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You’re not alone if you feel like you’re living in a horror film, but why not lose yourself in a made-up horrific tale?
The renowned horror author Stephen King is back with another spine-tingling novel, Never Flinch, which will be available in bookstores on May 27, 2025.
The opening passage from the book, which is recounted from the viewpoint of the enigmatic Trig—a guy who is out to get revenge—can only be shared by Entertainment Weekly.
There are two intertwined stories in Never Flinch: one about a vigilante pursuing a feminist celebrity speaker, and another about a murderer on a demonic quest for vengeance.
In addition to a number of well-known figures, such as King’s cherished Holly Gibney and gospel singer Sista Bessie, the book also introduces some intriguing new characters, such as a murderous monster.
“When the Buckeye City Police Department receives a disturbing letter from a person threatening to ‘kill thirteen innocents and one guilty’ in ‘an act of atonement for.
The needless death of an innocent man,’ Detective Izzy Jaynes has no idea what to think,” according to the synopsis of the book.
“Will an insane act of vengeance result in the killing of fourteen citizens? Izzy seeks assistance from her friend Holly Gibney after realizing throughout the course of the inquiry that the letter writer is quite serious.
“Meanwhile, controversial and outspoken women’s rights activist Kate McKay is embarking on a multi-state lecture tour, drawing packed venues of both fans and detractors,” it keeps going.
“Kate is being targeted and her events are being disrupted by someone who strongly disagrees with her message of female empowerment.
No one is harmed at first, but the stalker is becoming more brazen, so Holly is recruited to protect Kate.
This is a difficult job with a bossy boss and a resolute opponent who is motivated by anger and his sense of right.
The two stories eventually come together to create a thrilling, harrowing finale. For your first taste of Never Flinch, read the extract below.
It’s March, and the weather is awful. Every weekday from 4 to 5 PM, the Straight Circle gathers in the basement of the Buell Street Methodist Church.
Although it’s officially a Narcotics Anonymous meeting, many drinkers often show up; Straight Circle is typically full.
Although Buckeye City, frequently referred to as the Second Mistake on the Lake, with Cleveland being the first, experiences true spring late, it has been spring on the calendar for about a week.
There is a little drizzle in the air when the conference ends. It will get thicker and develop into sleet before dark.
Freebasing nicotine is one of the two addictions remaining to them, and after an hour in the basement, they need that hit, so two or three dozen people congregate at the butt can by the door and light up.
Most of the others go to the coffee shop a block down, The Flame, on the right. The other addiction they may still indulge in is coffee.
Reverend Mike, a recovered opioid addict who frequently attends this as well as many other meetings, stops one guy.
“I love God, but otherwise I’m just another fiend,” he says when introducing himself at meetings, which he attends two or three times a day, even on the weekends.
Even while some old timers find him a little annoying, this invariably receives nods and whispers of encouragement.
Because he frequently quotes lengthy paragraphs from the AA handbook verbatim, they refer to him as Big Book Mike.
The Rev now shakes the man’s soul. “Trig, I don’t usually see you around here. You have to reside in an upstate area.
Trig doesn’t, but he doesn’t express it. He had his reasons for attending out-of-town meetings where he is unlikely to be recognized, but today was an emergency.
He had to attend a meeting or have a drink, and once he had the first drink, all options would be lost. He has firsthand knowledge of this.
Mike touches the shoulder of the other man. “Trig, you sounded upset in your share.” Trig is a nickname from childhood. He presents himself in this manner at the beginning of meetings.
He seldom ever says anything but that first identification, even in out-of-town AA and NA meetings. He often says, “I just want to listen today,” at tag-team sessions, but this afternoon he raised his hand.
“My name is Trig, and I drink too much.” “Hello, Trig,” the group answered. Even though they were in the basement rather than the church, the call-and-response for the revival gathering continued.
Indeed, the Church of the Crashed and Burned is Straight Circle. “I just wanted to let you know that today is really shaking me up.
I had to disclose that much, and I don’t want to say anything more. That’s all I have. Thanks, Trig, Hang in there, and keep coming back were whispered.
Trig now confides in the Rev that he is unhappy over learning that he lost a loved one. Trig only responds that the person he is grieving for passed away in prison when the Rev begs for additional information.
The Rev replies, “I will offer prayers for him.” “I’m grateful, Mike.” Trig leaves, but not in the direction of The Flame. He commutes three blocks and ascends the stairs to the public library.
He must take some time to reflect about the man who passed away on Saturday. who was killed on Saturday. was shanked in a jail shower on Saturday.
To have something to clutch, he locates an empty chair in the Periodicals Room and retrieves a copy of the local newspaper.
He opens it to a story on page four about the Finders Keepers Agency’s Jerome Robinson finding a missing puppy.
An attractive and cheerful young Black man is shown in a photo with his arm wrapped around a large dog, maybe a Labrador Retriever. One word sums up the headline: FOUND!
Through it, Trig looks thoughtfully. Three years ago, his true name appeared in this same newspaper, but no one has connected that man to the one who goes to recovery sessions outside of town.
Even if there had been a photo of him (which there wasn’t), why would they? That man wore contacts and his beard was starting to turn gray.
This version appears younger, wears spectacles, and is clean-shaven (giving up alcohol will make that happen).
The concept of being someone fresh appeals to him. It burdens him as well. He lives with that contradiction. In addition to that, he is thinking about his father more and more these days.
He decides to let it go. Ignore it. That day is March 24. The duration of forgetting is only thirteen days.
Trig is seated in the same Periodicals Room chair on April 6th, gazing at the Sunday paper’s main article. The headline yells, not just talks.
It’s possible that the murdered prison inmate was innocent, BUCKEYE BRANDON! Trig has listened to Buckeye Brandon’s podcast three times and read the feature.
The report was leaked by the self-described “outlaw of the airwaves,” and Buckeye said there was nothing “may have been” about it.
Is the tale accurate? Trig believes it must be because of the source. “What you’re considering is absurd,” he tells himself. which is accurate.
He convinces himself that once he does it, there’s no turning back. That’s also accurate. The most important thing he reminds himself is that once you start, you have to keep going.
His father’s motto: You must persevere till the very end. No recoiling, no averting eyes. What would it be like, too? How would he feel about doing such things?
He should think about it more. Not just to get insight into what he’s considering doing, but also to create a gap in time between what he learned from Buckeye Brandon (see this feature piece) and the possible acts—the horrors—he may carry out, so that no one would link the dots.
He can’t help but think about the news article about the young man who found the stolen puppy. It was straightforward: FOUND! Trig’s only thoughts are about what he did, what he lost, and the things he needs to put right.