Mystic river vs Next of Kin: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Boston, Investigation, Murder, Thriller, Fiction
Mystic river
“WHEN SEAN DEVINE and Jimmy Marcus were kids, their fathers worked together at the Coleman Candy plant and carried the stench of warm chocolate back home with them.”
More
When they were children, Sean Devine, Jimmy Marcus, and Dave Boyle were friends. But then a strange car pulled up to their street. One boy got into the car, two did not, and something terrible happened -- something that…
1 film adaptation
vs
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate Mystic river highest: Mystic river 4.2 · Next of Kin 3.8.
- Mystic river has the widest readership — 171181 ratings behind its score.
Scores by source
| Mystic river | Next of Kin | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.2 (171181) | 3.8 (464) |
| Hardcover | 4.1 (184) | 4.0 (1) |
| Apple Books | 4.5 (687) | — |
Reception
| Mystic river | Next of Kin | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 171181 | 464 |
| Editions | 53 | 6 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | — |
| Want to read | 139549 | 429 |
| Reading it now | 4943 | 17 |
| Written reviews | 6742 | 47 |
| Wikipedia attention | 5175 | 190 |
| Pages | 496 | 400 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Mystic river or Next of Kin?
Mystic river has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Mystic river 4.2/5, Next of Kin 3.8/5).
Which is shorter to read: Mystic river or Next of Kin?
Next of Kin is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Next of Kin (400 pages, ≈ 7 h 24 m); Mystic river (496 pages, ≈ 9 h 11 m).
Which is harder to read: Mystic river or Next of Kin?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Mystic river: Moderate; Next of Kin: Moderate.
Have both books been made into films?
Mystic river: 5 film adaptations; Next of Kin: no film adaptation on record.