SYNOPSIS
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Joe Hill, a chilling tale of modern-world dangers, dark academia, and the unexpected consequences of revenge as six friends dabble in the occult and are tragically, horrifyingly successful… calling forth an evil entity that demands regular human sacrifice.
Arthur Oakes is a reader, a dreamer, and a student at Rackham College, Maine, renowned for its frosty winters, exceptional library, and beautiful buildings. But his idyll—and burgeoning romance with Gwen Underfoot—is shattered when a local drug dealer and her partner corner him into one of the worst crimes he can imagine: stealing rare books from the college library.
Trapped and desperate, Arthur turns to his closest friends for comfort and help. Together they dream up a wild, fantastical scheme to free Arthur from the cruel trap in which he finds himself. Wealthy, irrepressible Colin Wren suggests using the unnerving Crane journal (bound in the skin of its author) to summon a dragon to do their bidding. The others—brave, beautiful Alison Shiner; the battling twins Donna and Donovan McBride; and brainy, bold Gwen—don’t hesitate to join Colin in an effort to smash reality and bring a creature of the impossible into our world.
But there’s nothing simple about dealing with dragons, and their pact to save Arthur becomes a terrifying bargain in which the six must choose a new sacrifice for King Sorrow every year—or become his next meal.
REVIEW
King Sorrow is the shortest 900 page novel you’ll ever read. There is not a wasted word in the epic horror novel that is sure to be an instant classic. Joe Hill flexes every writer muscle he has and proves nothing has atrophied in the last 10 years.
The story begins simple enough; a group of college kids summon a dragon to help one of them who ran afoul some bad folks. But at what price? That very question is the heart of this story and the way these decisions affect them as a whole and individually. Decades pass and their choices will lead to terrifying large scale consequences and heartbreaking personal tragedies.
This novel only works if you care about the characters and here, Joe Hill pulls no punches. They are all flawed, and as they grow through the decades, who they become can be surprising but always believable. They experience loss, love, greed, power and everything in between, showing the good and bad of everyone. Your favorite character might be someone you can’t wait to see eaten by a giant dragon in the end, while others may start detestable and become heroes. You’ll cry with them, laugh with them, root for them and fear for them.
Jumping through time and being told in five parts, each part dips into different genres that Hill handles expertly every time. The transitions are seamless, despite the jumps in time, and every part fits the story as whole. There are elements of horror (obviously), fantasy, thriller, romance, action-adventure, and more than a few laughs.
The titular KING SORROW is terrifying, unknowable and instantly iconic. Every time he would appear on the page, I felt a shiver up my spine and a dread in the pit of my stomach. This is a villain that deserves a spot among the greats.
It would be easy to call King Sorrow Joe Hill’s magnum opus and as of now, I’ll say it is. It’s a shining example of everything Joe Hill is capable of as a writer. There is truly something for everyone here and I’m really curious how people relate to the characters. Hill shows us these people at their best and worst, while using them to hold a mirror up to the world. I truly believe everyone will take something different away from this book and that is the true magic of stories.
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