The Colorado Kid

A Hard Case Crime Novel

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Jeffrey DeMunn

Length: 3 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

On an island off the coast of Maine, a man is found dead. There's no identification on the body. Only the dogged work of a pair of local newspapermen and a graduate student in forensics turns up any clues.

But that's just the beginning of the mystery. Because the more they learn about the man and the baffling circumstances of his death, the less they understand. Was it an impossible crime? Or something stranger still...?

No one but Stephen King could tell this story about the darkness at the heart of the unknown and our compulsion to investigate the unexplained. With echoes of Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon and the work of Graham Greene, one of the world's great storytellers presents a surprising tale that explores the nature of mystery itself.

©2005 Stephen King (P)2005 Simon & Schuster Inc. All rights reserved. AUDIOWORKS is an imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio Division.

Stephen King?

Unlike some of his work but still a good listen. The narrator was great, I loved his accents.

Short and Great

When I saw this book was 3:49 in length I held back, I'm so use to Kings "usual" novel length books that this seemed a bit on the short side to me, then I remembered his very early short story works and how much I enjoyed them and thought "what the hell, lets give it a try" I'm very glad I did, great read, very enjoyable, but dont be looking for his "scare the hell out of you stuff" this is his Maine kicked back characters spinning a yarn, and King does it flawlessly. Its like Garrison Keillor on a Maine shore instead of a Minnesota lake.
And you ask why 4 stars instead of 5 then? Well I'm selfish, and don't give out many 5's, and no I didn't want it to end after 3:49...but truthfully its perfect just as it is and 5 stars are deserved....but I'm not changing my vote, maybe he'll write MORE next time!
(first time I have heard this narrator but he did a very good Maine accent, and has a solid and enjoyable voice)

A wonderful little story!

Short for a Stephen King novel, but this is a wonderful story about "the story"... a better reader could not have been selected for this material... you won't put it down!

The book gives Haven a backstory.

If you could sum up The Colorado Kid in three words, what would they be?

A good

Who was your favorite character and why?

The intern.

What about Jeffrey DeMunn’s performance did you like?

Excellent.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

The Colorado Kid is the basis for Haven on the SyFy network. As a fan of Haven I wanted to see Stephen King's take on the story. I was pleased with the story and performance.

Loved it!

The Colorado kid
By Stephen King
Set in Maine (duh) 😜
2 thumbs ( for a short story)

I picked this book because I really love the show "Haven" on sci-fi channel and I kept hearing it was based on the short story. To use the phrase "loosely based" would be under playing it LOL but I still liked it. It was a cool little story and if you like Stephen King you should like it. There are some characters that you will recognize from the TV show "Haven" so that's kind of fun too :-) it was quick .. it was part of a short story collection

Short and Sweet

King crosses from his typical genre to make a nice story and a potential series-maker, if he's so inclined.

Interesting, but nothing like the TV show

It's a good story, with an unfulfilling ending. Don't read this if you're a fan of the TV show Haven. There's so little similarity.

Character Driven Tale

This could easily be considered a Stephen King short story but there is so much packed in it is an ideal piece of literature. The book driven by the dialogue between the three main characters. You feel like you are sitting at the table with them considering the options and whiteboarding ideas together to find an identity of one main. In fact, you feel the drive by the characters to find out who he is rather than why he died. It is such a different take on a murder mystery it makes it captivating.

Great narration, enjoyable story

Rather unusual for SK, though with his forays into detective Novell's with the Bill Hodges series, perhaps not so much. I would not be disappointed were he to expand into the mystery/detective genres.
Jeffrey DeMunn is becoming a revelation to me. Thoroughly enjoyed his characterizations. Very easy to listen to.
great listen to while away an afternoon in bed

To fellow "Haven" fans.

This is not Haven, but - in my opinion - well worth the listen. Other than a passing glance at Vince and Dave's character, "The Colorado Kid" is unrelated to "Haven" in the details. It is, however, a good look at the idea behind the show. Life is not a good "story."