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A group of six unlikely but resilient youngsters fall into the way of a immense and terrible otherworldly evil that has entered our existence from the deepest abyss of oblivion. They are compelled to wage a lifelong battle confronting it, facing horror after horror in the process.

A Familiar Storyline with a New Spin

This describes the premise, broadly speaking, of Stephen King’s iconic book It (his best; no arguments). It is also the plot of the celebrated author’s heir Joseph Hillstrom King’s new horror doorstopper, in which a band of six call forth the age-old, infinitely malicious serpent the Dragon King from the Long Dark to aid them in overcoming some baddies. Needless to say, their arcane ceremony has unintended consequences.

Celebrating a Authorial Legacy

Joseph Hillström King began his writing journey going to great lengths to remain separate from his renowned parent, using the pseudonym he maintains to this day and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he exhibits a uncanny likeness to his parent). Yet with this recent release, he embraces it. Several quotes that consciously reflect some of the senior author’s well-known (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a scene that brings to mind a signature King element (a battle of wits). Throughout this massive book, Hill is delighting in his lineage, and we delight along with him.

Introducing the Protagonists

Returning to the group: five of them are pupils at the imagined Rackham College in this northeastern locale. There’s Arthur, studious and intelligent, cracking ancient puzzles in his leisure hours; Colin, rich, clever, and inclined to bulldoze anyone who stands in his way; twins Donna and Donovan; the beautiful Allie herself. Additionally, Gwen appears, who remains outside their academic circle, but emerges as crucial of their circle as they dabble, half believing, somewhat doubtful, in arcane arts.

The Pivotal Ceremony

The protagonist finds himself, due to circumstances beyond his control, obliged to take valuable volumes from his cherished academic collection by a group of neighborhood thugs. This tears at his bookish heart, particularly as he’s made to take the collection’s foremost and disturbing work: the journal of occultist this enigmatic character (put to death “for dealing with infernal entities in 1703”; the book’s jacket is fashioned from his hide). The intrepid group examine the log, learn they can invoke what the author references as a “proud worm to help Arthur out with his coercion issue – and spend the rest of the novel facing the fallout. This ancient entity will undoubtedly remove those annoying regional antagonists, but they’ll have to choose a new sacrifice each year or become his victim themselves. As our protagonist states: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is more dragons.”

Narrative Versatility and Imaginative Range

Spanning forty years, Joe Hill transitions with natural fluency across narrative styles: as the friends attempt to deal with the circumstances they find themselves in by, through diverse methods, picking people who are obviously evil to offer up, or searching for methods to slay the beast themselves, we go from page-turner to dark fantasy, black-ops torture to love story to horror. A standout transition was to a quest story, far beneath the surface below Cornwall, a part sprinkled with JRR Tolkien that was magnificently horrifying.

A Rich Mosaic of Dread and Courage

We encounter trolls – bridge-dwelling ones and online ones, truly terrifying and superbly depicted. There are magical swords and deceptions, breath-taking moments of bravery and ones of appalling malevolence, both mortal and supernatural. It stands as a masterpiece: a chilling book that is primarily a ode to the creative spirit, and to devotion and companionship. “We needed a story to believe and {now we’ve got one|presently we possess it|currently we hold it,” says the wealthy student as the companions gather at the table, making preparations to call forth their beast into existence with the force of their minds.

As Hill puts it in his opening statement: “Here be dragons”. Don’t miss them.