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Six unlikely but brave children confront the trail of a colossal and fearsome otherworldly evil that has invaded our world from the farthest reaches of shadow. They have no choice but to devote their lives battling it, enduring horror after horror in the struggle.

A Resonant Plot with a Distinctive Approach

This describes the premise, roughly, of the master of horror’s seminal work It (arguably his finest; no arguments). It is also the plot of the celebrated author’s heir Joe Hill’s new chilling tome, in which a close-knit group summon the ancient, infinitely malicious dragon the Dragon King from the Long Dark to assist them in vanquishing some baddies. As one might expect, their otherworldly invocation goes awry.

Embracing a Literary Lineage

The author started his career making great efforts to distance himself from his famous father, publishing under the pen name he continues to employ and avoiding meeting his agent (he bears a uncanny likeness to his father). But in this latest novel, he embraces it. There are lines that consciously reflect some of his father’s iconic (that classic opening line); a moment that recalls a signature King element (a riddling contest). Throughout this massive book, Hill is delighting in his heritage, and we delight along with him.

Meet the Main Characters

Returning to the group: most are scholars at the imagined Rackham College in the New England state. We have Arthur, academic and intelligent, cracking historical enigmas in his free moments; Colin, affluent, clever, and prone to trampling anyone who stands in his way; twins Donna and Donovan; the stunning Allie. And there’s Gwen, who remains outside their academic circle, but assumes a vital role of their band as they experiment, half believing, half not, in arcane arts.

The Pivotal Ceremony

Our hero becomes, as a result of external pressures, obliged to take valuable volumes from his cherished academic collection by a bunch of local criminals. This tears at his bookish heart, particularly as he’s compelled to seize the institution’s prized and unsettling title: the journal of practitioner this enigmatic character (put to death “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the book’s jacket is fashioned from his hide). These young investigators peruse the diary, discover they could summon what the occultist details as a armoured devil” to assist Arthur with his coercion issue – and spend the rest of the novel enduring the repercussions. This ancient entity will indeed rid them of those problematic neighborhood criminals, but they are required to pick a new sacrifice each year or fall prey to the beast. As our protagonist states: “You invoke terrible forces, all you get is further monstrosities.”

Stylistic Dexterity and Inventive Breadth

Covering a generation, Hill also moves with effortless ease across narrative styles: as the allies endeavor to address the circumstances they find themselves in by, through diverse methods, selecting clearly malevolent individuals to immolate, or seeking means to slay the beast themselves, we move between page-turner to shadowy tale, covert operations to romance to horror. My favorite genre switch was to a heroic journey, far beneath the surface beneath this UK region, a part sprinkled with JRR Tolkien that was wonderfully frightening.

A Detailed Canvas of Dread and Hope

There are trolls – bridge-dwelling ones and online ones, properly scary and expertly realized. We see enchanted blades and treacheries, breath-taking moments of courage and scenes of dreadful evil, both earthly and supernatural. It stands as a masterpiece: a horror novel that is chiefly a ode to the creative spirit, 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 Colin as the friends sit around the table, preparing to summon their serpent into existence with the power of their thoughts.

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