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Six quirky but resilient children encounter the trail of a immense and dreadful paranormal evil that has invaded our realm from the outer limits of darkness. They have no choice but to spend their lifetimes battling it, facing one nightmare after another in the ordeal.

An Echoing Plot with a Distinctive Spin

This is the plot, roughly, of the master of horror’s novel It (his best; no arguments). It is also the plot of King’s son Joseph Hillstrom King’s new horror doorstopper, in which a close-knit group invoke the primordial, utterly malevolent dragon the Dragon King from the Long Dark to aid them in overcoming some baddies. As one might expect, their supernatural ritual goes awry.

Celebrating a Literary Heritage

The author started his career going to great lengths to distance himself from his well-known dad, publishing under the pen name he still uses today and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he bears a striking resemblance to his parent). However, in his newest work, he leans into it. There are lines that consciously reflect some of King’s most famous (the famous Dark Tower introduction); a incident that evokes a signature King element (a battle of wits). In this epic story, Joe Hill takes pleasure in his family connection, and we delight along with him.

The Cast of the Protagonists

Back to those friends: five of them are scholars at the fictional Rackham College in Maine. There’s Arthur, academic and gifted, solving historical enigmas in his spare time; another key figure, wealthy, clever, and known for crushing anyone who stands in his way; Donna and Donovan; the beautiful Allie. And there’s Gwen, who doesn’t study with them, but assumes a vital role of their band as they dabble, partly convinced, somewhat doubtful, in arcane arts.

The Fateful Ritual

Arthur is, due to circumstances beyond his control, obliged to take rare books from his treasured institution’s archives by a bunch of local criminals. This wounds his academic spirit, notably because he’s forced to acquire the collection’s foremost and chilling publication: the journal of practitioner the historical figure (condemned “for conspiring with dark forces in 1703”; the binding is fashioned from his hide). Our Scooby gang examine the log, learn they can invoke what the author references as a “proud worm to help Arthur out with his extortion dilemma – and spend the rest of the novel facing the fallout. This ancient entity will undoubtedly remove those problematic neighborhood criminals, but they are required to pick a fresh offering each year or become his victim themselves. As Arthur later puts it: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is more dragons.”

Narrative Fluidity and Inventive Breadth

Moving through four decades, Joe Hill transitions with natural fluency across narrative styles: as the allies endeavor to address the predicament they find themselves in by, variously, choosing undeniably wicked targets to offer up, or searching for methods to slay the beast themselves, we go from suspense to grim fantasy, covert operations to romance to fright. A standout transition was to a quest story, within the subterranean depths under the English county, a section sprinkled with the fantasy maestro that was wonderfully frightening.

A Rich Mosaic of Dread and Courage

There are trolls – bridge-dwelling ones and online ones, truly terrifying and expertly realized. The story includes mystic weapons and treacheries, heart-stopping scenes of valor and instances of terrible wickedness, both earthly and supernatural. It stands as a masterpiece: a horror novel that is above all a ode to the creative spirit, 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 this character 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: “Hic sunt dracones”. Don’t miss them.