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Six quirky but resilient kids fall into the way of a vast and fearsome paranormal evil that has entered our realm from the farthest reaches of shadow. They have no choice but to spend their lifetimes confronting it, facing horror after horror in the process.

An Echoing Plot with a Fresh Approach

This is the plot, broadly speaking, of the master of horror’s iconic book It (arguably his finest; undeniable). It parallels of the celebrated author’s heir Joseph Hillstrom King’s new massive horror novel, in which six friends summon the ancient, utterly malevolent serpent the Dragon King from the Long Dark to aid them in overcoming some antagonists. As one might expect, their arcane ceremony has unintended consequences.

Celebrating a Literary Lineage

Joe Hill started his career striving diligently to avoid any connection from his famous father, using the pseudonym he maintains to this day and eschewing in-person meetings with his agent (he bears a uncanny likeness to his dad). However, in his newest work, he embraces it. Certain passages that deliberately echo some of King’s most famous (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a incident that brings to mind a recurring theme in King’s works (a game of puzzles). In this epic story, the author rejoices in his family connection, and we delight along with him.

Introducing the Central Figures

Focusing on the companions: five of them are pupils at the fictional this academic setting in the New England state. We have Arthur, studious and brilliant, cracking Old English riddles in his spare time; the character Colin, affluent, sharp, and known for crushing those who oppose him; Donna and Donovan; the stunning Allie herself. Then we have Gwen, who doesn’t study with them, but becomes a key part of their group as they toy, somewhat credulous, somewhat doubtful, in supernatural practices.

The Fateful Ceremony

Arthur is, as a result of external pressures, forced into stealing prized manuscripts from his beloved college library by a set of regional villains. This tears at his bookish heart, especially when he’s compelled to seize the library’s most valuable and unsettling publication: the journal of adept this enigmatic character (executed “for dealing with infernal entities in 1703”; the book’s jacket is crafted from his flesh). The intrepid group examine the log, realize they are able to call forth what the author references as a “arrogant beast to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and devote the remaining story reaping the consequences. King Sorrow will certainly eliminate those troublesome local drug dealers, but they are required to pick a new sacrifice each year or fall prey to the beast. In the character’s own words: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is further monstrosities.”

Genre Dexterity and Creative Breadth

Spanning forty years, Joe Hill transitions with natural fluency through various literary forms: as the companions endeavor to address the circumstances they find themselves in by, variously, selecting clearly malevolent individuals to offer up, or seeking means to kill the dragon themselves, we go from page-turner to dark fantasy, black-ops torture to affectionate subplot to terror. My favorite genre switch was to a quest story, within the subterranean depths below Cornwall, a section tinged by the Lord of the Rings author that was gloriously terrifying.

A Rich Mosaic of Fear and Courage

We encounter trolls – bridge-dwelling ones and online ones, properly scary and superbly depicted. The story includes mystic weapons and deceptions, pulse-pounding sequences of bravery and scenes of terrible wickedness, both human and extraterrestrial. This is a remarkable achievement: a chilling book that is above all a paean to the imagination, and to devotion and companionship. “We required a narrative to trust and {now we’ve got one|presently we possess it|currently we hold it,” says Colin as the friends sit around the table, getting ready to invoke their serpent into existence with the power of their thoughts.

As Hill puts it in his opening statement: “Here be dragons”. Ensure you experience it.