departs from our main characters and follows a fascinating cast of characters through a premise that only King could dream up. The story is great, but I spent much of the book wondering where Bill was and when he would show up.

As a stand alone novel, this story is great. As a part of this series, it feels strange. As a lover of all things strange, it makes some sense for King. Instead of glossing over the time that passes between the first and third book, King creates an additional part of this fictional Midwestern city's world.

Besides the fact that I was eager to get back to the main story, it wasn't an unpleasant side trip. The bookstore scene was especially grim in an "oh look there's a scary accident that I can't look away from" kind of way.

The third book, End of Watch,  brings us back to our beloved Bill, Jerome, Holly, and Brady. King weaves in some supernatural with Brady's telekinetic and mind-inhabiting powers. When I am trying to convince someone to start reading Stephen King's novels, I often say that King writes strange books, normal books, and books that are somewhere in the middle.

This series is somewhere in the middle. Yes, Brady can inhabit the minds of individuals that leave their minds open to his attacks. Yes, he can move small things with his mind. Other than that? The rest of the series is pretty "normal."

With his new powers, Brady once again makes life difficult for Bill. Hodges plays the role of the cop that can't move on from the case. The rest of the cast of characters tell him to move on with his life. Bill is in pain and his doctor has some bad news for him. He gets the news (cancer) and seems to take it in stride.

Brady's new method of murder is clever. He uses the unassuming hospital librarian, his wealthy neurosurgeon, his former coworker, and a defunct handheld gaming system to pull off a series of "assisted" suicides, leading up to his coup de grace- a mass suicide.

Bill and his team manage to stop him at the last minute and save the day once again. Bill passes away and everyone lives somewhat happily ever after.

It's an exciting ride with a somewhat satisfying finish. I'll admit that I kept hoping for a miracle to save Bill. So King definitely created a character lovable enough for me to root for. I also mourned the death of Brady. No not Bill, although I mourned him too, but Brady. Brady is the villain you love to watch and can't look away from. I wanted him to get caught and I wanted him to keep causing trouble.

Overall, this isn't my favorite work by Stephen King. That prize remains with 11.22.63. Even though it wasn't a favorite, it was a fun ride that I will probably go on again whenever I re-read the series.

Am I the only one that forgets everything that happens and re-reads books almost like it's the first time? I could say I'm getting old, but I've always had this problem. Or as I choose to refer to it- opportunity.

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