Hard to say but I do like and admire Stephen King very much. (I've blogged about him before.)
A writer I perhaps haven't mentioned is Lee Child (pen name for Jim Grant). He's British and does the dance extremely well.
While I'm co-author of one novel--Fish Springs: Beneath the Surface--Lee Child, who formerly worked professionally in television, now has 20 novels to his credit.
I've read about 10-15 Lee Child books. Excellent prose in all of them. Tight, descriptive, sufficient complexity and character development to hold your attention. Child writes crime stories that keep you engaged--all of them focused on an ex-Army cop named Jack Reacher. I particularly recommend Echo Burning, 61 Hours and The Hard Way.
In one of his books, someone asks Jack Reacher, 6 foot, five inches tall and 250 pounds, for his identification.
"My name is Jack Reacher," he replies. "I am nobody."
So I have stolen that line when someone asks me for my I.D.: "My name is Larry Timbs Jr. I am just like Jack Reacher. I am nobody."
Jack Reacher roams around the United States getting himself into trouble when he somehow comes upon people in a bind. It could be that they're falsely accused of a dastardly crime, or they themselves have been assaulted or hurt deeply, or they are struggling, against heavy odds, to achieve justice.
You don't want to tangle with Jack Reacher. He's rough. He's a man-handler. He mangles people. He breaks bones--arms and legs and necks (if he has to.)
A drifter who doesn't carry a suitcase or a change of clothes (and only has a toothbrush and a bank card), Reacher has been known to beat senseless and put into the hospital up to four or five men who dared take him on.
You may have heard of the movie "Jack Reacher," starring Tom Cruise. Strange choice of a person (so short in stature) to portray a giant of a man.
If you haven't read a Lee Child novel, give one a try.
