Reviews

Holly by Stephen King

milesmark's review against another edition

5.0

King has always been my favorite author and this book does nothing to change that opinion. This one was wild. How about a couple of retired, married serial killers? This one has a brutal ending that I won't soon forget.
Several other authors (Sanderson, Abercrombie and Crouch) have rocketed up my list of favorites. However, King is still at the top. I have only disliked one of the 60 of his I have read. I'm looking at you Revival! He is an amazing writer that just happens to like to scare us with stuff that is ordinary. I love the guy.

maraa's review against another edition

3.0

Well crud. I must have really missed something with this book compared to others. Through the whole thing I kept thinking “eh”. Clues are found and simmer in their minds until things suddenly click. It didn’t feel suspenseful, the ending was totally obvious, and it just fell flat for me.

Some of the writing didn’t fit for me either. For example, “‘She looks like she’s wearing war paint,’ Barbara thinks. ‘But I guess that’s okay because she’s been in a war.’” Hm. One of the antagonists does something quite nice for another character (introduces her to a famous poet who begins to mentor her) and it seems very out of character; no idea why she did that.

Covid is a big player in that someone has it, someone dies from it, some are vaccinated, some are anti-vaxxers, etc. I’m not really a fan of Covid storylines (or any pandemic situation for that matter) so that just didn’t help.

Anyway, I still give it 3 stars as I think the issue is on my side. :)

gettsmug's review against another edition

dark hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

blankpagealex's review against another edition

3.0

The inherent risk of making COVID-19 such an essential character in a book is that all of us who lived through it can't help but compare the story to our own experience. King nicely captures the awkward tension that constantly existed during the pandemic between people who took it seriously and those who did not. However, my memory seems to recall that elbow bumps and wearing gloves to go shopping had mostly gone away by Summer of 2021, when most of the novel is set. There was definitely a tension between vaccinated and unvaccinated people, but wasn't Summer of 2021 that brief period when we thought COVID was mostly behind us as vaccinations increased and cases declined?

This is to say that the focus on the pandemic, the divisions created by Trump, and the racial tensions in a nation in turmoil was more of a focus for my reading attention than the actual story of a cat and mouse game between private detective Holly Gibney and two octogenarian killers. This book is about a very specific moment in time that we will look back on decades from now and remember is a pivotal point in world history. It's impossible to set a book in the United States of 2021 without making COVID at least part of the story, but the constant mention of COVID protocols made me as a reader focus on that, rather than the other things the story was trying to say.

lorrainne's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

owlwise67's review

5.0

I haven’t read much King but I really loved this. Couldn’t put it down. Going to have to go back and read the previous books these characters are in. Any King recommendation are welcome!

chickn_noodle_soup's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

4.0

deltadawn5's review against another edition

5.0

I absolutely LOVE Holly Gibney! I love that her character is quirky and different from the norm. Very much enjoyed the storyline, but had a few issues with some of the medical details (inaccurate or downright wrong).

littleindio's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring tense fast-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? N/A

4.5

katie_holder's review against another edition

3.0

Holly is one of my favorite fictional characters ever. I loved the premise of this novel and the intention that cruel and evil things exist that aren't paranormal. I did not like how all of that was minimized by current events. I think we need a Holly II where the entire story is focused on her investigating, relationships with Jerome and Barbara, and healing from her emotionally abusive mother.
Can someone ask Stephen King to give us a redo?