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tequilarainbows's review
dark
emotional
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? Yes
5.0
reeltomi's review
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Racial slurs, Violence, Animal death, Murder, and Racism
Moderate: Incest
leftyphive's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
5.0
Wow! That was intense. It was dark and somewhat disturbing at times, but I couldn’t put it down. Especially towards the later third of the book. What a great read!
dj68's review
4.0
Very good, not typical King, and yet...
I'm looking forward to the next in this proposed trilogy :)
I'm looking forward to the next in this proposed trilogy :)
jrice92's review against another edition
4.0
Okay, so let me say first of all I in a rookie move I read End of Watch (The end of the series) before reading Mr Mercedes (the first in the series) so I know how this series ends before starting it.
That said, I enjoyed the end of the series, so I knew I would enjoy the first two books, Mr Mercedes in my opinion is one of Kings most underrated books/series! This is thrilling, intense, full of twists and over all very well written.
First plus, the main character in Bill Hodges is brilliant and a really enjoyable protagonist, he’s a retired detective struggling to find his way since retiring (dreaming of the cases he didn’t solve) I won’t go into the plot in this review but safe to say Bill doesn’t stay retired for long. Outside of Bill we have some great supporting characters who complement each other well, my personal favourite being Holly who comes in late.
Second plus, what a bad guy! Nothing is more important in a good thriller than a bad guy that keeps you on your toes, the Mercedes killer as he is nicknamed is crazy but in such a controlled way that he is inventive and seriously dangerous. The cat and mouse chase between Bill & the Mercedes killer had me on my toes from the start even though I know how the series ends and that to me tells you just how good kings writing is in this book.
Plot, again no spoilers, we follow the Mercedes killer who has so far managed to successfully avoid the police following a murder spree at a major jobs market, the Mercedes killer isn’t happy with stopping there and wants to go down in history.
Our protagonist Bill takes it upon himself to stop the Mercedes killer before he can hurt anyone else.
8/10 BRILLIANT!
That said, I enjoyed the end of the series, so I knew I would enjoy the first two books, Mr Mercedes in my opinion is one of Kings most underrated books/series! This is thrilling, intense, full of twists and over all very well written.
First plus, the main character in Bill Hodges is brilliant and a really enjoyable protagonist, he’s a retired detective struggling to find his way since retiring (dreaming of the cases he didn’t solve) I won’t go into the plot in this review but safe to say Bill doesn’t stay retired for long. Outside of Bill we have some great supporting characters who complement each other well, my personal favourite being Holly who comes in late.
Second plus, what a bad guy! Nothing is more important in a good thriller than a bad guy that keeps you on your toes, the Mercedes killer as he is nicknamed is crazy but in such a controlled way that he is inventive and seriously dangerous. The cat and mouse chase between Bill & the Mercedes killer had me on my toes from the start even though I know how the series ends and that to me tells you just how good kings writing is in this book.
Plot, again no spoilers, we follow the Mercedes killer who has so far managed to successfully avoid the police following a murder spree at a major jobs market, the Mercedes killer isn’t happy with stopping there and wants to go down in history.
Our protagonist Bill takes it upon himself to stop the Mercedes killer before he can hurt anyone else.
8/10 BRILLIANT!
paginasdagio's review
emotional
mysterious
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? No
4.5
😴 Não vou negar que achei o início bem lento, chegava até a dar sono pela quantidade de descrição que boba que o King fazia. Precisava mesmo um capítulo inteiro detalhando um programa de TV? Por sorte, essa lentidão foi só 2 capítulos.
✍️ No livro, temos o ponto de vista do detetive aposentado Bill Hodges e também do Assassino da Mercedes, o que foi muito bom para vermos ambos os lados da situação.
🚙 Eu me diverti muito com o nosso vilão, as cenas do Assassino eram as que eu mais me divertia e gostava de ler. Gostei que de forma leve o King usou do humor para esse vilão.
🔎 Gostei também que foram jogadas questões da investigação para o próprio leitor pensar e tentar solucionar, era como se a gente também fizesse parte da investigação.
🙄 Algo que me incomodou foi como a personagem Holly foi descrita. Ela aparece primeiramente nessa trilogia do Bill Hodges e depois em vários livros do King.
🫨 Sei que eu li tudo fora de ordem, conheci a Holly por Outsider e depois li o próprio livro dela [Holly], mas achei que ela foi descrita e apresentada de forma muito bobona e uma idiota inteligente. Mas acho que é porque os outros livros que li com ela, ela já tinha amadurecido e não era tão ingênua como nessa história.
⭐️ No geral, eu gostei muito do livro! Curti demais toda a investigação e os personagens, e estou animada para continuar a trilogia.
✍️ No livro, temos o ponto de vista do detetive aposentado Bill Hodges e também do Assassino da Mercedes, o que foi muito bom para vermos ambos os lados da situação.
🚙 Eu me diverti muito com o nosso vilão, as cenas do Assassino eram as que eu mais me divertia e gostava de ler. Gostei que de forma leve o King usou do humor para esse vilão.
🔎 Gostei também que foram jogadas questões da investigação para o próprio leitor pensar e tentar solucionar, era como se a gente também fizesse parte da investigação.
🙄 Algo que me incomodou foi como a personagem Holly foi descrita. Ela aparece primeiramente nessa trilogia do Bill Hodges e depois em vários livros do King.
🫨 Sei que eu li tudo fora de ordem, conheci a Holly por Outsider e depois li o próprio livro dela [Holly], mas achei que ela foi descrita e apresentada de forma muito bobona e uma idiota inteligente. Mas acho que é porque os outros livros que li com ela, ela já tinha amadurecido e não era tão ingênua como nessa história.
⭐️ No geral, eu gostei muito do livro! Curti demais toda a investigação e os personagens, e estou animada para continuar a trilogia.
bentheoverlordsbooks's review
5.0
Mr Mercedes by Stephen King ☂️☂️☂️☂️☂️/5 I can't not give this 5 stars. Genuinely one of the most f*cked up King books Ive had the pleasure to read, Mr Mercedes is a cretin, vile, monstrous, racist, sexist and just all out a creep, and was so interesting to follow. Bill Hodges was a pathetic old detective coming to terms that he may not have been a great police officer, and forming a team to stop Mr Mercedes. I really liked them, plus the intro to Holly Gibney, Jerome (who was my fav, really loved him) and Janey, and can't wait to see what book 2 does. This book was just so tense, wild and gross, and Kings masterful use of tension building really cements this as one of his best and Im honestly surprised by that (I thought i was gonna find this mid as serial killers that arent slashers arent my thing) but oof this was a tense ride. I also like King touching on injustice from within the police and how the system can really fail people, and alloy people like Mr Mercedes to get away with his crimes for so long. Downsides are sadly its full of some Kingisms, which Im not used to but did kinda make me go "Oh stephen" but overall a marvellous book
copack's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
4.5