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A group of six unlikely but resilient youngsters confront the way of a colossal and dreadful otherworldly malevolence that has invaded our realm from the outer limits of shadow. They have no choice but to spend their lifetimes confronting it, facing horror after horror in the ordeal.

An Echoing Premise with a New Spin

This outlines the narrative, broadly speaking, of Stephen King’s seminal work It (a standout in his career; undeniable). It is also the plot of King’s son Joseph Hillstrom King’s recent massive horror novel, in which a band of six call forth the primordial, utterly malevolent serpent the Dragon King from the Long Dark to help them defeat some baddies. Needless to say, their supernatural ritual goes awry.

Celebrating a Authorial Heritage

Joe Hill launched his profession making great efforts to distance himself from his well-known dad, adopting the nom de plume he continues to employ and avoiding meeting his agent (he exhibits a striking resemblance to his father). Yet with this recent release, he leans into it. There are lines that intentionally mirror some of his father’s iconic (that classic opening line); a moment that recalls a King plot point (a game of puzzles). Throughout this massive book, the author rejoices in his lineage, and we delight along with him.

The Cast of the Main Characters

Focusing on the companions: the majority are pupils at the made-up the esteemed institution in Maine. We have Arthur, academic and gifted, deciphering historical enigmas in his free moments; Colin, wealthy, clever, and inclined to bulldoze those who oppose him; twins Donna and Donovan; the beautiful Allie herself. And there’s Gwen, who remains outside their academic circle, but assumes a vital role of their band as they dabble, partly convinced, somewhat doubtful, in the occult.

The Fateful Summoning

Arthur is, as a result of external pressures, forced into stealing rare books from his cherished academic collection by a bunch of local criminals. This tears at his bookish heart, notably because he’s compelled to seize the library’s most valuable and unsettling work: the diary of adept this enigmatic character (executed “for dealing with infernal entities in 1703”; the cover is crafted from his flesh). Our Scooby gang examine the log, learn they can invoke what Crane describes as a “arrogant beast to help Arthur out with his extortion dilemma – and occupy the subsequent narrative enduring the repercussions. This ancient entity will certainly eliminate those problematic neighborhood criminals, but they’ll have to choose a different victim every twelve months or become his victim themselves. As Arthur later puts it: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is additional horrors.”

Stylistic Versatility and Inventive Breadth

Covering a generation, the author shifts with natural fluency through various literary forms: as the friends strive to manage the predicament they find themselves in by, variously, selecting clearly malevolent individuals to sacrifice, or searching for methods to destroy the entity themselves, we transition from thriller to grim fantasy, black-ops torture to romance to terror. My favorite genre switch was to a quest story, deep in the caves beneath this UK region, a part sprinkled with JRR Tolkien that was wonderfully frightening.

A Rich Tapestry of Dread and Courage

There are trolls – bridge-dwelling ones and digital trolls, truly terrifying and perfectly brought to life. There are magical swords and treacheries, breath-taking moments of courage and instances of appalling malevolence, both mortal and supernatural. It stands as a masterpiece: a frightening tale that is primarily a paean to the human inventiveness, 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 companions gather at the table, getting ready to invoke their serpent into being with the force of their minds.

As Hill puts it in his introductory quote: “Here be dragons”. Do not overlook this.