Later by Stephen King Published by Hard Case Crime on March 2 2021
Genres: Adult
Pages: 248
Format: Finished paperback
Source: Purchased
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The nitty-gritty: King blends horror and crime into a fast-paced thriller, with a good balance of creep, humor and emotion.
This is the first time I’ve reviewed a new Stephen King book on this blog, can you believe it? I read Later over the course of a day, something I rarely get to do, and it was such a great immersive experience. You would think by now King would start to run out of story ideas, but there’s no evidence of that here. Later is published by Hard Case Crime, and although there are speculative elements, it fits perfectly with the publisher’s hardboiled crime sensibility. This is a fairly short book at under three hundred pages, and yet the pacing and overall story arc were simply perfect. King’s writing pulls me in every time, and this is one of those books where you can’t put it down, at least I couldn’t.
Twenty-two year old Jamie Conklin narrates the story, told over a period of about eleven years as he looks back on his unusual life, starting when he’s about four and ending when he’s fifteen. Jamie has a special ability: he can see the newly dead. When people die, their ghosts hang around for a few days before moving on, and during that time, Jamie is able to ask them questions and get truthful answers, because the dead cannot lie. Jamie’s single mom Tia knows about his “gift” but isn’t happy about it. Until the day she needs Jamie’s talents for herself. Tia is a talented book editor and has kept her small family afloat with one client in particular, author Regis Thomas, whose long running historical bodice-ripper series has been on the bestseller lists for years.
But when Regis dies suddenly before he can complete his current work in progress, Tia has a crazy idea: find his ghost and have Jamie ask him how the story ends. Tia can ghostwrite the rest of the novel and no one will be the wiser. But when Tia’s NYPD detective girlfriend Liz comes along and witnesses Jamie in action, it sets off a series of events that will have lasting repercussions for everyone involved.
The best part of this book—and there are a lot of “bests” to choose from—is Jamie’s voice. King captures the snark of a boy on the cusp of adulthood as he navigates all sorts of life changing experiences while coming-of-age in the early 2000s. Because he started seeing the dead at a pretty young age, it’s simply become part of his normal life, although there are traumatic moments—like seeing a bicyclist who’s been crushed by a car—that no little kid should have to deal with. Jamie’s relationships with adults are complex and nuanced, especially his relationship with Liz (more on that later), but at twenty-two he’s basically still a kid, and his voice and reactions fit his age so well.
As King does in all his books, he tips his hat to pop culture, and in this case, he was obviously influenced by The Sixth Sense. Even Jamie acknowledges the movie and tells the reader that his ability to speak to dead people isn’t quite like “the kid in the movie.” Ha ha. Although there is one scene that seems like it was lifted directly from the film—the bike scene I mentioned above—so those of you who have seen The Sixth Sense will recognize it right away. King also gives us clues about the time period by mentioning things like movies and TV shows (Jamie and his mom watch Torchwood at one point, and did anyone else catch the Panic Room reference?), and the financial crisis of 2008 plays a part in the story as well, as Tia and Jamie are forced to weather economical challenges.
As for the characters, it’s a fairly small cast, and I applaud King for keeping it small, which only makes sense because this is such a short novel. The most interesting relationship for me was the one between Jamie and Liz. Liz starts out as nothing more than a “friend” of his mom’s who plays with him and occasionally picks him up from school, but later in the story, we learn some dark secrets about Liz, and her personality takes a drastic turn. Even more so than the “evil” ghost who pops up later in the story, Liz was by far the most dangerous character, but then again, aren’t the human villains usually the worst?
King gives his readers a fantastic third act, a mashup of horror and crime thriller that was full of WTF moments and plenty of action. But like the best of King’s stories, there are also lots of emotional beats as well, like the way Tia and Jamie have to deal with his uncle’s early onset Alzheimer’s, as well as a few heartfelt scenes between Jamie and the dead. My only quibble with the story was a surprise revelation at the end—the answer to a small, personal mystery that’s been bugging Jamie for years—and to me it felt jarring and unnecessary. But still, there’s barely anything to fault in this taunt, engaging story, perfect for seasoned King fans and newbies alike.
Good review! I believe you about Liz because often the human horrors are as bad or worse than the supernatural horrors in scary books.
Priscilla Bettis recently posted…Slug Story Accepted, Happy Dance!
Liz was so scary!
Great review, I will no doubt read this at some point!
Thanks Jules!
The Master of Horror seems to have returned in great form these past few years, and although I find it strange that he limited himself to such a short novel (he’s well known for hefty tomes…), he seems to have done, again, what he usually does best, portray in a successful way a teenager balanced between the demands of his age group and an extra “something” that makes him special. I really need to add this one to my TBR, and quickly! 😉
Thanks for sharing!
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…20 QUESTIONS BOOK TAG
He is so good at coming of age stories. And I loved the shorter length, it’s like he trimmed away all the fat:-)
Excellent review! Sounds like one I could read since the horror is blended with crime.
Anne – Books of My Heart recently posted…Read-along & Giveaway: Mine to Possess by Nalini Singh
Yes, I would say it leans more towards crime.
Seems like you’re always a few books ahead of me — I hope to start this one in the next week or so! So glad you enjoyed it, can’t wait to read it!
Ha ha I always feel behind!
Awesome, glad to see you enjoyed this one. I loved King when younger. He’s such a master at creating younger characters and perhaps that’s part of what drew me in when younger. Now I’m slowly getting back into King and this sounds like a great one to try.
I also liked the shorter format. It makes it a punchier story. Hope you get to read it!
YES! I just read this last week and am saving my review for a buddy read post with Stormi. I absolutely loved it and was ready to give it 5 stars until that reveal at the end. I’m not sure why it was there or what purpose it served. Other than that, I also flew through the book and Jamie was a great character. I also enjoyed the relationship between him and his mother.
Yeah, it was weird, right? I think since he mentions “that thing” he felt he had to wrap up that storyline, but it was almost silly to me. Oh well, otherwise such a great book! Can’t wait to read your review:-)
Loved this book, but the ending had me scratching my head too. For the first time in years, I wanted a King book to be longer! It also didn’t really make sense how Jamie could be so forthcoming and detailed about so many aspects of his life, but on this one question he’s ‘always wondered about, he would shut down so abruptly after that huge reveal.
I would have been fine with a longer book too!
Glad you enjoyed this, it’s one I cannot wait to read as well and it sounds really good 😀
Pages and Tea recently posted…Book Review: The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower #1) by Stephen King
Hope you enjoy!
I haven’t read Stephen King in a long time. And I usually am not a fan of his crime novels like this. However, this one sounds like one I need to give a try. I’m so glad you reviewed it like you did so that I am definitely going to be interested in it more than I would have even though about it. Great review!
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It’s also sort of a ghost story, and combined with the crime story it was so good!
I’m very curious about this one and I love the cover. I’ll bear the strange ending in mind but I think I still must pick this up at some point.
Lynn 😀
I think you’d love it, Lynn.
I don’t usually read Stephen King because I’m a big chicken, but this one really appeals to me because of Jamie. He seems like a character I would enjoy reading about.