A review by liseyp
Holly by Stephen King

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

When a distraught mother contacts private investigation firm Finders Keepers, the owner, Holly Gibney, is still dealing with her conflicted feelings over the death of her own overbearing mother. What at first appears to be a simple missing person case may be on course to become one of the most evil cases of Holly’s career.

 

To be completely honest I’m not a fan of Holly Gibney as a character. So, I was a bit apprehensive of another book focussed on her. I enjoyed the original Bill Hodges trilogy, particularly the first non-supernatural one. And, despite also enjoying The Outsider and Let It Bleed, which both also featured post-Bill Holly, I felt that compelling stories and the supporting character cast saved these for me.

 

The titular Holly feels that she has developed massively as a character and is now up to the weight of carrying a novel. And, this is a great novel.

 

Set largely in 2021, Covid features largely. Holly’s mum was a pro-Trump anti-vaxxer who dies from Covid. Holly, who has previously been established as having anxiety, and anxiety which often shows up around health issues, is the polar opposite of her mum in that respect. I enjoyed the author’s note which explains why Covid features so strongly in this, but given the real world setting and the previously established nature of the characters, it would feel odd to set a book written post-Covid and set mid-pandemic which didn’t feature it.

 

Overall this book highlights King’s story writing strengths. Which aren’t horror or the supernatural, gore or whatever the default public association with him is. It’s about real people in extreme situations and where good people care about others and the evil only care about themselves.