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stormlightreader's Reviews (936)
After reading Mr Mercedes and Finders Keepers last year, I've finally read End of Watch and finished the Hodges trilogy.
***Some possible spoilers***
First up, a possible unpopular opinion: I loved Mr Mercedes but for me Finders Keepers served no other purpose than to introduce Hodges and Holly's firm, Finders Keepers and to inform us that Brady Hartsfield was in a vegetative state. So it's no surprise that I went into End of Watch sort of hoping for the best but expecting the absolute worst.
Now onto End of Watch. The first/major issue I had with this one was how much explanation there is of Holly's 'quirks', I can imagine some people find her endearing but I found it annoying how almost every time she did something, there was some random anecdotal explanation for it, e.g. referring to her coffee "her decaf - all she drinks" 🤔 that's just not imperative to me. Anywho, rant over.
Overall, this book was a combination of random cliche quotes, annoying commentary on Holly Gibney's 'quirks' and an unnecessary rehashing of details from Mr Mercedes. The book probably could've been significantly shorter. The ending, while sad for those invested in Bill Hodges, didn't phase me! #sorrynotsorry 😒 I would actually go as far as saying that Mr Mercedes should've just been a standalone - it's the only book in the series I liked and may actually read again. Even with Brady back (yes, I'm a fan of the psycho - sue me) I still struggled to even get interested and I ended up just rolling my eyes as the story progressed.
I had a gut feeling this book was not going to be for me. I should've trusted my gut.
***Some possible spoilers***
First up, a possible unpopular opinion: I loved Mr Mercedes but for me Finders Keepers served no other purpose than to introduce Hodges and Holly's firm, Finders Keepers and to inform us that Brady Hartsfield was in a vegetative state. So it's no surprise that I went into End of Watch sort of hoping for the best but expecting the absolute worst.
Now onto End of Watch. The first/major issue I had with this one was how much explanation there is of Holly's 'quirks', I can imagine some people find her endearing but I found it annoying how almost every time she did something, there was some random anecdotal explanation for it, e.g. referring to her coffee "her decaf - all she drinks" 🤔 that's just not imperative to me. Anywho, rant over.
Overall, this book was a combination of random cliche quotes, annoying commentary on Holly Gibney's 'quirks' and an unnecessary rehashing of details from Mr Mercedes. The book probably could've been significantly shorter. The ending, while sad for those invested in Bill Hodges, didn't phase me! #sorrynotsorry 😒 I would actually go as far as saying that Mr Mercedes should've just been a standalone - it's the only book in the series I liked and may actually read again. Even with Brady back (yes, I'm a fan of the psycho - sue me) I still struggled to even get interested and I ended up just rolling my eyes as the story progressed.
I had a gut feeling this book was not going to be for me. I should've trusted my gut.
4.5*
"Bill Denbrough led his friends into the dark where the boat he had made for his brother had gone almost a year before"
I first read IT in March 2017 and the first read did not impress, so after seeing the 2017 film, I decided on a re-read and this time the book hit the spot!
For me, IT will always have the best opening chapter of any Stephen King book. That opening chapter sealed the deal for me because the introduction to the Denbrough brothers is beautiful and heart-breaking at the same time and cemented Bill’s place as my favourite King character. After Bill, Eddie is my second favourite Loser! His admiration for Bill from early on is so cute and Ben is absolute cutie pie! Stan and Richie were better for me this time around and during my first read I completely overlooked Bev, but she is great. Now, this is where I might get some hate, but both times I’ve read this book, I’ve found Mike to be a fairly forgettable character and he feels like a filler character when he is on his own
"Bill Denbrough led his friends into the dark where the boat he had made for his brother had gone almost a year before"
I first read IT in March 2017 and the first read did not impress, so after seeing the 2017 film, I decided on a re-read and this time the book hit the spot!
For me, IT will always have the best opening chapter of any Stephen King book. That opening chapter sealed the deal for me because the introduction to the Denbrough brothers is beautiful and heart-breaking at the same time and cemented Bill’s place as my favourite King character. After Bill, Eddie is my second favourite Loser! His admiration for Bill from early on is so cute and Ben is absolute cutie pie! Stan and Richie were better for me this time around and during my first read I completely overlooked Bev, but she is great. Now, this is where I might get some hate, but both times I’ve read this book, I’ve found Mike to be a fairly forgettable character and he feels like a filler character when he is on his own
My main thought throughout this book was that Richard was a complete control freak and why anyone of these women would even want to marry this caveman is beyond me! Vanessa and Emma were just as calculating as Richard! The pacing was quite off with this book. Up until the halfway point the pace was good and gripping enough to keep me intrigued (at this point the book was a solid 4.5/5) but from the 60% mark the pace slowed way down and it became a struggle to finish it. It picked up again around the 85% mark but the most interesting part of this story was the epilogue, which in my opinion should've been incorporated as part of the main story to up the intrigue.
For the first third of the book Reacher seems quite cocky and more antagonistic that usual. This aside I'm not sure why I originally gave this book 1⭐️. It's not mind-blowing by any stretch but it's not a bad book. There are definitely worse Reacher books than this. It's a nondescript story that isn't massively important to Reacher's overall story but it's meaningful as it shows a lovely side of Reacher at points (Reacher setting the care home guy right 👌🏻). Pacing is an issue with Nothing To Lose. The last quarter (the part that's meant to ramp up the tension) took a bit of a nosedive and didn't feel like a true Reacher ending. Reacher deciding to detonate a bomb set up by the baddies was an interesting choice. Very anti-Reacher but fun to see this side of him. However, he's faced worse opponents and dealt with them more ethically.
This was such a good book. I was hooked from start to finish. There were so many twists and the ending was brilliant!
I first read this when I was in school and I really enjoyed it then but rereading it now, I can't believe how waffly it is. Fairly disappointing.