🔗 Share this article

A group of six oddball but resilient children encounter the path of a immense and terrible otherworldly darkness that has invaded our world from the deepest abyss of oblivion. They have no choice but to devote their lives battling it, facing terror upon terror in the process.

A Resonant Premise with a New Twist

This describes the premise, broadly speaking, of the master of horror’s seminal work It (arguably his finest; no arguments). It is also the plot of the celebrated author’s heir Joe Hill’s new massive horror novel, in which a close-knit group invoke the ancient, deeply sinister serpent King Sorrow from the Long Dark to help them defeat some villains. Unsurprisingly, their supernatural ritual goes awry.

Celebrating a Family Lineage

Joseph Hillström King began his writing journey striving diligently to distance himself from his renowned parent, adopting the nom de plume he maintains to this day and eschewing in-person meetings with his agent (he exhibits a striking resemblance to his dad). But in this latest novel, he leans into it. Several quotes that intentionally mirror some of his father’s iconic (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a scene that recalls a recurring theme in King’s works (a battle of wits). Throughout this massive book, Joe Hill takes pleasure in his heritage, and readers share in the joy.

The Cast of the Central Figures

Back to those friends: most are scholars at the made-up Rackham College in the New England state. There’s Arthur, studious and brilliant, deciphering Old English riddles in his spare time; Colin, wealthy, sharp, and known for crushing obstacles in his path; twins Donna and Donovan; the attractive Allie herself. Additionally, Gwen appears, who doesn’t study with them, but becomes a key part of their circle as they experiment, half believing, half not, in supernatural practices.

The Critical Ritual

Our hero becomes, due to circumstances beyond his control, forced into stealing rare books from his beloved college library by a group of neighborhood thugs. This tears at his bookish heart, notably because he’s forced to acquire the institution’s prized and unsettling title: the logbook of occultist the historical figure (put to death “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the cover is crafted from his flesh). Our Scooby gang peruse the diary, learn they can invoke what Crane describes as a armored demon” to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and occupy the subsequent narrative facing the fallout. This ancient entity will indeed rid them of those problematic neighborhood criminals, but they’ll have to choose a different victim annually or become his victim themselves. As Arthur later puts it: “You sow dragon’s teeth, all you get is more dragons.”

Stylistic Fluidity and Creative Breadth

Moving through four decades, Joe Hill transitions with seamless grace through various literary forms: as the friends attempt to deal with the situation they find themselves in by, in different ways, choosing undeniably wicked targets to immolate, or searching for methods to kill the dragon themselves, we move between thriller to dark fantasy, clandestine torment to affectionate subplot to horror. My favorite genre switch was to a adventure narrative, deep in the caves beneath this UK region, a section tinged by the Lord of the Rings author that was wonderfully frightening.

A Detailed Canvas of Horror and Courage

We encounter trolls – those living under bridges and digital trolls, properly scary and perfectly brought to life. There are magical swords and deceptions, breath-taking moments of bravery and ones of dreadful evil, both human and supernatural. It’s a tour de force: a frightening tale that is above all a paean to the imagination, and to devotion and companionship. “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 sit around the table, making preparations to call forth their serpent to life with the force of their minds.

As Hill puts it in his opening statement: “Hic sunt dracones”. Do not overlook this.