The Dark Tower

The Dark Tower is the final volume of Stephen King’s Dark Tower Cycle, a work that has taken over 20 years to complete. For fans of the series, this concluding volume comes with great relief as well as great joy; at times it seemed impossible to consider that the series could ever be finished. It must have seemed the same to King as well, for it was clearly his magnum opus, incorporating and unifying so many of his other words that told their own pieces of the tale.

This is the 6th book in King’s Dark Tower series. I’ve been a fan of that series for years, ever since I first discovered it, and have watched its slow progress with a great deal of anticipation. I’m not generally an avid King follower, to be sure, but this series is an exception, and a few of his stand-alone novels (IT, The Stand, Salem’s Lot) are works I think highly of.

The man in black fled across the desert, and the Gunslinger followed.

Thus begins the tale of Roland of Gilead, and of his quest to save the Dark Tower that stands at the center of all realities. We enter Roland’s quest partway through; he has left his father’s court some time ago and now travels the desolate remains of his world, a world that has moved on. Crazed townfolk on the edge of survival, cunning demons with the power of prophecy, and dangerous environments will all test Roland’s skills in this hauntingly beautiful story.