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A group of six quirky but brave youngsters fall into the way of a vast and dreadful otherworldly darkness that has invaded our world from the deepest abyss of shadow. They are compelled to wage a lifelong battle battling it, experiencing one nightmare after another in the process.

A Familiar Storyline with a Fresh Spin

This is the plot, roughly, of Stephen King’s seminal work It (his best; no arguments). It similarly frames of King’s son Joseph Hillstrom King’s new massive horror novel, in which six friends summon the age-old, deeply sinister beast King Sorrow from the Long Dark to assist them in vanquishing some villains. Unsurprisingly, their arcane ceremony has unintended consequences.

Celebrating a Authorial Lineage

The author started his career going to great lengths to remain separate from his famous father, adopting the nom de plume he maintains to this day and avoiding meeting his agent (he bears a uncanny likeness to his parent). But in this latest novel, he embraces it. There are lines that consciously reflect some of the senior author’s well-known (that classic opening line); a scene that brings to mind a King plot point (a battle of wits). In this whopper of a novel, the author rejoices in his heritage, and we delight along with him.

The Cast of the Central Figures

Returning to the group: five of them are scholars at the imagined Rackham College in Maine. There’s Arthur, academic and brilliant, solving historical enigmas in his spare time; another key figure, rich, clever, and inclined to bulldoze anyone who stands in his way; twins Donna and Donovan; the attractive Allie. And there’s Gwen, who doesn’t study with them, but emerges as crucial of their band as they toy, partly convinced, somewhat doubtful, in arcane arts.

The Critical Ritual

Arthur is, due to circumstances beyond his control, forced into stealing rare books from his cherished academic collection by a group of neighborhood thugs. This wounds his academic spirit, particularly as he’s made to take the collection’s foremost and disturbing publication: the logbook of adept the historical figure (condemned “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the book’s jacket is fashioned from his hide). These young investigators peruse the diary, discover they could summon what the occultist details as a “proud worm to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and occupy the subsequent narrative facing the fallout. The dragon will undoubtedly remove those problematic neighborhood criminals, but they must select a different victim annually or fall prey to the beast. As our protagonist states: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is further monstrosities.”

Stylistic Fluidity and Creative Range

Moving through four decades, Hill also moves with natural fluency through various literary forms: as the friends endeavor to address the circumstances they find themselves in by, in different ways, selecting clearly malevolent individuals to sacrifice, or hunting down ways to destroy the entity themselves, we go from thriller to shadowy tale, covert operations to affectionate subplot to horror. My favorite genre switch was to a adventure narrative, deep in the caves below Cornwall, a segment tinged by the Lord of the Rings author that was wonderfully frightening.

A Rich Tapestry of Dread and Courage

The novel features trolls – the classic variety and online ones, truly terrifying and superbly depicted. There are magical swords and treacheries, pulse-pounding sequences of courage and instances of terrible wickedness, both earthly and otherworldly. This is a remarkable achievement: a frightening tale that is primarily a tribute to the imagination, 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 Colin as the allies gather at the table, getting ready to invoke their serpent into being with the strength of their collective will.

According to Joe Hill in his opening statement: “Hic sunt dracones”. Ensure you experience it.