The Outsider by Stephen King

The police, in Flint City, Oklahoma, led by Detective Ralph Anderson believe they have found their man for a truly heinous crime.  Young Frank Peterson was found with chunks bitten off of him, a tree limb shoved up his rectum, and semen on the backs of his legs.  The fingerprints all over the branch belong to one man.  An eyewitness has him picking the Frank up in a white van that has his fingerprints all over it which he dropped off in front of witnesses and picked up a stolen car that he dropped off in a hidden place with the bloody clothes and his fingerprints on the car.  Witnesses placed him that night at Gentlemen, Please, an adult men's club where he went to call for a taxi and found one right out front.  He was seen by the bouncer Charles Bolton.

The police had not brought him in for questioning. They were so sure in their case and Ralph wanted to make this a public spectacle because the accused was the local Little League Coach and he had coached his son and it was personal for Anderson so they arrested Terry Mailand in front of 1,500 people including his wife and two daughters at the big game that would determine whether the team would go to the playoffs.  Terry called his lawyer, Howie Gold who called his detective Alec to do some legwork for him.  It turns out that Terry had an Alibi. He was in Cap-City miles away at a conference with the English Department of the High School where he is a teacher. They were there to see the author Harlan Coban who was the key-note speaker.  All of the English teachers vouche for him and he shared a room with one of them.  Alec comes back with footage from the hotel where it was held with Terry in it.  But to top it off, the local cable access channel sent someone to film the talk Mr. Coban gave and the Q &A after. The camera goes back and forth to the audience where you can clearly see Terry. The next to last question was given by Terry and the camera is a close up of him.  This is all when Frank Peterson was being killed.  However, the semen matches Terry.  However, in the newsstand at the hotel, while they were waiting for their autographs, Terry saw a book that no one ever looks at and picks it up and touches it. It contains his fingerprints.

How can Terry be in two places at once? This is Stephen King so this book has a supernatural element to it, but its premise is a curious one especially when you find that Terry was not the first victim and a previous victim was jailed and committed suicide.  His alibi was mostly his mother which wasn't much of an alibi.  You really find yourself pulling for Terry throughout the book even when the evidence mounts against him.  He's such a nice guy you can't help it.  Even though you wonder if you're being played.  Also included in this book is Holly Gibney from Mr. Mercedes's books who is a private eye, though she would deny that designation.  Holly with her past experiences is the one to figure out what is going on but she must convince a group of hard-headed men that what she is saying is the truth and not fantasy.  This was an excellent book that as of this writing is being aired on HBO as a mini-series.  This book is really worth reading and I give it five out of five stars.

Quotes

Smokers never stop, they only pause.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 227)

Thinking that if a person did begin considering supernatural possibilities, that person

would no longer be able to think of himself as a completely sane person, and thinking

about one’s sanity was maybe not a good thing. It was like thinking about your heartbeat:

if you had to go there, you might already be in trouble.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 242)

I’ve seen Paths of Glory at least a dozen times. It’s one of Mr. Kubrick’s finest. Much

better than The Shining and Barry Lyndon, in my opinion, but of course he was much

younger when he made it. Young artists are much more likely to be risktakers in my

opinion.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 286)

When Holly was usure about what to do next, she almost always sought out either

an International House of Pancakes or a Denney’s. Both served breakfast all day, comfort

food that you could eat slowly without being bothered by things like wine lists and

pushy waiters.

-Stepehen King (The Outsiders p 313)

It was that phrase—I had a friend. Time had passed, and time probably did heal all

wounds, but God, some of them healed so slowly. And the difference between I have

and I had was such a gulf.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 313)

 Like measles, mumps, or rubella, tragedy was contagious.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 355)

Ralph turned around in his seat. “Listen to me now. No more ifs or maybes.  For

today, the outsider does exist. For today, he can read Charles Bolton’s mind any

time he wants to, and unless we know differently, he’s in the Marysville Hole. No more assumptions, just belief.  Can you do that?”  For a moment no one replied. Then Howie said, “I’m a defense lawyer, son. I can believe anything.”

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 489)

One great thing about hard drugs—everything still hurts, but you don’t give a shit.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 537)

Dreams are the way we touch the unseen world, that’s what I believe. They are a special gift.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 549)

|”I’m a very curious person. Sometimes that gets me in trouble.” “And sometimes it gets you out.”

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 550)

If you can’t let go of the past, the mistakes you’ve made will eat you alive.

-Stephen King (The Outsider p 550)

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