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Six unlikely but brave children confront the path of a colossal and fearsome otherworldly darkness that has entered our world from the farthest reaches of oblivion. They are compelled to wage a lifelong battle confronting it, facing one nightmare after another in the struggle.

A Familiar Storyline with a Fresh Twist

This describes the premise, broadly speaking, of Stephen King’s novel It (his best; undeniable). It is also the plot of Stephen King’s offspring Joseph Hillstrom King’s recent chilling tome, in which a close-knit group call forth the age-old, infinitely malicious beast King Sorrow from the Endless Night to aid them in overcoming some antagonists. Unsurprisingly, their arcane ceremony has unintended consequences.

Acknowledging a Literary Legacy

Joe Hill began his writing journey striving diligently to distance himself from his renowned parent, publishing under the pen name he continues to employ and eschewing in-person meetings with his agent (he possesses a uncanny likeness to his dad). Yet with this recent release, he leans into it. Several quotes that deliberately echo some of King’s most famous (that classic opening line); a scene that brings to mind a King plot point (a riddling contest). In this whopper of a novel, the author rejoices in his lineage, and readers share in the joy.

Meet the Central Figures

Focusing on the companions: the majority are scholars at the fictional Rackham College in Maine. We have Arthur, studious and gifted, solving historical enigmas in his free moments; the character Colin, affluent, sharp, and inclined to bulldoze obstacles in his path; the twin siblings; the stunning the lovely Allie. Then we have Gwen, who doesn’t study with them, but emerges as crucial of their group as they toy, partly convinced, half not, in supernatural practices.

The Critical Ritual

Arthur is, as a result of external pressures, forced into stealing valuable volumes from his beloved college library by a group of neighborhood thugs. This wounds his academic spirit, especially when he’s compelled to seize the institution’s prized and chilling work: the journal of occultist the historical figure (condemned “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the binding is made from his skin). Our Scooby gang peruse the diary, learn they can invoke what the author references as a clever snake to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and occupy the subsequent narrative enduring the repercussions. This ancient entity will certainly eliminate those troublesome local drug dealers, but they must select a fresh offering every twelve months or fall prey to the beast. As Arthur later puts it: “You sow dragon’s teeth, all you get is further monstrosities.”

Narrative Dexterity and Imaginative Breadth

Covering a generation, Joe Hill transitions with natural fluency between genres: as the companions endeavor to address the situation they find themselves in by, in different ways, choosing undeniably wicked targets to offer up, or searching for methods to destroy the entity themselves, we go from page-turner to grim fantasy, black-ops torture to affectionate subplot to horror. My favorite genre switch was to a heroic journey, far beneath the surface below Cornwall, a section sprinkled with the Lord of the Rings author that was gloriously terrifying.

A Detailed Mosaic of Fear and Courage

The novel features trolls – the classic variety and internet antagonists, genuinely frightening and superbly depicted. The story includes mystic weapons and betrayals, pulse-pounding sequences of bravery and ones of terrible wickedness, both earthly and supernatural. It stands as a masterpiece: a chilling book that is primarily a tribute to the imagination, and to affection and camaraderie. “We longed for a tale to embrace and {now we’ve got one|presently we possess it|currently we hold it,” says this character as the friends sit around the table, making preparations to call forth their beast to life with the strength of their collective will.

As Hill puts it in his opening statement: “Hic sunt dracones”. Don’t miss them.