Billy Summers by Stephen King

I'm stumped at the praise this book is getting; I think it's an entertaining crime novel that will be forgotten in a decade, even by hardcore King fans. It's full of King tropes that wore thin years ago: the main character (poses as) a writer; there's a bunch of sappy kids who recite rhymes and talk like sitcom children from the 50's; and anyone who votes differently than the author is a monster. My biggest pet peeve? That the novel within a novel, designed to show how Billy went from hero to contract killer, merely stops, with its conclusion abruptly left to be explained within a conversation. Bah. It's worth a library read at best. #stephenking