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Six oddball but doughty youngsters encounter the way of a vast and terrible supernatural darkness that has infiltrated our existence from the deepest abyss of oblivion. They are compelled to spend their lifetimes confronting it, facing horror after horror in the process.

An Echoing Storyline with a Fresh Twist

This describes the premise, roughly, of the master of horror’s iconic book It (a standout in his career; no debate). It similarly frames of the celebrated author’s heir Joseph Hillstrom King’s new chilling tome, in which a band of six call forth the age-old, deeply sinister beast King Sorrow from the Long Dark to help them defeat some antagonists. Needless to say, their otherworldly invocation has unintended consequences.

Acknowledging a Literary Lineage

The author started his career making great efforts to distance himself from his famous father, using the pseudonym he continues to employ and avoiding meeting his agent (he bears a uncanny likeness to his father). However, in his newest work, he leans into it. There are lines that intentionally mirror some of the senior author’s well-known (that classic opening line); a moment that evokes a signature King element (a game of puzzles). In this whopper of a novel, Hill is delighting in his lineage, and the audience revels alongside.

Introducing the Protagonists

Back to those friends: five of them are students at the fictional the esteemed institution in the New England state. We have Arthur, bookish and gifted, solving historical enigmas in his free moments; another key figure, wealthy, clever, and known for crushing those who oppose him; Donna and Donovan; the beautiful Allie. And there’s Gwen, who isn’t their classmate, but emerges as crucial of their band as they toy, somewhat credulous, half not, in supernatural practices.

The Fateful Summoning

The protagonist finds himself, due to circumstances beyond his control, obliged to take rare books from his cherished academic collection by a group of neighborhood thugs. This devastates his scholarly soul, especially when he’s forced to acquire the collection’s foremost and chilling title: the journal of practitioner Enoch Crane (executed “for conspiring with dark forces in 1703”; the cover is fashioned from his hide). These young investigators peruse the diary, realize they are able to call forth what Crane describes as a armoured devil” to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and occupy the subsequent narrative reaping the consequences. King Sorrow will undoubtedly remove those troublesome local drug dealers, but they must select a new sacrifice annually or fall prey to the beast. As our protagonist states: “You sow dragon’s teeth, all you get is more dragons.”

Stylistic Fluidity and Imaginative Scope

Spanning forty years, the author shifts with seamless grace across narrative styles: as the friends endeavor to address the predicament they find themselves in by, variously, picking people who are obviously evil to offer up, or hunting down ways to kill the dragon themselves, we transition from suspense to grim fantasy, covert operations to love story to fright. One particularly memorable shift was to a adventure narrative, far beneath the surface below Cornwall, a segment tinged by JRR Tolkien that was gloriously terrifying.

A Rich Tapestry of Horror and Hope

The novel features trolls – the classic variety and online ones, truly terrifying and superbly depicted. We see enchanted blades and treacheries, pulse-pounding sequences of valor and instances of appalling malevolence, both human and supernatural. This is a remarkable achievement: a horror novel that is above all a tribute to the imagination, and to love and friendship. “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, getting ready to invoke their dragon into being with the strength of their collective will.

In the author’s own words in his introductory quote: “Hic sunt dracones”. Ensure you experience it.