The more things change, the more they stay the same. Or do they?
There is much that is familiar about this story, yet the genius of Stephen King - and I do not hesitate to use the G word in describing him - is that he manages to avoid slipping into repetition or tiresome levels of deja vu.
Finders Keepers has echoes of one of his seminal works, Misery, in that it is a story of a devoted/deranged reader set on revenge of a rather extreme form.
It also brings back a bunch of characters from Mr Mercedes, King's automobile vendetta thriller of a couple of years back. So, yes, it's a sequel (or a remake, if you prefer) but it never feels like a retread.
The story unfolds on three levels, across three points in time, and follows the grisly murder of a celebrated if reclusive novelist. A subsequent theft leads to the chase for a treasure chest containing the literary equivalent of a gold mine.
King zones in on three main characters. There is the retired detective (we've seen him before), the teenager who has a heart of gold but has stumbled into a very tricky situation, and - brace yourselves for a chilling portrait of a lunatic - a formerly incarcerated goon who wants his goodies back and heaven help those who get in his way.
King keeps his readers on the edge as he deftly treads the line between flat-out thriller and creepy suspense novel.
Critics of the best-selling author will probably use this as more ammunition to fire at King, but Finders Keepers is a rollicking page-turner that will both get your heart racing and make you reconsider that dream of being a famous writer.
• Hayden Meikle is ODT sports editor.
