Black House (The Talisman, #2)

Title: Black House (The Talisman, #2)

Author: Stephen King

Published in: 2001

Date read: 22nd June 2020

Score: 5/5

Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Mystery, Thriller

Plot: (Warning, may contain spoilers):
"Black House" by Stephen King and Peter Straub is a sequel to their earlier collaboration, "The Talisman," and a significant entry in King's Dark Tower multiverse.

Twenty years after his epic journey to save his mother, Jack Sawyer has retired from the LAPD, having suppressed all memory of his adventures in the parallel dimension known as the Territories. He lives a quiet, isolated life in the small Wisconsin town of French Landing.

However, French Landing is terrorized by a gruesome serial killer dubbed "The Fisherman," who abducts, murders, and partially cannibalizes children. The local police, led by Jack's friend Chief Dale Gilbertson, are out of their depth, and the community is consumed by fear and outrage. Despite pleas, Jack initially refuses to get involved, as disturbing visions and inexplicable phenomena, like robin's eggs appearing in strange places, threaten to awaken his suppressed memories and sanity.

When a fourth child, ten-year-old Tyler Marshall, is abducted, events force Jack to confront his past. Tyler is no ordinary child; he is a powerful "Breaker," an individual with psychic abilities crucial to the stability of the Beams that support the Dark Tower (the nexus of all realities). The Fisherman is not merely a human killer but an agent of the Crimson King, a malevolent entity from End-World (part of the Dark Tower universe), who seeks to use Breakers like Tyler to destroy the Tower and bring about the end of all worlds.

As Jack's memories of the Territories return, he realizes the supernatural nature of the threat. He forms an unlikely "ka-tet" of allies, including his blind friend Henry Leyden (a polymath with multiple radio personas), and the members of a surprisingly cultured motorcycle gang, "The Thunder Five." Their quest leads them to the terrifying and infinitely mutable Black House, a seemingly ordinary but deeply corrupted building that serves as a gateway to other dimensions and a prison for malevolent forces.

The group must penetrate the Black House, battle horrifying creatures, and confront the Fisherman and the greater evil behind him to rescue Tyler and prevent the Crimson King's devastating plan from coming to fruition. "Black House" is a dark, complex narrative that weaves together horror, fantasy, and elements of King's overarching mythology, exploring themes of evil, the nature of reality, and the fight to preserve existence itself.

Comments:
Another brilliant book. Best parts are the links to the Dark Tower series. Fantastic read, especially if you have read the Talisman and are up to speed with the Dark Tower books.

I must apologise again, I have not found a way of crediting more than one author on a book. Peter Straub I am sorry that you have been missed off, it is nothing to do with your contribution, it is all about my ability with SQL databases.

Books that we've read by Stephen King (68):
Carrie (1974), 'Salem's Lot (1975), The Shining (The Shining, #1) (1977), The Stand (1978), Night Shift (1978), The Dead Zone (1979), Firestarter (1980), Cujo (1981), The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1) (1982), Different Seasons (1982), Christine (1983), Cycle of the Werewolf (1983), Pet Sematary (1983), The Talisman (The Talisman, #1) (1984), Skeleton Crew (1985), It (1986), The Drawing of the Three (The Dark Tower, #2) (1987), The Eyes of the Dragon (1987), The Tommyknockers (1987), Misery (1987), The Dark Half (1989), Four Past Midnight (1990), The Waste Lands (The Dark Tower, #3) (1991), Needful Things (1991), Dolores Claiborne (1992), Gerald's Game (1992), Nightmares and Dreamscapes (1993), Insomnia (1994), Rose Madder (1995), The Green Mile (1996), Desperation (1996), Wizard and Glass (The Dark Tower, #4) (1997), Bag of Bones (1998), The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon (1999), Hearts in Atlantis (1999), On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft (2000), Black House (The Talisman, #2) (2001), Dreamcatcher (2001), Everything's Eventual (2002), From a Buick 8 (2002), Wolves of the Calla (The Dark Tower, #5) (2003), Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower, #6) (2004), The Dark Tower (The Dark Tower, #7) (2004), The Colorado Kid (2005), Cell (2006), Lisey's Story (2006), Duma Key (2008), Just After Sunset (2008), Under the Dome (2009), 11/22/63 (2011), Full Dark, No Stars (2011), The Wind Through the Keyhole (The Dark Tower, #4.5) (2012), Dr. Sleep (The Shining, #2) (2013), Joyland (2013), Mr. Mercedes (Bill Hodges Trilogy, #1) (2014), Revival (2014), The Bazaar of Bad Dreams (2015), Finders Keepers (Bill Hodges Trilogy, #2) (2015), End of Watch (Bill Hodges Trilogy, #3) (2016), Elevation (2018), The Outsider (2018), The Institute (2019), If It Bleeds (2020), Billy Summers (2021), Later (2021), Fairy Tale (2022), Holly (2023), You Like It Darker (2024)