🔗 Share this article

Six quirky but doughty kids fall into the trail of a vast and terrible supernatural malevolence that has infiltrated our world from the farthest reaches of oblivion. They must spend their lifetimes confronting it, facing terror upon terror in the struggle.

A Resonant Premise with a Distinctive Approach

This is the plot, in essence, of the master of horror’s seminal work It (a standout in his career; no arguments). It similarly frames of Stephen King’s offspring Joseph Hillstrom King’s new chilling tome, in which a close-knit group invoke the ancient, deeply sinister serpent the Dragon King from the Long Dark to help them defeat some baddies. Needless to say, their arcane ceremony has unintended consequences.

Celebrating a Literary Heritage

Joe Hill began his writing journey going to great lengths to distance himself from his well-known dad, adopting the nom de plume he continues to employ and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he possesses a striking resemblance to his father). Yet with this recent release, he fully acknowledges it. Certain passages that deliberately echo some of King’s most famous (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a scene that brings to mind a signature King element (a battle of wits). In this whopper of a novel, Joe Hill takes pleasure in his family connection, and the audience revels alongside.

The Cast of the Protagonists

Focusing on the companions: most are scholars at the made-up Rackham College in this northeastern locale. We have Arthur, studious and brilliant, cracking ancient puzzles in his free moments; Colin, rich, astute, and prone to trampling anyone who stands in his way; Donna and Donovan; the beautiful Allie herself. Then we have Gwen, who isn’t their classmate, but assumes a vital role of their band as they experiment, half believing, somewhat doubtful, in arcane arts.

The Critical Ceremony

Our hero becomes, due to circumstances beyond his control, forced into stealing rare books from his beloved college library by a bunch of local criminals. This tears at his bookish heart, especially when he’s made to take the institution’s prized and unsettling publication: the diary of occultist the historical figure (put to death “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the book’s jacket is made from his skin). Our Scooby gang peruse the diary, discover they could summon what the author references as a “proud worm to help Arthur out with his blackmail problem – and occupy the subsequent narrative enduring the repercussions. King Sorrow will certainly eliminate those troublesome local drug dealers, but they must select a fresh offering every twelve months or succumb to the dragon’s wrath. As our protagonist states: “You sow dragon’s teeth, all you get is more dragons.”

Narrative Fluidity and Imaginative Scope

Covering a generation, Joe Hill transitions with natural fluency across narrative styles: as the companions strive to manage the predicament they find themselves in by, in different ways, choosing undeniably wicked targets to offer up, or searching for methods to kill the dragon themselves, we go from thriller to shadowy tale, clandestine torment to love story to horror. My favorite genre switch was to a heroic journey, within the subterranean depths beneath this UK region, a segment infused with the Lord of the Rings author that was gloriously terrifying.

An Expansive Canvas of Horror and Hope

We encounter trolls – those living under bridges and digital trolls, properly scary and expertly realized. The story includes mystic weapons and treacheries, breath-taking moments of bravery and scenes of dreadful evil, both earthly and otherworldly. This is a remarkable achievement: a frightening tale that is chiefly a paean to the creative spirit, 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 this character as the allies gather at the table, making preparations to call forth their dragon to life with the force of their minds.

As Hill puts it in his introductory quote: “Hic sunt dracones”. Ensure you experience it.