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A group of six oddball but resilient children fall into the way of a colossal and fearsome otherworldly malevolence that has infiltrated our existence from the farthest reaches of darkness. They have no choice but to devote their lives battling it, facing one nightmare after another in the ordeal.

A Resonant Premise with a Distinctive Approach

This describes the premise, roughly, of Stephen King’s novel It (his best; undeniable). It similarly frames of Stephen King’s offspring Joe Hill’s recent chilling tome, in which six friends invoke the primordial, utterly malevolent dragon the Sorrowful Monarch from the Abyssal Void to help them defeat some antagonists. Needless to say, their otherworldly invocation goes awry.

Embracing a Authorial Heritage

The author launched his profession making great efforts to distance himself from his well-known dad, adopting the nom de plume he maintains to this day and eschewing in-person meetings with his agent (he bears a striking resemblance to his parent). But in this latest novel, he fully acknowledges it. Certain passages that consciously reflect some of King’s most famous (that classic opening line); a scene that recalls a King plot point (a game of puzzles). In this whopper of a novel, the author rejoices in his family connection, and readers share in the joy.

The Cast of the Central Figures

Returning to the group: five of them are pupils at the made-up Rackham College in the New England state. There’s Arthur, academic and brilliant, deciphering historical enigmas in his leisure hours; another key figure, rich, astute, and inclined to bulldoze obstacles in his path; twins Donna and Donovan; the attractive the lovely Allie. Then we have Gwen, who remains outside their academic circle, but becomes a key part of their group as they toy, partly convinced, partly skeptical, in the occult.

The Pivotal Ritual

Arthur is, due to circumstances beyond his control, obliged to take prized manuscripts from his beloved college library by a group of neighborhood thugs. This tears at his bookish heart, particularly as he’s made to take the library’s most valuable and chilling work: the journal of occultist Enoch Crane (executed “for conspiring with dark forces in 1703”; the book’s jacket is made from his skin). The intrepid group examine the log, learn they can invoke what the occultist details as a cunning serpent to assist Arthur with his blackmail problem – and devote the remaining story facing the fallout. King Sorrow will indeed rid them of those problematic neighborhood criminals, but they are required to pick a different victim every twelve months or fall prey to the beast. As Arthur later puts it: “You plant seeds of destruction, all you get is additional horrors.”

Genre Versatility and Creative Range

Spanning forty years, Hill also moves with effortless ease between genres: as the friends attempt to deal with the predicament they find themselves in by, variously, picking people who are obviously evil to sacrifice, or hunting down ways to destroy the entity themselves, we transition from thriller to shadowy tale, covert operations to affectionate subplot to fright. A standout transition was to a quest story, deep in the caves beneath this UK region, a part infused with the fantasy maestro that was wonderfully frightening.

A Detailed Tapestry of Fear and Hope

There are trolls – the classic variety and internet antagonists, properly scary and expertly realized. We see enchanted blades and betrayals, breath-taking moments of bravery and instances of appalling malevolence, both mortal and extraterrestrial. This is a remarkable achievement: a frightening tale that is above all a paean to the human inventiveness, and to love and friendship. “We longed for a tale to embrace and {now we’ve got one|presently we possess it|currently we hold it,” says Colin as the friends gather at the table, preparing to summon their dragon into existence with the strength of their collective will.

As Hill puts it in his epigraph: “Hic sunt dracones”. Do not overlook this.