Mr. Mercedes: A Novel

Stephen King

Jun 2014 · The Bill Hodges Trilogy Book 1 · Simon and Schuster · Narrated by Will Patton

About this audiobook

Watch the complete MR. MERCEDES series on Peacock
WINNER of the EDGAR AWARD for BEST NOVEL and #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!

In a high-suspense race against time, three of the most unlikely heroes Stephen King has ever created try to stop a lone killer from murdering thousands. “Mr. Mercedes is a rich, resonant, exceptionally readable accomplishment by a man who can write in whatever genre he chooses” (The Washington Post).

The stolen Mercedes emerges from the pre-dawn fog and plows through a crowd of men and women on line for a job fair in a distressed American city. Then the lone driver backs up, charges again, and speeds off, leaving eight dead and more wounded. The case goes unsolved and ex-cop Bill Hodges is out of hope when he gets a letter from a man who loved the feel of death under the Mercedes’s wheels…

Brady Hartsfield wants that rush again, but this time he’s going big, with an attack that would take down thousands—unless Hodges and two new unusual allies he picks up along the way can throw a wrench in Hartsfield’s diabolical plans. Stephen King takes off on a “nerve-shredding, pulse-pounding race against time” (Fort Worth Star-Telegram) with this acclaimed #1 bestselling thriller.

Ratings and reviews

I couldn't wait for this book to be over. The narrator changes his voice greatly depending on the character. He reads women in a very strange way. Listeners aren't 3, you don't need to do that. Book itself is pretty meh. He's a bad cop and the romance is written pretty poorly. This is my fifth King book in a row and easily the worst (the others are all 4 or 5 stars). Book made me wish there was a 1.5 speed.

This narrator is absolutely my favorite. He reads in character. He is able to keep up with the characters he's already read and continue to go back to them with little effort because he is just that good. I can listen to books I would never have read as long as he reads them. about the book itself as usual SK knocks it out of the park . BTW Holly is the best character.

After a few years away, I'm coming back to the Steven King fold. This was my first book back, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. In true Steven King fashion, he makes you jump, cringe, laugh, and cry. He also has a knack for making your skin crawl like to other author can. Jumped right from this to Finders Keepers. Can't wait to start.

About the author

Stephen King is the author of more than sixty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes the short story collection You Like It Darker, Holly (a New York Times Notable Book of 2023), Fairy Tale, Billy Summers, If It Bleeds, The Institute, Elevation, The Outsider, Sleeping Beauties (cowritten with his son Owen King), and the Bill Hodges trilogy: End of Watch, Finders Keepers, and Mr. Mercedes (an Edgar Award winner for Best Novel and a television series streaming on Peacock). His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller. His epic works The Dark Tower, It, Pet Sematary, Doctor Sleep, and Firestarter are the basis for major motion pictures, with It now the highest-grossing horror film of all time. He is the recipient of the 2020 Audio Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2018 PEN America Literary Service Award, the 2014 National Medal of Arts, and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King.

Will Patton’s film credits include Halloween, Boarding School, Megan Leavey, American Honey, Meek’s Cutoff, A Mighty Heart, Remember the Titans, The Mothman Prophecies, Armageddon, and No Way Out. He starred in Swamp Thing on the DC Universe streaming platform and was seen in five seasons of the TNT series Falling Skies. He has won Obie Awards for his performances in Fool for Love and What Did He See? He is also known for his audiobook recordings of the work of Stephen King, James Lee Burke, Denis Johnson, and William Faulkner.