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A group of six quirky but resilient children fall into the trail of a immense and terrible paranormal malevolence that has invaded our existence from the deepest abyss of darkness. They must spend their lifetimes confronting it, experiencing horror after horror in the struggle.

A Resonant Storyline with a Distinctive Twist

This is the plot, roughly, of the master of horror’s seminal work It (arguably his finest; undeniable). It similarly frames of the celebrated author’s heir Joseph Hillstrom King’s new massive horror novel, in which a band of six invoke the age-old, deeply sinister beast the Sorrowful Monarch from the Endless Night to help them defeat some baddies. As one might expect, their arcane ceremony has unintended consequences.

Acknowledging a Literary Lineage

Joe Hill started his career making great efforts to avoid any connection from his well-known dad, adopting the nom de plume he maintains to this day and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he bears a uncanny likeness to his dad). However, in his newest work, he leans into it. There are lines that deliberately echo some of the senior author’s well-known (“The man in black fled across the desert …”); a incident that recalls a King plot point (a riddling contest). In this epic story, the author rejoices in his family connection, and readers share in the joy.

Meet the Main Characters

Back to those friends: five of them are students at the imagined Rackham College in this northeastern locale. First is Arthur, bookish and brilliant, cracking Old English riddles in his leisure hours; the character Colin, wealthy, sharp, and inclined to bulldoze those who oppose him; Donna and Donovan; the beautiful the lovely Allie. And there’s Gwen, who isn’t their classmate, but emerges as crucial of their circle as they experiment, somewhat credulous, partly skeptical, in arcane arts.

The Fateful Summoning

The protagonist finds himself, for reasons we don’t need to go into, forced into stealing valuable volumes from his beloved college library by a bunch of local criminals. This tears at his bookish heart, especially when he’s compelled to seize the library’s most valuable and disturbing title: the logbook of occultist this enigmatic character (put to death “for dealing with infernal entities in 1703”; the cover is fashioned from his hide). Our Scooby gang peruse the diary, discover they could summon what the author references as a armoured devil” to help Arthur out with his coercion issue – and devote the remaining story enduring the repercussions. This ancient entity will certainly eliminate those troublesome local drug dealers, but they are required to pick a new sacrifice annually or succumb to the dragon’s wrath. As Arthur later puts it: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is further monstrosities.”

Genre Versatility and Creative Breadth

Moving through four decades, Joe Hill transitions with effortless ease through various literary forms: as the allies strive to manage the predicament they find themselves in by, in different ways, picking people who are obviously evil to sacrifice, or hunting down ways to destroy the entity themselves, we go from thriller to dark fantasy, black-ops torture to romance to fright. A standout transition was to a heroic journey, within the subterranean depths below Cornwall, a segment sprinkled with the fantasy maestro that was magnificently horrifying.

A Rich Canvas of Fear and Hope

The novel features trolls – those living under bridges and digital trolls, truly terrifying and superbly depicted. There are magical swords and treacheries, pulse-pounding sequences of valor and ones of appalling malevolence, both mortal and supernatural. It stands as a masterpiece: a frightening tale that is primarily a ode to the imagination, and to love and friendship. “We required a narrative to trust and {now we’ve got one|presently we possess it|currently we hold it,” says the wealthy student as the friends gather at the table, preparing to summon their dragon into existence with the strength of their collective will.

According to Joe Hill in his epigraph: “Hic sunt dracones”. Ensure you experience it.