In a surprise, but most certainly welcome, move, legendary horror author Stephen King has released a free short story titled Laurie today that can be read on his website. As he describes it, “…think of it as an appetizer to the main course, THE OUTSIDER, coming next week.”

King is referring to his latest novel The Outsider that will be coming out next week via Scribner.

The synopsis for The Outsider reads:

“An eleven-year-old boy’s violated corpse is found in a town park. Eyewitnesses and fingerprints point unmistakably to one of Flint City’s most popular citizens. He is Terry Maitland, Little League coach, English teacher, husband, and father of two girls. Detective Ralph Anderson, whose son Maitland once coached, orders a quick and very public arrest. Maitland has an alibi, but Anderson and the district attorney soon add DNA evidence to go with the fingerprints and witnesses. Their case seems ironclad.”

You can pre-order it via Simon and Schuster.