Billy Summers by Stephen King Book Review & Reaction | Not Quite What I Was Hoping For
Вставка
- Опубліковано 9 лип 2024
- Mike gives his instant thoughts and reaction to the newest Stephen King novel Billy Summers.
Purchase Billy Summers here: amzn.to/3lHIAd9 (physical) amzn.to/3xy2NUK (audio) amzn.to/3ApvuFc (digital)
Want to send Mike something? You can do so to the below address:
Mike K.
15201 Mason Rd
Suite 169
Cypress, TX 77433
Support Mike on Patreon: / mikesbookreviews
Join Mike's server on Discord / discord
Visit Mike's Amazon Wishlist: amzn.to/2zpHooW
Follow Mike on Goodreads: / mikesbookreviews
Follow Mike on Twitter: / zepp1978
Like Mike's Book Reviews on Facebook / mikesbookreviews
Follow Mike on Instagram / zepp1978
Follow Mike on TikTok / zepp1978
------------------------------------------------------
Theme music provided by Infraction
/ @infraction
Music used: Epic (No Copyright Music)
infractionroyaltyfreemusic.ba...
Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0(CC BY 3.0)
creativecommons.org/licenses/...
------------------------------------------------------
#MikesBookReviews #StephenKing #BillySummers - Розваги
The way King writes about friendships make me totally believe the guy would be one of the greatest people to be friends with
Aww I love to hear that; I love how he writes friendships like the kids in IT or the body. I think I'd like that part of the story
Your take on King is so refreshing. So many people (who usually haven't read a single book by Mr King) assume he's a disturbed weirdo pervert, but I completely agree with you.
This book is so good it should not be Overlooked! 😉
Oh man! Your the only person who seems to realise the overlook hotel references lol. Also do you think Alice maxwell will have her own novel from king eventually where it’s based solely separate on the hotel? I really hope he decides to do that as one of his last novels
@@jordanmckee4970 Or did she write the original book.
I seen what you did there.
I just finished Billy Summers (via Audible) this morning and freaking loved it. I didn’t mind the politics as much because it has become such a part of American culture and identity for many. My one critique was when he mention the ‘virus that shall not be named’ multiple times, I expected it to come into play somehow in the end. But the book didn’t address it at all and I thought to myself “what was the point of including those references?” Seemed out of place. Still this is one of my favorite King books that I have consumed so far.
King has mentioned that he is considering writing a book about the virus. Maybe the references to it in Billy Summers is a teaser.
@@marianapgar4409 I had not considered that, Marian. That’s an excellent point. Thanks for commenting!
@@thatshaneguy9 You are most welcome. I can't of course say for sure that is what King is doing, but it's certainly worth thinking about.
Sure hope so !
I thought this was one of his better books since 11/22/63. I enjoyed it and it really touched me emotionally. Cried for a n hour after I finished it.
I'm reading this at the moment, and finding it really refreshing to read a story about an assassin which doesn't start the moment before a kill. We always hear about snipers taking days or weeks to find a good position to snipe from, then waiting even longer for the target to appear, but it's rare for a fictional account to cover the preparation, waiting and exit strategy.
I'm still reading it now and can't believe how well it flows in comparison to other Novels from Stephen King. Wouldn't be surprised if Billy Summers was written so that it could be converted to into a screenplay - but it definitely tells a really good, modern fiction story.
Loved this book. Found it had strong “Leon the Professional” vibes. His writing style seemed very tight and it flowed really well. Great story.
I loved the middle section - just chilling and watching Blacklist 😛
Legit. I’m on page 399, & I never found the ending boring. The bill 1st 60 pages were hard to get through, but once he laid the stories foundation, I loved it.
8/21/21
“If fiction and politics ever really do become interchangeable, I’m going to kill myself, because I won’t know what else to do. You see, politics always change. Stories never do.” -Stephen King, It.
idkm It came out almost 25 years ago, so King might've gotten a bit harsher and crankier (?) on politics. I've also found the newest novels to be overboard with politics (I'm Guatemalan so putting up with the orange guy besides our own politics gets annoying pretty fast), but would you really say the word is "interchangeable" for what King's doing? What do you think?
Well you just had a fictional election 🗳
Mike, you hit the nail on the head. He has gotten too political. Unnecessary. Good luck with the Gene Wolfe / "Urth of the new sun", btw. Might try it again depending on what you say about book 2, 3, 4. Should you get that far. I didn't. Meh...
@@diegotaracena5960 1986 was 35 years ago, buddy.
@@donovanchilton5817 whoa... talk about a lapsus haha
I'm a little over halfway through myself, was waiting for this video to drop :)
I really feel sad about the ending. 😢 When the moment about therese raquin book. I will definitely read it right away.
I think I’ll be picking this up next month; can’t wait to do my own comparison to Later! You know my biggest King pet peeve is the “he can’t write an ending” gripe - absolute nonsense.
I always appreciate your candour and hearing your review just made me more excited for this!
The political stuff didn't bother me and given the characters and setting, didn't feel out of place. As you said, everyone's mileage will vary on that though.
I agree the first and last third are the strongest parts of the book. I liked the character stuff in the middle well enough but King didn't do anything new with the war sections that hasn't been done often and better elsewhere. I would have rather that section of the book deal with Billy's other hits.
Overall, a great read.
I completely agree with what you said about the political references in the book...it was one of the first things I noticed during my read. I could understand kerping a few of them since it was a controversial election and definitely was a popular topic that was on people's mind, but he for sure went over board.
He jumped the shark with this book, politically. I like to escape politics when I’m reading...art allows one to escape but no escape here.
@@nikkivenable3700 I so agree. It ticks me off when authors feel a need to throw their politicial views in the readers' faces when their books aren't even about politics in the first place. King has gotten worse when it comes to this after Trump. He clearly hates Trump with a passion. I saw some of King's tweets about Trump back when he was president and was shocked that he, a well-known writer with so many fans, could make such an @ss of himself. The posts where beyond rude and I lost a lot of respect for him after that. He's still one of my favourite authors though, but I wish he could keep his personal political views out of the stories.
Loved the book. The ending broke me.
same, i cried so hard
Same! I almost cried. I became teary eyed! I wish the ending was different. I miss Billy and wish he couldve spent the rest of his life with Alice 😢
Thank you for your video, I was considering reading this
You do great reviews Mike. Really appreciate this honest and complete review of a great writer. I would love to see your list of SK's books ranked worst to first! Keep up the good work.
This needs to happen. Now.
I disagree, he took a very light touch with the politics. You ignored the wish fulfillment which I couldn’t stop laughing when I realized what he was doing. King is a pleasure. He always surprises me. I enjoyed your review.
First Stephen King book I’ve read and it was an absolute joy. Each to their but I thought it was incredible. Can’t wait to read more Stephen King!!
I'm also a Mike. I bought this book for my Mom and she read it in two days (not bad for an 78yr old) and it took me considerably longer to get through the audiobook version but it's a great listen. Highly recommended.
I’ve been waiting for this review to decide whether I should buy or pass on this book. Thank you for the video Mike!!
great book! ending had me tearing up, one of my favorite stephen king books so far
I really really loved the ending on this one! Thankee Sai.
Why do they call him Sai King? I can’t figure it out. 🧐
@@nikkivenable3700 because sai is a prefix used in place of mr/ms in the dark tower series
Hey Mike where did you get your bookshelves? Looking to upgrade.
Your passionate book reviews blow me away.
Can't wait to start it, I really hope he goes into 'later' more at some point, that story needs its moment to shine more so than it already has.
Thanks for review, this seems to be a popular book right now and I got it
Good review. I'm only through about 200 pages, but so far I agree. The character stuff, particularly the backstory stuff, is off the charts good. Also the crime stuff is to my personal taste. I loved the Bill Hodges trilogy and it feels a lot like that so far. I thought the same thing about the kids playing Monopoly, but I kind of had it in my head that maybe the family didn't quite have enough income to have a lot of electronics.
Excellent review! Spot on, as always!
I'm definitely going to read this book once copies are available at the library 😊👍
This was the first Stephen King book I had ever read. I picked it up at random at a book store after finding it on a shelf, and after I realised it was one of his novels I figured It was time I finally read one of his works. Thing is even after reading the backside I expected a full-fledged horror novel, and instead this was more like an action thriller, but I was so impressed by his storytelling that since then Ive been slowly covering his discography. Im really glad I picked it up
Good review mike , is there actually a multiverse reading order ? Or chronology?
Pre ordered this ! Can't wait
I just finished this audiobook. It's one of the first books I've finished in the last 5 or so years and I loved it. The Audible narrator is great, too FIY. His character development is incredible, especially compared to the book I finished just before this one. He's just so goood
“Oh Stephen moments” is a Madison Goodyear registered trademark, sir.
I think you forgot to fill that form out in triplicate with the TM offices.
Wow, the book came out on the 3rd, and your review came out on the 8th. I thought I read fast, but you schooled me. Great job and great reviews 👍
Just finished. It was great, political references and all.
Yeah, those aviator glasses really did it for me
Loved this book! Thought it was the best thing he's done in YEARS! The end really hit me hard, but was handled well. (Sob!)
I can’t wait to start reading Billy Summers 😊. I’m currently reading Duma Key. Great video, Mike.
I really liked Duma Key
That intro was perfect!
I really enjoyed Billy Summers(and Later!) and I just wanna say how much I get a kick out of whenever Stephen gives little Easter eggs that shout out to other novels of his or little tributes to other authors and author friends(like naming a lawyer in Later after John Grisham).
I especially loved the Easter egg that Alice sees up by the cabin. Reading that stuff is so damn awesome. I also couldn’t help but feel like certain real world events were also inspirations in this book. Like a very public murder/killing of someone very bad who probably knows some shit(*cough*EPSTEIN*cough*).
Great video!!!! Love your stuff!!!!!!
Yessss I was totally getting Epstein vibes from this as well! I felt like it was John Wick meets Taken(kind of) meets Epstein.
I LOVED this book!
I didn't serve but I just finished the book and was teary eyed at the end. Thanks for the review.
Need to get to this one!
not sure how you enjoyed "Later" so much but I'm happy for you :)
The new shit you have put out is even better . Love it. King is also my favorite author and honestly I watch your reviews of his books im about to read next. You are amazing and totes prepared me for Firestarter and cujo and now Billy.
# constantreader
Just ordered this on Amazon and it’s coming tomorror, I can’t wait tbh
If you want horror go with Later;if you want great character work, read this!!! I cried!!!😭
I'm ready for his next book that's marinating in his desk.
GREAT REVIEW!
Fantastic u just forced me to pick Stephen king again, u are a great singer too
Very cool, even if his politics seem a bit too prevalent in this one from what you're saying. I agree that he seems to be trending to that Michael Connely/John Grisham crime thriller feel, but hey, if he's writing at 74, that's awesome.
What took you so long? : ) I got my copy yesterday and I am planning on reading it soon.
Very fair review.
I’m a fan of the former President and it didn’t bother me much. I know the author’s stance so I took the comments with a grain of salt, but he did mention the booming economy so that was an aha moment for me. I loved this book. I have no military experience but I thought the Iraq flashbacks were incredible. Also, I thoroughly applaud the ending.
On the subject of King's political beliefs, that's one benefit I have from being completely off the normal political compass: whoever or whatever he's making fun of, I dislike them already just as much as I dislike whoever or whatever he's rooting for.
I’m almost finished with this book and I feel very similarly especially with the political aspects. Distracted is the perfect word. He made the mistake of assuming that average people think about politics a lot more than they actually did. Everyone has their opinions, but I seriously doubt the average person thought of “he who will not be named” as much as these characters did.
The only gun-related inaccuracy that Sai King has perpetrated previously that has bothered me (and this goes throughout the Dark Tower series lol) is confusing the trigger and the hammer. You can't "fan the trigger", you fan the *hammer*. It's fine though.
What’s fanning? For a guy who’s written a book called The Gunslinger and the series based on it as well as done some research on mechanics for “Dolan’s Cadillac” you would think they’d have a handle on mechanics. In any case, they aim with their hearts.
@@genghisgalahad8465 "One of the fastest and slickest looking techniques to fire a revolver has been made extremely popular due to its common depiction in westerns. That technique is called “fanning.” This action is done by holding down the trigger on a single action revolver, and then rapidly pulling back the hammer. With the trigger under pressure, the hammer will quickly drop on to the next round, and when repeated, can discharge the firearm in rapid succession."
@@alexisdumas84 oh yeah! The hand blade action!! Maybe he meant “ fanning the trigger... action.” Yeah that’s what he meant.. (Uhum 😏...sure) watch it change in the expanded edition. Good thing he didn’t talk about pulling out a bullet casing from his side. That was done once on a Wolverine comic art showing him riddled with bullets IN their casing. Actual published comic book. Oops.
@@genghisgalahad8465 Lol that's hilarious. TBH, I'm not super familiar with guns so that's a mistake I might make in the first draft of something.
How bout that .44 Ruger automatic Jake carries in the dark tower?
Great review. Agree with your opinion on not having too much politics. I also felt like he was showing his age with some of his pulp culture references when I read the Institute. So I hear what you’re saying about his age starting to show.
I definitely need to get back to my King tbr lol. I pre-ordered this so I got it in release day. I just have multiple lists I'm going through lol. I do wonder if you or any one else is looking forward to his next book.... supposed to be Gwendy's Final Task.(3rd in that series). Which I find interesting since he wrote Gwendy's button box with Richard Chizmar. Then Chizmar wrote Gwendy's magic Feather and they are coming back together for the final task scheduled for next year.
The middle act was my favorite part!!!
I quite enjoyed it, Mike and I agree the middle did drag at times, I found as a result it took me a little longer than usual to get through a Stephen King book but overall quite good. Tell me, did you enjoy the Easter egg?? I saw it coming when a certain location was mentioned lol 😁
I sure do! I liked how Steve brought the hedge animals from the Overlook hotel. So cool easter eggs in books!
@@alfredoalvarez5735 I knew King sometimes puts stories in the same universe but I have to admit I never saw this being in the same universe of The Shining.
Hi Mike. I finished Dune last night. What. A. Read. It, as of right now, is the best sci/fi novel I’ve ever read. Phenomenal journey. I plan to continue the dune series, once I finish WoT. Also, I got you’re “the sleeper has awakened” joke. And yes, I have awakened!
Thanks so much for your honesty review. I love King 👑 so much and I can also accept the fact that his books are not perfect.
Very underrated book in the Stephen King catalog
Interesting review.
"Ohh Stephen...." moments hahah, ill look out for those from now on, thanks mike, Well done.
Im still very newer to King but this sounds awesome and kinda up my ally. It'll be a long time before i pick it up (probably) so maybe the election stuff will be a distant enough memory to not care as much.
Can't wait to read this book but I need to finish the dark tower and read firestarter and needful things first 🙂😊
New subscriber, love the channel. Constant reader and huge Stephen King fan.
Welcome!
Coming from someone who is NOT a constant reader. I went to B&N to pick up a Fantasy Football draft guide and I kept seeing "Billy Summers" being marketed all over the place. I have to say the cover art definitely intrigued me I simply thought it looked cool. A couple days pass, im still thinking about the dang thing so I bought it. Haven't read a full length novel in probably a decade. Ive always liked the SK adaptations (at least some of them) but at 30 years old I HAD NEVER READ A SK book! I just finished Billy Summers and absolutely enjoyed it front to back. Maybe my barometer is no where near that of Mikes and others but this book made me dive into the catalog! I bought "later" before I even finished Billy Summers and ive just purchased "Salems Lot" as well. I loved this book and im just stoked theres so much material ahead of me.
Mike, what are your thoughts or any others who have read a vast majority of his material on reading Salem's lot next? I keep hearing theres so many characters and kind of hard to follow but for some reason this one intrigues me.
Salem’s Lot is great. I think anyone can enjoy it.
It sounds really interesting, thanks for the review.
When it comes to politics, I suspect a lot of his American readers are just fed up with politics at this point, after a few years where it was omnipresent and invasive, especially for people who hate politics. Whatever King was trying to do (and not having read the book, I have no clue for now) the readers may not yet have the necessary distance for it. I think as a Canadian, it might feel a bit differently, at least my first thought was that it’s hard to imagine a contemporary story set in small town USA that would avoid entirely the political polarization and partisan political references. For good or ill, it’s really part of the fabric of the American zeitgeist this decade. Even here in Canada, American politics were present like never before and the biggest change since January is that we’re back to having many days without any political news from the US. So I guess I can understand why King might have wanted to reflect some of that reality.
But maybe it’s just play annoying too or too heavy handed maybe, and I’ll feel much like you do about it, I guess I’ll find out for myself when picking the book!
Once again, thanks for your those early thoughts.
@Maya Nightwolf It makes me wonder about the reception of the book he’s trying to develop now and wants to set during 2020 in the middle of the pandemic (this after changing the timeframe of Billy Summers, to have it take place a year earlier than originally written). It get a feeling that one is bound to be extremely divisive with his readership.
@Maya Nightwolf I don’t mind in literature if it’s pertinent and done right, but yeah, I’m quite fed up with social media chatter about politics, and like a lot that Mike just sweeps the whole thing under the rug. That’s totally fine with me. I guess we’re from a generation that still grew up being taught that there’s a time and place and a context to bring up topics like religion and partisan politics etc. and that otherwise those subjects don’t belong in casual conversation, especially not around people who don’t know each other very well.
You have worded my thoughts so perfectly, I’m in New Zealand and during the time period of this book is set a lot of our news was filled with US political news, now not so much
But I too would imagine a small US town would be exactly like this
I agree with your take on the over "seasoning" of the politics. His son is worse. It's one thing to talk about the political situation. But the padding of scenes to support your views. It's like being on Facebook. I struggled through Insomnia. Felt like a root canal.
And you can sing this just isn’t fair.
My first Stephen King book! LOVED IT! :)
Excellent!
I'm hoping he does another horror I loved the outsider kinda creeped me out a lil I'm glad he still writes as good for his age.
I think the kids wanted to play monopoly because they weren't the best off financially. He mentioned that they were begging their mom for smart phones and the game console they did have looked like they picked it up at a garage sale and took cassettes.
The synopsis sounds 100% to the word like the TV show, Barry.
I've seen quite a few comparisons to the two actually!
Mike got pipes!!!!
should i get this one or wait for the translation
Did you ever review The Outsider?
Hi,to all King's fans.Please,tell me if it's any good.i m a fan of what he wrote in the 80s and 90s.I m scared to be disapointed.Should i buy the book?
Did King ever wrote perfect book?...hmm I would say Hearts in Atlantis is pretty perfect imo ;-)
That's funny how you mentioned his Twitter feed. I had to stop following him on twitter because of his rants.
Ha ha, he is a tad bit high strung on there.
He's very outspoken
This is a book that will shake up my top 10 for me. I am enjoying it very much. Leon the professional was definitely on my mind while reading this. The political stuff was a little much in this but for me it was small potatoes compared to the rest of the text which I feel is really well done.
Finished this book today and considering it was a Secret Santa present last year I can’t complain too much about it. It has the same problems I have with most of the other king books I’ve listened to/read but it was ok. Not as Bad as IT but not as good as Misery. I might put this just above Christine for what I’ve read so far.
"If you like movies like Leon..."
Say no more, I'm sold.
Thanks for the review. Btw, hail Mary when? XD
Just finished. It was as a big hit for me (pun intended)
I need to wonder what the political situation is part of the book. I'm going to look at it again. I loved it!
I am reading this book and it’s pretty good , way better than the other book I’m reading
Finally finished this one. I really enjoyed it. I could have done without the 3 lines added to the end of chapters about the pandemic.
Huh?
Loved the book, and I lean conservative. I was brought out each time he bashed Trump, but not enough to stop reading! My only concern is that I now have-for the first time-a slight reluctance to buy upcoming novels from him, e.g., Holly.
I’m British and live in the UK and most likely because of that I didn’t really pick up on the political things. Of course I noticed the name and references to the slogans and stereotypes but I guess as I’m not from the US it doesn’t hit the same. Didn’t take anything away from the story for me.
I just finished this, and I really enjoyed it, gave him a 4 on Goodreads. I have been reading him since the mid to late 70’s and was a member of the SK book club (I even had the skeleton key chain) so I am definitely a fan. I completely agree with you about the political ranting, it’s getting tiresome reading all the DT bashing, that’s what dropped it a ⭐️ for me . Otherwise I loved it!
I was thrown off why the last 1/4th of the book switched to 1st person but then it makes sense later.
I really enjoyed Billy Summers. Very refreshing.
I was literally reading the book and complaining to my friends about the mention of politics. And I love politics! And I am likely to agree with him more often than I'm going to disagree (even though Europe and the US are massively different when it comes to these things). But...I feel like in the last 3 or 4 books, it's become a bit too much. A reference or two is ok, whatever. One every couple of pages is exhausting.
I'm still on 10%, though. And some comments you made about it make me hopeful I'm going to end up liking the book.
He’s always been political and has always written something political in his books but since Orange man became president it felt like too much. I do not share King’s politics and because he’s my fav author and has been for 30 years, I have to try really hard to let it go. I can’t read his Twitter because it would ruin how I see him. He can be nasty. So, I just steer clear.
The first part of this book had several mentions about Trump...more than his last 3 books combined. We all get that he can’t stand the man...I can’t blame him, necessarily. One mention is fine but he jumped the shark for me on this book. That said I’m still enjoying it. I’m almost finished.
Though my politics also align with King's (at least in broad strokes), I also found it to be a bit excessive in this book. That being said, it *largely* stops after about 25%. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did! It's very, very good.
Defintley not every couple pages. More of a statement on you.
If you can honestly look at what's been going on the past 4 years and expect someone not to be "nasty", you're not being realistic.
Something tells me you overlook others "nastiness" just fine.....
"This is not a house. This is the architectural equivalent of red Golf pants." -Billy Summers
As an Italian reader (European reader), I really HATE how American writers or Americans in general always put their opinions on people just by their political views. Just chill! Politics SUCKS in every country, whatever you are endorsing, left or right! People should keep their political views to themselves, otherwise, someone is asking for it and you wish to have an open conversation. All these actors/writers publicly endorsing candidates with millions of dollars WASTED in political campaigns to make a big show on television that looks more like a circus. I'm sorry for being so honest with you fellow Americans but nobody cares, King!, about your political views, as simple as that!
I am American, and I completely agree with you.
I thought it was interesting that you didn't like the politics in the book, as a republican with obvious differing opinions than SK it really didn't bother me. I have read other books that did politics wrong and wanted to DNF so bad because the author was soooo emotionally driven in the book about their beliefs. SK mention of Trump here and there honestly didn't bother me at all. This was my first SK book and I gave it 5 stars and cant wait to read more of his work.
I think King has earned the right to write whatever the fuck he wants at this point. / His readers should also know by now that the synopses rarely dictates the roads his stories and characters will travel. / I love the small town shit, the I laugh and think of Needful Things. / Agreed he’s not keeping up with what kids are saying/doing today, or even in the last 20 years.
"He's never really wrote stuff like this before", so you're telling me Stephen King is still renewing himself at age 73?
I was surprised enough when he started writing detective stories.
The Mr. Mercedes trilogy is a crime, thriller as well. And good.