The Pandemonium Of The Sun

The Colorado Kid is Stephen King’s contribution to Hard Case Crime’s collection. I probably haven’t read any Stephen King since I was a teenager, There was a time when I enjoyed his books, especially the short stories, but somewhere around the release of Gerald’s Game, I just wasn’t into it anymore. Perhaps King’s writing changed. More likely my tastes veered off to things more substantial. Over the years though, King seems to have gained a a certain amount of respect from the critical establishment, and I have always remained a bit curious. So when I started reading these Hard Case Crime novels, I figured that The Colorado Kid would be the perfect place to dip my toes back into the water. I was wrong.
The Colorado Kid opens with a writer from The Boston Globe meeting with two small town Maine newspaperman and thier intern. He is looking for unslved mystery stories for a piece in the Globe. While they don’t share anything with the writer from the Globe, the two men do share the story with their intern later in the day. Unfortunately, the tale they tell of a body found on the island that couldn’t be identified, is ultimately very boring and tedious. Worse yet is King’s insistence at trying to capture the local witticisms and vernacular of Maine. It’s not just distracting, it’s annoying. Avoid at all costs.