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A group of six unlikely but doughty youngsters encounter the path of a colossal and fearsome supernatural darkness that has infiltrated our realm from the outer limits of shadow. They are compelled to wage a lifelong battle fighting it, enduring one nightmare after another in the process.

A Familiar Plot with a Distinctive Approach

This describes the premise, broadly speaking, of Stephen King’s novel It (arguably his finest; no arguments). It similarly frames of Stephen King’s offspring Joe Hill’s latest massive horror novel, in which six friends call forth the age-old, deeply sinister serpent the Sorrowful Monarch from the Long Dark to help them defeat some baddies. Needless to say, their supernatural ritual goes awry.

Embracing a Family Lineage

Joseph Hillström King started his career making great efforts to avoid any connection from his famous father, publishing under the pen name he still uses today and steering clear of encounters with his agent (he bears a uncanny likeness to his parent). But in this latest novel, he fully acknowledges it. Certain passages that intentionally mirror some of King’s most famous (that classic opening line); a scene that recalls a King plot point (a battle of wits). Throughout this massive book, the author rejoices in his family connection, and the audience revels alongside.

Meet the Protagonists

Returning to the group: most are scholars at the made-up Rackham College in this northeastern locale. First is Arthur, academic and gifted, solving historical enigmas in his free moments; another key figure, wealthy, astute, and inclined to bulldoze anyone who stands in his way; twins Donna and Donovan; the stunning Allie. Then we have Gwen, who isn’t their classmate, but assumes a vital role of their group as they toy, partly convinced, half not, in arcane arts.

The Pivotal Summoning

The protagonist finds himself, for reasons we don’t need to go into, compelled to pilfer prized manuscripts from his treasured institution’s archives by a set of regional villains. This tears at his bookish heart, especially when he’s made to take the institution’s prized and unsettling title: the journal of practitioner Enoch Crane (condemned “for trafficking with the devyll in 1703”; the book’s jacket is made from his skin). Our Scooby gang read the journal, learn they can invoke what the occultist details as a clever snake to help Arthur out with his blackmail problem – and occupy the subsequent narrative enduring the repercussions. This ancient entity will indeed rid them of those annoying regional antagonists, but they are required to pick a new sacrifice each year or succumb to the dragon’s wrath. As our protagonist states: “You sow dragon’s teeth, all you get is additional horrors.”

Genre Versatility and Inventive Breadth

Covering a generation, Hill also moves with natural fluency through various literary forms: as the friends endeavor to address the circumstances they find themselves in by, variously, choosing undeniably wicked targets to offer up, or seeking means to slay the beast themselves, we move between thriller to grim fantasy, black-ops torture to affectionate subplot to terror. My favorite genre switch was to a adventure narrative, deep in the caves below Cornwall, a segment infused with the Lord of the Rings author that was wonderfully frightening.

A Rich Canvas of Fear and Optimism

We encounter trolls – the classic variety and online ones, truly terrifying and perfectly brought to life. We see enchanted blades and betrayals, pulse-pounding sequences of valor and scenes of appalling malevolence, both mortal and extraterrestrial. This is a remarkable achievement: a horror novel that is above all a paean 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 this character as the friends assemble around a surface, making preparations to call forth their serpent to life with the strength of their collective will.

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