Billy summers: By Stephen King | Book Review Podcast

Billy summers: By Stephen King Website: https://gobookmart.com “Stephen King is an artist, and readers and critics who underestimate him do so at their own peril…Billy Summers is a very good story, told economically with an ear for rhythm. It’s about what it’s like to be a human being, and how that doesn’t really change much, no matter what situation you find yourself in…while there are plenty of action sequences, the heart of this novel lies in its quietest moments.” —Philip Martin, The Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette “A love letter to the transformative effects of putting words on paper…the impassioned argument Mr. King makes for the role of writing in healing traumas is heartfelt and affecting… fast-paced and cleverly constructed… written with Mr. King’s legendary eye for detail, and his ability to immerse readers in the mindsets of fictional characters serves the story well… witnessing this deeply-scarred man discover a new way of seeing himself and his place in the world is beautifully resonant. Mr. King’s sheer pleasure in the alchemy of turning mere words into entire universes is on full display here, and it is contagious — not just for Billy, but perhaps for Constant Readers as well.” —Wendeline Wright, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette “Stephen King hits the mark with assassination thriller Billy Summers…It’s downright unfair, really: Not only is Stephen King an undisputed master of horror, he’s a virtuosic crime novelist as well… King actually is as good at the hard-boiled prose—in this case, the tale of an extremely effective assassin trying to get out after one last job—as he is the scary stuff… King’s known for his literary villains, yet in creating his killer title protagonist, he exquisitely gets into the mind of a hitman and roots around in there to figure out what kind of person would do wetwork, the loneliness involved for those who choose that as a career path and the effect it would have on friends and loved ones… The biggest crime here, however, would be missing out on Billy Summers and King’s new reign as a pulp genius.” —Brian Truitt, USA Today "King’s latest endeavor begins with a familiar premise: decorated veteran Billy Summers, a principled hit man on the eve of retirement, agrees to do one last job. Things go south in spectacularly bad fashion, making for a characteristically King thriller about luck, fate, and redemption. To see the undisputed master of horror shift into the realm of noir thrillers is proof that King can still surprise and astound us, all these decades later." —Esquire "King has multiple novels in play here—thriller, at least two coming-of-age stories, and a knockout road novel—and he knits them together beautifully, never missing a stitch ... King has never been better than he is here at wrapping readers into a propulsive, many-tentacled narrative—complete with a perfectly orchestrated, moving ending." —Booklist, starred