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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
I have mixed feelings on this one. Parts of it I liked a lot and other parts....not so much.
First off....Susannah has been pregnant FOREVER. This book seemed like a throwaway in the sense that in a book all about her having this "chap," that whole piece still isn't fully resolved by the end of it.
My least favorite parts of this book were the Roland/Eddie storyline. Like, throughout the book, their sections were my least favorite. I also struggled with Stephen King entering the story as an actual character...I'm still not entirely sure what to do with that.
I liked when Jake and Callahan finally came back into the picture, but feel like they were kind of treated as a throwaway since it never really came back to them. I guess it's all waiting to be resolved in the final book? Still, kind of annoying...
I do love Susannah as a character so I didn't mind necessarily spending so much time with her and Mia. but I also found myself losing the thread of the story a bit throughout this one. Forgetting who was doing what, and why. And now as I think about the ending I realize what a cliffhanger it ended on, with all of the protagonists in different places.
I am enjoying this series, but I am also ready for some resolution and to be able to say I am done with it.
First off....Susannah has been pregnant FOREVER. This book seemed like a throwaway in the sense that in a book all about her having this "chap," that whole piece still isn't fully resolved by the end of it.
My least favorite parts of this book were the Roland/Eddie storyline. Like, throughout the book, their sections were my least favorite. I also struggled with Stephen King entering the story as an actual character...I'm still not entirely sure what to do with that.
I liked when Jake and Callahan finally came back into the picture, but feel like they were kind of treated as a throwaway since it never really came back to them. I guess it's all waiting to be resolved in the final book? Still, kind of annoying...
I do love Susannah as a character so I didn't mind necessarily spending so much time with her and Mia. but I also found myself losing the thread of the story a bit throughout this one. Forgetting who was doing what, and why. And now as I think about the ending I realize what a cliffhanger it ended on, with all of the protagonists in different places.
I am enjoying this series, but I am also ready for some resolution and to be able to say I am done with it.
The Dark Tower series is undoubtedly Stephen King's magnum opus, and this book more than any other has solidified this fact for me. I've seen quite a few "ranking the Dark Tower books" lists on the internet over the last couple of years, and for whatever reason, Song of Susannah is almost always near the bottom. And now that I've read it, I have no idea why. I think this book is an excellent, high-octane, all-thriller-no-filler edition to the series, and the reasons I've heard for people not liking it are actually things I enjoyed quite a bit - namely the extremely meta-textual elements at play here. Which before I start on those, obviously, spoilers ahead (also, uhh, Don Quixote spoilers.. Don't ask).
So this book has essentially two concurrent storylines playing out. One in which this new Susannah / Mia hybrid has used black thirteen to time travel / regular travel to New York City in 1999 where she / they are going to have this enigmatic demon baby. This plot line is, admittedly, the slower of the two I would say, but there are some very interesting things about it. One, the concept of the "dogan" is introduced which is sort of cool, basically an internal control room where you can turn dials and levers and whatnot to influence what your body is doing. Two, I enjoy the idea of two people inhabiting one body and having internal monologues with one another - something which very much harkens back to The Drawing of the Three. Three, Susannah and Mia spend a lot of time todash in the "castle on the abyss" (which gives me very strong Haunting of Hill House vibes for some reason) which I enjoyed because a lot of the general Dark Tower mythos is explored re: history of this strange universe, the beams, the prim, the many other strange creatures inhabiting this area near The Dark Tower itself, etc. And lastly, I love the idea of the little Sköldpadda mind-control turtle thing. Also within this story line you have Jake and Pere Callahan tracking Mia / Susannah down, but that seems like it will be explored further in the next book.
The other storyline here, and the one that was most engaging to me, involves Roland and Eddie trekking through Maine in order to find none other than Stephen King, the author of the book in which they are characters! Again, lots of meta stuff about to happen. Before they find him though there is one of the most intense action sequences of the whole series in which Roland and Eddie basically have an enormous shootout inside and around a normal small-town gas station, easily beating Jack Andolini and his crew despite being severely outnumbered because, well, Gunslingers, etc, etc. After this, the two of them start making their way to Stephen King's house, and when they arrive, we get an entire chapter of Roland and Eddie badgering Stephen King, the author of this story and ostensibly their creator and God, to continue writing the Dark Tower books (which he hasn't done yet because they meet him in the 70's before the series really gets going).
And here's where I'm going to get on my soapbox: despite what nerds on the internet will tell you, this is actually cool as hell and can lead you down such weird rabbit holes of logic. Like okay: Roland and Eddie are technically in the "real world" as they are confronting Stephen King, the person writing the book, but it's obviously still fiction. The version of Stephen King they are meeting is obviously not the real Stephen King because he's still in this book! Even them finally coming into the "real" version of reality is not real, because there is still another layer of fiction on top of that - which is this actual book! And so you think "okay cool, they're gonna try to influence Stephen King to finish the story because this fictional (to us real-life people) King they are meeting, in this story, is who is writing them. But then this man has the gall to kill himself off! Stephen King fucking dies in the 90's in this universe when he gets hit by that van! So the version that Roland and Eddie met is obviously not the real Stephen King, because they are still characters in this book and someone had to have written them. And what happens if they meet the "real" Stephen King who didn't die? He's still fake because he's still part of this book. The actual, flesh and bones Stephen King from our reality is unattainable unless our reality is actually fiction.. And honestly, who knows maybe that's true.
A lot of people seem to have gripes with this but I personally eat it up. Don Quixote is one of my favorite books of all time, and it does essentially this same exact thing. Cervantes is a character within Don Quixote. The whole second half of that book is Don Quixote and Sancho wandering around this world in which they are famous for being those book characters! People stop them on the road and go "hey aren't you those guys from that book?". And the same type of meta-text exists because within this world Cervantes created - where he is in it and Don Quixote is a book within the book - our actual real life is still separate. The world of the story exists in a limbo state in between reality and fiction. Those two things inherently don't include one another, and trying to reconcile a world where they simultaneously exist is a paradox, but it's a cool paradox to read about! Which is why I think it's weird that Don Quixote is one of the most lauded works of fiction ever written (rightfully so), and this book is like, unanimously thought of as one of the worst in the series for doing pretty much the same thing! And also that King himself is egotistical for doing it or something? Makes no sense to me. This book is great, the meta elements are cool and they work well, and wow I have no idea how this thing is going to end.
So this book has essentially two concurrent storylines playing out. One in which this new Susannah / Mia hybrid has used black thirteen to time travel / regular travel to New York City in 1999 where she / they are going to have this enigmatic demon baby. This plot line is, admittedly, the slower of the two I would say, but there are some very interesting things about it. One, the concept of the "dogan" is introduced which is sort of cool, basically an internal control room where you can turn dials and levers and whatnot to influence what your body is doing. Two, I enjoy the idea of two people inhabiting one body and having internal monologues with one another - something which very much harkens back to The Drawing of the Three. Three, Susannah and Mia spend a lot of time todash in the "castle on the abyss" (which gives me very strong Haunting of Hill House vibes for some reason) which I enjoyed because a lot of the general Dark Tower mythos is explored re: history of this strange universe, the beams, the prim, the many other strange creatures inhabiting this area near The Dark Tower itself, etc. And lastly, I love the idea of the little Sköldpadda mind-control turtle thing. Also within this story line you have Jake and Pere Callahan tracking Mia / Susannah down, but that seems like it will be explored further in the next book.
The other storyline here, and the one that was most engaging to me, involves Roland and Eddie trekking through Maine in order to find none other than Stephen King, the author of the book in which they are characters! Again, lots of meta stuff about to happen. Before they find him though there is one of the most intense action sequences of the whole series in which Roland and Eddie basically have an enormous shootout inside and around a normal small-town gas station, easily beating Jack Andolini and his crew despite being severely outnumbered because, well, Gunslingers, etc, etc. After this, the two of them start making their way to Stephen King's house, and when they arrive, we get an entire chapter of Roland and Eddie badgering Stephen King, the author of this story and ostensibly their creator and God, to continue writing the Dark Tower books (which he hasn't done yet because they meet him in the 70's before the series really gets going).
And here's where I'm going to get on my soapbox: despite what nerds on the internet will tell you, this is actually cool as hell and can lead you down such weird rabbit holes of logic. Like okay: Roland and Eddie are technically in the "real world" as they are confronting Stephen King, the person writing the book, but it's obviously still fiction. The version of Stephen King they are meeting is obviously not the real Stephen King because he's still in this book! Even them finally coming into the "real" version of reality is not real, because there is still another layer of fiction on top of that - which is this actual book! And so you think "okay cool, they're gonna try to influence Stephen King to finish the story because this fictional (to us real-life people) King they are meeting, in this story, is who is writing them. But then this man has the gall to kill himself off! Stephen King fucking dies in the 90's in this universe when he gets hit by that van! So the version that Roland and Eddie met is obviously not the real Stephen King, because they are still characters in this book and someone had to have written them. And what happens if they meet the "real" Stephen King who didn't die? He's still fake because he's still part of this book. The actual, flesh and bones Stephen King from our reality is unattainable unless our reality is actually fiction.. And honestly, who knows maybe that's true.
A lot of people seem to have gripes with this but I personally eat it up. Don Quixote is one of my favorite books of all time, and it does essentially this same exact thing. Cervantes is a character within Don Quixote. The whole second half of that book is Don Quixote and Sancho wandering around this world in which they are famous for being those book characters! People stop them on the road and go "hey aren't you those guys from that book?". And the same type of meta-text exists because within this world Cervantes created - where he is in it and Don Quixote is a book within the book - our actual real life is still separate. The world of the story exists in a limbo state in between reality and fiction. Those two things inherently don't include one another, and trying to reconcile a world where they simultaneously exist is a paradox, but it's a cool paradox to read about! Which is why I think it's weird that Don Quixote is one of the most lauded works of fiction ever written (rightfully so), and this book is like, unanimously thought of as one of the worst in the series for doing pretty much the same thing! And also that King himself is egotistical for doing it or something? Makes no sense to me. This book is great, the meta elements are cool and they work well, and wow I have no idea how this thing is going to end.
More like 3.5 stars.
A fever dream of a novel, but that’s to be expected from King. This book answered many of the questions and solved much of the world-building problems with King’s discovery style of writing, but created many more problems in my mind.
It was a little strange to have such a small novel in the midst of these epics. It just didn’t feel as in-depth or high-risk as the last book. I’m excited to see where this series goes, as I truly have no idea at this point.
Commala-come-come
Can I get an Amen!
A fever dream of a novel, but that’s to be expected from King. This book answered many of the questions and solved much of the world-building problems with King’s discovery style of writing, but created many more problems in my mind.
It was a little strange to have such a small novel in the midst of these epics. It just didn’t feel as in-depth or high-risk as the last book. I’m excited to see where this series goes, as I truly have no idea at this point.
Commala-come-come
Can I get an Amen!
Not as good as the best of them. But that said I really enjoyed it and one part of it made me love it -and the author!
Second to last main DT book before the big finale! Song of Susannah got me excited about continuing the journey, although some things (with Susannah's character in particular) didn't interest me as much as those in the previous books. Overall, this was just fine, the best parts being the 1977 Maine path, King inserting himself into the story with clear self-awareness, and the eerie postscriptum.
The Dark Tower Project
"Night Surf" from Night Shift (1978)
The Stand: Complete and Uncut Edition (1990)
The Eyes of the Dragon (1987)
The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (2003 Revised Edition)
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987)
The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991)
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997)
"Little Sisters of Eluria" from Everything's Eventual (2002)
"Jerusalem's Lot" from Night Shift (1978)
Salem's Lot (1975)
"One for the Road" from Night Shift (1978)
The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole (2012)
The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003)
The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004)
Insomnia (1994)
Black House (2001) (sequel to The Talisman)
"Low Men in Yellow Coats" from Hearts in Atlantis (1999)
"Everything's Eventual" from Everything's Eventual (2002)
The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004)
The Dark Tower Project
"Night Surf" from Night Shift (1978)
The Stand: Complete and Uncut Edition (1990)
The Eyes of the Dragon (1987)
The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger (2003 Revised Edition)
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987)
The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991)
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997)
"Little Sisters of Eluria" from Everything's Eventual (2002)
"Jerusalem's Lot" from Night Shift (1978)
Salem's Lot (1975)
"One for the Road" from Night Shift (1978)
The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole (2012)
The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003)
The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004)
Insomnia (1994)
Black House (2001) (sequel to The Talisman)
"Low Men in Yellow Coats" from Hearts in Atlantis (1999)
"Everything's Eventual" from Everything's Eventual (2002)
The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004)
Song of Susannah es un libro distinto del resto de los libros de La Torre Oscura. Lo metafísico toma la mayor preponderancia y se empieza a desarmar el entramado del orden cósmico que rige todos los hechos detrás de la Torre y los gunslingers. Se trata con mayor detalle el tema de la subcreación del propio King y en la relación entre obra y autor dentro del universo ficcional de la DT que abarca gran parte de su vasto caudal de libros. ¿Está algo descolgado del resto de la saga? Puede ser. ¿Eso lo hace menos interesante? Para nada, me parece uno de los más atrayentes, aunque denso, de los 8 tomos.
Good book, but definitely not as good as the previous in the series. Feels like more of a filler.
My Recommendation: If you've made it this far in the series, clearly you need to keep going. I didn't find this book to be as engaging as The Wolves of the Calla but more-so than the super slow Wizard and Glass. That being said King's writing is definitely engaging and I'm glad he told the whole story even if the metafiction is starting to mess with my idea of what is and isn't real.
My Response: This series might be getting a little too meta for me.
Don't worry, I'm going to finish it. I mean I'm thousands of pages in and only one book and two novellas left, but seriously this book definitely messed with the idea of reality in a way that pushed multiple fictional worlds into what I'm assuming is supposed to be our world because Stephen King exists in it, but he might exist in all the worlds because he's the storyslinger. So. Many. Confusing. Thoughts.
Continue reading on my book blog at geoffwhaley.com.
My Response: This series might be getting a little too meta for me.
Don't worry, I'm going to finish it. I mean I'm thousands of pages in and only one book and two novellas left, but seriously this book definitely messed with the idea of reality in a way that pushed multiple fictional worlds into what I'm assuming is supposed to be our world because Stephen King exists in it, but he might exist in all the worlds because he's the storyslinger. So. Many. Confusing. Thoughts.
Continue reading on my book blog at geoffwhaley.com.
After a little break i came back for my quest for the Dark Tower. I really liked the book and loved to see the worlds come together. There were some pretty good scenes and one epic battle scene. I did enjoy this book but it was not as good as The Waste Lands or Wizard and Glass. Still i cant wait to continue the quest for The Dark Tower