Book Review: The Outsider by Stephen King

“An unspeakable crime. A confounding investigation.”

Published in 2018, The Outsider by Stephen King follows the arrest of one of Flint City’s most popular citizens, Terry Maitland, when the violated body of an eleven-year-old boy is found in a town park. Terry is the town’s Little League coach, an English teacher, a husband, and the father of two girls. The town don’t want to believe that he was involved, but eyewitnesses and fingerprints point unmistakably to him.

Detective Ralph Anderson orders a quick and very public arrest. Maitland has an alibi, but Anderson and the district attorney soon add DNA evidence to go with the fingerprints and witnesses. Their case seems ironclad. But as the investigation expands, horrifying answers begin to emerge. Terry Maitland seems like a nice guy, but is he wearing another face?

My 2020 Reading Wrap-Up

Over the past couple of years, I have documented every film that I have watched and reviewed them all using Letterboxd. As a way to motivate myself to read more, I thought I would do the same for what books I have been reading, using Goodreads as a way to set myself a reading challenge every year.

I initially set my target as 25 books this year, but a few things happened that meant I reached this goal quite early on. Firstly, I had a baby, so this meant that I was awake at silly hours with plenty of time to read. Then, there was lockdown. Because of lockdown, I decided to join Bookstagram and NetGalley and get more serious about reviewing books. So now, instead of reading two books at most a month, I’ve been reading up to ten.

I upped my goal to 60 around halfway through the year, and still managed to pass that by reaching 74 books. This year has really rekindled my love of books, and I can’t wait to start 2021 with this new passion.

Here’s how my 2020 challenge went:

Book Review: The Institute by Stephen King

“It was so simple, but it was a revelation: what you did for yourself was what gave you the power.”

Originally published in 2019, The Institute by Stephen King sees Luke Ellis wake up in a room that looks just like his own. But there are no windows, and outside his door are other doors, behind which are other children with the special talents of telekinesis and telepathy – Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and Avery. They’re in The Institute. In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. As each new victim disappears, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute.

TV Review: The Outsider (Sky Atlantic) – Season One

Based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King, The Outsider follows a group of investigators who are confounded over an unspeakable crime that’s been committed, when the gruesome murder of a boy in the Georgia woods leads them to a mysterious force surrounding the case.

6 Of The Best: Literary Adaptations

(Written for HeyUGuys)

If you’re a fan of literary adaptations then no doubt you’ll currently have your head stuck in a copy of Joyce Maynard’s emotional coming-of-age novel Labor Day, Nick Hornby’s heart-warming suicide drama A Long Way Down, or maybe even Veronica Roth’s debut dystopian Divergent. What we’re looking forward to most, however, is Richard Ayoade’s upcoming adaptation of Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s dark comedy novella, The Double.

First Bloody Pics of Chloe Moretz As ‘Carrie’

(Written for Lost In The Multiplex)

The first images from the upcoming remake of Carrie have been released by Entertainment Weekly this week, giving us a look at the iconic image of Carrie soaked in blood on prom night and of her controlling religious mother.

An adaptation of Stephen King’s 1974 novel that was originally adapted by Brian De Palma in 1976 starring Sissy Spacek, the remake is directed by Kimberly Peirce with a screenplay by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa.

Alex Russell and Ansel Elgort to Star in Carrie Remake

(Written for Lost In The Multiplex)

Chronicle star Alex Russell and stage actor Ansel Elgort are the latest to join the upcoming remake of the Carrie, Collider have reported this week.

Carrie, an adaptation of Stephen King’s 1974 novel that was original released in 1976 by Brian De Palma, is set to be remade by director Kimberly Peirce with screenplay by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and is to be released sometime next year.