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Six oddball but brave children encounter the way of a vast and fearsome paranormal malevolence that has infiltrated our existence from the farthest reaches of darkness. They are compelled to spend their lifetimes fighting it, enduring one nightmare after another in the process.

An Echoing Storyline with a Fresh Approach

This outlines the narrative, roughly, of Stephen King’s iconic book It (a standout in his career; no debate). It is also the plot of the celebrated author’s heir Joe Hill’s latest massive horror novel, in which six friends call forth the primordial, deeply sinister beast the Sorrowful Monarch from the Long Dark to assist them in vanquishing some baddies. Needless to say, their supernatural ritual goes awry.

Celebrating a Authorial Legacy

Joseph Hillström King launched his profession making great efforts to distance himself from his well-known dad, using the pseudonym he still uses today and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he exhibits a uncanny likeness to his dad). Yet with this recent release, he fully acknowledges it. Several quotes that deliberately echo some of King’s most famous (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a moment that evokes a signature King element (a game of puzzles). Throughout this massive book, Hill is delighting in his lineage, and we delight along with him.

The Cast of the Main Characters

Returning to the group: the majority are pupils at the imagined this academic setting in this northeastern locale. First is Arthur, bookish and intelligent, cracking ancient puzzles in his leisure hours; Colin, wealthy, sharp, and prone to trampling obstacles in his path; twins Donna and Donovan; the stunning Allie herself. Additionally, Gwen appears, who doesn’t study with them, but emerges as crucial of their circle as they experiment, somewhat credulous, somewhat doubtful, in the occult.

The Pivotal Ritual

Arthur is, for reasons we don’t need to go into, forced into stealing prized manuscripts from his cherished academic collection by a set of regional villains. This devastates his scholarly soul, especially when he’s made to take the collection’s foremost and disturbing publication: the journal of occultist the historical figure (executed “for conspiring with dark forces in 1703”; the binding is fashioned from his hide). These young investigators examine the log, discover they could summon what the author references as a “proud worm to aid our hero with his blackmail problem – and spend the rest of the novel reaping the consequences. This ancient entity will certainly eliminate those troublesome local drug dealers, but they must select a different victim annually or become his victim themselves. In the character’s own words: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is more dragons.”

Stylistic Dexterity and Creative Breadth

Spanning forty years, the author shifts with natural fluency through various literary forms: as the allies strive to manage the predicament they find themselves in by, in different ways, choosing undeniably wicked targets to offer up, or hunting down ways to kill the dragon themselves, we transition from page-turner to dark fantasy, clandestine torment to affectionate subplot to terror. My favorite genre switch was to a quest story, deep in the caves under the English county, a part infused with JRR Tolkien that was gloriously terrifying.

A Detailed Canvas of Horror and Hope

There are trolls – those living under bridges and online ones, truly terrifying and perfectly brought to life. We see enchanted blades and betrayals, breath-taking moments of courage and ones of dreadful evil, both earthly and extraterrestrial. This is a remarkable achievement: a horror novel that is primarily a paean 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 assemble around a surface, making preparations to call forth their serpent into being with the force of their minds.

In the author’s own words in his epigraph: “This is dragon territory”. Do not overlook this.