What’s it all about?:
In 1978, Stephen King introduced the world to the last gunslinger, Roland of Gilead. Nothing has been the same since. More than twenty years later, the quest for the Dark Tower continues to take readers on a wildly epic ride. Through parallel worlds and across time, Roland must brave desolate wastelands and endless deserts, drifting into the unimaginable and the familiar. A classic tale of colossal scope—crossing over terrain from The Stand, The Eyes of the Dragon, Insomnia, The Talisman, Black House, Hearts in Atlantis, ’Salem’s Lot, and other familiar King haunts—the adventure takes hold with the turn of each page.
And the tower awaits….
The Second Volume in the Epic Dark Tower Series…
The Drawing of the Three
While pursuing his quest for the Dark Tower through a world that is a nightmarishly distorted mirror image of our own, Roland is drawn through a mysterious door that brings him into contemporary America.
Here he links forces with the defiant young Eddie Dean, and with the beautiful, brilliant, and brave Odetta Holmes, in a savage struggle against underworld evil and otherworldly enemies.
Once again, Stephen King has masterfully interwoven dark, evocative fantasy and icy realism.
What did I think?:
The Drawing Of The Three, the second book in King’s epic Dark Tower series has to have been my biggest surprises out of all the author’s books. If you’ve read my review on the first, The Gunslinger, you might realize why. When I first read The Gunslinger, I wasn’t a big fan of this series at all. In fact, I may have even thought – “Stephen King, what ARE you doing?” Sacrilege I know, but it was only when a good friend persuaded me to give the second in the series a shot that I forced myself to continue and by gum, am I glad I did? This is actually my re-read of the entire series and it hasn’t lost its magic or power, not by a long shot. By the second book, things are really kicking off and we meet a host of characters that will prove so crucial for the entire series. I felt so much more comfortable with this world and the people within it and from the very first call of the lobstrosities in the opening pages – “Dad a chum? Dum a chum?” I was officially obsessed.
Stephen King, author of The Drawing Of The Three, book two in the Dark Tower series.
As this is a second book in the series, I won’t be telling you too much about the plot in any great detail but as the first book was a bit of an unholy mess (in my opinion), I won’t be spoiling anything to tell you that THIS is where the story really begins. Obviously I would advocate reading The Gunslinger before The Drawing Of The Three to get an idea about the world and our main character, gunslinger Roland Deschain but, and I feel treacherous for saying this, it wouldn’t be the worse thing in the world if you accidentally skimmed tiny portions of it. I feel like with The Gunslinger, there are certain points of the narrative that are pretty important, others are kind of negligible and I’m not really sure of their purpose in the story. However, I must mention again that it did improve on a second reading experience recently, probably because I was completely familiar with the world at that point in time.
One of the terrifying lobstrosities, as imagined in the graphic novels of the Dark Tower.
So, in The Drawing Of The Three, our hero Roland finds himself alone on the beach, dazed and confused. The last thing he remembers is chasing after the elusive Man In Black and now he finds himself in a deserted area by the sea. Well, not completely deserted as he soon discovers to his horror when some curious, dangerous lobstrosities come to visit him. His purpose for being on the beach? There are three doors that he must enter, all three go to different points in time in a different world and he must draw from this world three very important people that become part of his ka-tet (or clan) as he continues his quest to find The Dark Tower. These people will all help in some way on his journey and become as close to him as family, but this is merely the start of a long, hazardous trip for all of them where they will encounter things from their worst nightmares and change forever as the individuals they once were.
I adore The Dark Tower series with every fiber of my being and I was so delighted and relieved to have pushed myself to continue after the initial disappointment of The Gunslinger. In fact, if I had to choose a favorite book of the series, this one would be tied with the fourth book but also has a special place in my heart for restoring my faith in Stephen King as a writer of fantasy. He pulled it off AMAZINGLY well and I can’t urge everyone enough who has a love of the genre to please, please give this series a try. What makes it so special? Of course, King has an innate talent for creating wonderful characters that live on in your memory long after closing the book but the group he has drawn in this series is nothing short of magnificent. I love them all dearly, all for very different reasons and because you follow them over the space of seven books (some of them a sizeable page length!) you really get to know and love them as individuals.
Secondly, the intricate and complex world he creates is imaginative, unique and brilliant and although it may seem confusing at the beginning, stick with it, the rewards are well worth the effort. As a genre, I’m getting into reading fantasy a lot more recently but trust me when I say, The Dark Tower is going to be a tough one to beat. I can’t think of any other series that has captured my heart and endlessly fascinated me as we journey with Roland and his ka-tet to reach the end of his mysterious quest.
Would I recommend it?:
But of course!
Star rating (out of 5):
COMING UP SOON: The Wastelands (The Dark Tower #3).
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