Mr. Mercedes

A Novel

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Will Patton

Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

2015 Audie Award Finalist for Fiction and Solo Narration—Male

In a mega-stakes, high-suspense race against time, three of the most unlikely and winning heroes Stephen King has ever created try to stop a lone killer from blowing up thousands.

In the frigid pre-dawn hours, in a distressed Midwestern city, hundreds of desperate unemployed folks are lined up for a spot at a job fair. Without warning, a lone driver plows through the crowd in a stolen Mercedes, running over the innocent, backing up, and charging again. Eight people are killed; fifteen are wounded. The killer escapes.

In another part of town, months later, a retired cop named Bill Hodges is still haunted by the unsolved crime. When he gets a crazed letter from someone who self-identifies as the "perk" and threatens an even more diabolical attack, Hodges wakes up from his depressed and vacant retirement, hell-bent on preventing another tragedy.

Brady Hartfield lives with his alcoholic mother in the house where he was born. He loved the feel of death under the wheels of the Mercedes, and he wants that rush again. Only Bill Hodges, with a couple of highly unlikely allies, can apprehend the killer before he strikes again. And they have no time to lose, because Brady's next mission, if it succeeds, will kill or maim thousands.

Mr. Mercedes is a war between good and evil, from the master of suspense whose insight into the mind of this obsessed, insane killer is chilling and unforgettable.

©2014 Stephen King (P)2014 Simon & Schuster

Will Patton should narate all of King's books!!!!!

Would you listen to Mr. Mercedes again? Why?

Yes, I loved the story line as well as all the characters.

Have you listened to any of Will Patton’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I loved Will performing Dr. Sleep but this was even better. I have to say though that Detective Hodges sounded a whole lot like Tony Soprano, without the thick Jersey accent. But I love Tony too, so it was all good.

Never look at the icecream man the same again

What made the experience of listening to Mr. Mercedes the most enjoyable?

Will Patton's narration of Stephen King's writing was excellent.

Have you listened to any of Will Patton’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Will Patton is an amazing narrator and I just love the tone of his voice. Silky and full of the emotion that each scene needs.

Who was the most memorable character of Mr. Mercedes and why?

I really liked Jerome- but more than that, I liked the 3 party caper part of the story once all three people were together and figuring things out. Like a Scooby Doo mystery.

Any additional comments?

I never really trusted the mobile ice cream man to start with, but after this book-- when I hear the tinkling tones around my neighborhood I REALLY am not interested.

If you like this kind of Crime Thriller - I really encourage you to seek out "The Cuckoo's Calling" by Robert Galbraith. While I enjoyed Mr Mercedes a lot, TCC had a lot of similar aspects (the male tough gumshoe) with excellent writing. And vice versa :) Enjoy! I sure did.

Great read.

Would you consider the audio edition of Mr. Mercedes to be better than the print version?

I think you get more of what the author intended in the inflection and nuisances of the word flow.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I was intrigued by the bi-plot of the book. On the one hand you saw Bill and his thought process and on the other you saw the killer (Brady) and his thought process. Very hard to stop listening.

Which character – as performed by Will Patton – was your favorite?

I think Jerome was very intriguing as a character. He was very calm and intelligent in the way that he handled the entire hunt for the killer (Brady).

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I think the death of Bill's girlfriend was the most poignant. The loss of a newly found love is always a moving moment. Coming in a close second was interaction between Bill and Holly.

Any additional comments?

Great book and great series. A good change of pace for Stephen King fans.

Wow! Just Wow!

As a big SK fan I had never listen to this book. When the new Holly book came out I figured let’s listen to all the books with her in it so I can get ready to listen to the new Holly book. This story was amazing. Kept me wanting to listen to more and more. Loved it!

Surprisingly good after some duds

Mr. Mercedes isn't the old scary monster style that made Stephen King famous. This story is scary because of the depravity of the human mind - it could happen.

A retired cop gets taunted by a man who killed several people waiting in line for a job fair. Through a series of exchanges, the hunt for the killer is resurrected.

I've never been satisfied with most endings in SK's books and this isn't one of my favorite endings, either, but overall, it was a good read, especially after the Sleep Doctor garbage that he put out last year.

Excellent!

I loved this book! This was my first Stephen King book and I must say the story line was very entertaining and had me wanting more. I finished this in two days. I couldn't get enough of it. I am going to read Finders Keepers now; can't wait to see what happens next! :)

Excellent trilogy

I loved these three books and did not want them to end. narration was great as well.

best book of 2014

king does it again. great story, gripping... keeps you wanting more. twisted and disturbing as ever. not afraid to cross some boundaries of acceptability of public consensus. I bet this will be a movie.. Mr. Mercedes played by Cochran from Survivor? that's who I pictured the whole time!

Excellent Summer Listen.

Can't say that you will get much done once you start this novel but worth the money. I have only read one Steven King novel, The Cell, and this is up there with that. The Cell still haunts me but this was a good l I strn. Kudos to Will Patton! Starting Finders Keepers now.

Pleasantly surprised

Only Will Patton got me to take a chance on this book. I like Stephen King movies but feared the horror in the books. Glad I took a chance. I was REALLY surprised how much I liked this book!