I've read king's version but had no intent going into the show on comparing the two, thoughts on the show only...

casting: 5/10. Truly don't understand the mendelssohn support, speaks like someone holding grapes in each cheek and i've had a hard time looking past. Furthermore his acting is often one dimensional, perhaps i need to see him in different roles to form a full opinion. Some characters do well in their roles (i think bateman shines), but moreso seem they don't belong in this medium. Can often sense these are characters playing an assigned role, could do far more in terms of viewer immersion. Child actors are quite poor.

Directing: 6/10. Scenes where strong actors can shine do well enough, but obviously struggles to get even mediocre performances out of those in lesser roles. Doesn't seem like any scenes was given much direction or shot in less than a few takes.

Writing: 7/10. Dialogue/story composition is near always thematically fitting and serves to move the plot forward. The scenes that don't work feel like a fish trying to describe what life on land is like from their view on the beach. Scenes regarding jail & the police station standout as being constructed by those without adequate research or knowledge.

Cinematography: 8/10. While occasionally dipping into cliche, vast majority of scenes are artfully executed and well done.

As a whole i think the show stands as an example of a whole being greater than the sum of it's parts, but the underlying story certainly had the legs to create a far superior product than the one we see. Worth a watch if into mystery/suspense with a strong touch of the supernatural, but not sure any singular aspect of the show makes it anything better than simply "good".