Billy Summers by Stephen King *****

Billy Summers by Stephen King belongs to the “jinxed one last job” genre. Billy Summers is a hired killer. After this final job with a big payoff, he intends to retire. As might be expected, nothing goes as planned. Billy Summers pretends to be a writer as a cover for this final job. He writes a memoir of his time in Iraq and considers whether he is a good person. The story includes a gang rape, presented as the horrific act that it is. Stephen King is an extraordinary writer, and this is an excellent book.

Much of the book deals with Billy Summers’ introspection on his life, his choices, and the path that led to his role as an assassin. He assumes several identities. Billy Summers was a sniper in Fallujah and is a hired killer in the present. David Lockridge is the writer and good neighbor incidentally waiting for Billy Summers’ target to arrive. Dalton Smith is the safe identity for him to use in retirement. Billy Summers projects a dim-witted persona, while the other two are closer to his actual intelligence.

He has a complex code of ethics that makes it difficult to decide on a path following his last job. As a hired killer, he only accepts assignments that target bad people. He strongly wanted to think of himself as a good person. This drove him to rescue and avenge the woman who was gang raped. His thoughts about her experience present a strong condemnation of the men who attacked her.

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