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Six oddball but brave kids fall into the path of a colossal and terrible otherworldly darkness that has infiltrated our realm from the deepest abyss of darkness. They are compelled to wage a lifelong battle battling it, enduring terror upon terror in the struggle.

An Echoing Storyline with a New Spin

This is the plot, in essence, of the master of horror’s iconic book It (a standout in his career; no debate). It similarly frames of Stephen King’s offspring Joe Hill’s new chilling tome, in which a band of six summon the age-old, infinitely malicious dragon the Sorrowful Monarch from the Endless Night to aid them in overcoming some villains. As one might expect, their otherworldly invocation goes awry.

Acknowledging a Family Legacy

The author began his writing journey striving diligently to avoid any connection from his well-known dad, using the pseudonym he continues to employ and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he exhibits a uncanny likeness to his dad). Yet with this recent release, he embraces it. There are lines that consciously reflect some of King’s most famous (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a incident that evokes a King plot point (a game of puzzles). In this whopper of a novel, the author rejoices in his lineage, and readers share in the joy.

The Cast of the Protagonists

Back to those friends: most are pupils at the made-up Rackham College in Maine. We have Arthur, academic and gifted, deciphering historical enigmas in his leisure hours; another key figure, affluent, astute, and known for crushing obstacles in his path; Donna and Donovan; the stunning Allie. Then we have Gwen, who remains outside their academic circle, but becomes a key part of their band as they toy, half believing, partly skeptical, in arcane arts.

The Pivotal Ceremony

The protagonist finds himself, due to circumstances beyond his control, forced into stealing valuable volumes from his beloved college library by a group of neighborhood thugs. This devastates his scholarly soul, particularly as he’s forced to acquire the library’s most valuable and unsettling title: the logbook of adept this enigmatic character (condemned “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the book’s jacket is crafted from his flesh). The intrepid group examine the log, discover they could summon what Crane describes as a armored demon” to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and spend the rest of the novel facing the fallout. King Sorrow will undoubtedly remove those troublesome local drug dealers, but they are required to pick a different victim each year or fall prey to the beast. In the character’s own words: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is more dragons.”

Narrative Dexterity and Creative Range

Moving through four decades, the author shifts with seamless grace between genres: as the allies strive to manage the circumstances they find themselves in by, in different ways, choosing undeniably wicked targets to offer up, or searching for methods to destroy the entity themselves, we go from thriller to shadowy tale, covert operations to love story to terror. My favorite genre switch was to a heroic journey, deep in the caves beneath this UK region, a section tinged by the Lord of the Rings author that was wonderfully frightening.

A Detailed Tapestry of Horror and Hope

There are trolls – the classic variety and internet antagonists, properly scary and perfectly brought to life. The story includes mystic weapons and betrayals, heart-stopping scenes of bravery and scenes of appalling malevolence, both human and otherworldly. This is a remarkable achievement: a horror novel that is primarily a tribute to the human inventiveness, and to affection and camaraderie. “We longed for a tale to embrace and {now we’ve got one|presently we possess it|currently we hold it,” says this character as the allies sit around the table, getting ready to invoke their dragon into existence with the force of their minds.

As Hill puts it in his introductory quote: “This is dragon territory”. Don’t miss them.