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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This MAY be my favorite of the series so far, which was previously held by The Drawing of Three.
I cannot promise there are no spoilers below. This has been a couple random passage saves and thoughts needed put down. I will revise before posting, but if there ARE any they are apt to be smaller, rather inconsequential.
Copied and pasted from a photo of the physical page; any errors are mine:
'True enough, Roland said, and hoped neither his voice nor his face would give away any of the sorrow and regret he suddenly felt. Here was a boy who was now ashamed of being a boy. He had made a friend and the friend had invited him to stay over, as friends sometimes do. Benny had undoubtedly promised that Jake could help him feed the animals, and perhaps shoot his bow or his bah, if it shot bolts instead of arrows). There would be places Benny would want to share, secret places he might have gone to with his twin in other times. A platform in a tree, mayhap, or a fishpond in the reeds special to him, or a stretch of riverbank where pirates of eld were reputed to have buried gold and jewels. Such places as boys go. But a large part of Jake Chambers was now ashamed to want to do such things. This was the part that had been despoiled by the doorkeeper in Dutch Hill, by Gasher, by the Tick-Tock Man. And by Roland himself, of course. Were he to say no to Jake's request now, the boy would very likely never ask again. And never resent him for it, which was even worse. Were he to say yes in the wrong way - with even the slightest trace of indulgence in his voice, for instance - the boy would change his mind.
——
Then Oy rose up on his rear legs, stuck one of them forward, and actually bowed over it. He wavered but kept his balance.
His little black paws were held out with the palms up, like Roland's. There were gasps, laughter, applause. Jake looked thunderstruck.
'Oy!' said the bumbler. 'Eld! Thankee!' Each word clear. He held the bow a moment longer, then dropped onto all fours and scurried briskly back to Jake's side.
╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡
Actual review (lol):
Eddie, Susannah, and Jake are now real life gunslingers, no longer apprentices. Susannah has another personality trying to break through - I don’t love this. She’s also pregnant which has been hinted at for several books now so this isn’t a spoiler; I despise the pregnancy trope more than almost anything but it hits different in a SK book. I don’t dislike it more than I dislike yet another personality coming forth I can tell you that much. Father Callahan from ‘Salem’s Lot has landed in this world so far from his previous, and is the first to approach our ka-tet seeking aid. This small farming town has an abundance of twins born, with nearly no “singletons.” Every 20 years or so vicious men from the east, known simply as the wolves, come in and take one of every pair. If the people try to fight, they die. The stolen twin is returned/shows back up a few weeks later completely addled in the brain and there is no recovery. One father decides they should make a stand. Most of the town says to lose one of every pair is horrid, but what if they lose every one of them? But ka is at work because the gunslingers arrive. They spend close to month in this town, trying to figure out what the hell is going on. There are also a couple side quests into 1977 NYC to try and obtain the vacant lot the rose resides in. Time, which from the time they woke up in the woods some 30 miles from the castle of Oz, has been slipping and becoming stagnant but now that they have many things to accomplish it has become real again, and is rushing towards them fast. What’s more important? Saving the rose? Doing their duty as gunslingers and helping the people who’ve asked? For if they forsake the people for the rose, will ka abandon them for not doing what they should? How about the town; how many will stand with them? Who will try and hinder them? Who are the spies? For someone is passing information to the wolves. If our ka-tet gains one yet loses one what happens to the rose, the tower?
I think Roland shows real growth here. There are many instances of him consciously choosing his ka-tet when previously he would’ve disregarded them. He’s giving more responsibility and trust to Jake while also lamenting the fact that Jake should be a regular boy and yet is quickly leaving whatever passes for childhood behind as he becomes a gunslinger. He passes the responsibility of speaking to the folken several times to Eddie; this may seem like he’s shirking it, tossing it away because he doesn’t want to do it, but that’s not it. He relies on Eddie, he trusts him. And that’s So Huge. I think Eddie is my favorite, aside from Oy of course. Oy is out here putting in work too, hear me well. I’m still very upset with myself from what I spoiled in the final book, googling something in book 3 knowing damn well I shouldn’t have! I won’t ruin it for you too though.
╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡
Thoughts:
I’m not finished yet but I’ve got to get some of these thoughts down. Callahan’s story was absolutely insane. The way it tied in Brautigan and the Low Men, the way we got something like closure for Ben and Mark (‘Salem’s Lot), really even for Callahan himself because the way SL ends doesn’t appear to be good for the old priest. That it put him adjacent to Roland and Jake’s first journey and Walter put him some place years and worlds away to stop them should everything else fail. The level of thought and competence and creativity this takes is mind-blowing. I’ve read 300 page books where the author calls a character 2 different, albeit similar, names because they can’t even remember that, and here King is flawlessly (as far as I can tell) tying in like idk 10+ books from different whens and wheres, and across real world decades and dozens of unrelated books. He’s a motherfuckin BEAST. But anyway, Susannah just realized she may be in a family way and I can’t wait to see where this takes us.
╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡
Upon completion of this wonderful book, I’m unsure I have the words necessary to convey how deeply it affected me. I also know how often I say things similar to this, and for those who don’t know me in real life probably think I’m overly dramatic, but make believe stories and worlds have always held much more weight for me than the real world which sucks, and I do my best to avoid it at many costs. I may love a lot of books and series as I’m reading them or right after finishing them, and I do go back and read a fair amount of them multiple times (especially in the last three years or so since I started doing my rereads on audio), and many of them do remain in my top “whatever” list (such as Green Creek, TOG, PJ, TID, ASOIAF, Outlander) but there are different calibers of writing and storytelling and different depths of characters and conflicts. I realize this has very little to do with the book itself or even the series, but I’m trying to tell you that when I say this will become and remain in my top 5 probably, it’s Serious Business. I’ve been trying to think of what to do for my tattoo for it, because it’s definitely joining the ranks (currently have Percy’s trident, a Shadowhunter’s symbol, a tarot card for The Night Circus, a Wolfsong/Green Creek “packpackpack,” and two for HP - very much before JKR outed herself as a TERF).
Anyway. I told you I wasn’t sure I could adequately describe this book. I could rant and rave and gush and tell you all my thoughts and feelings and worries, as I’ve been doing to my boyfriend via text even though he doesn’t read and has no idea what I’m talking about, but I don’t want to ruin anything.
I cannot promise there are no spoilers below. This has been a couple random passage saves and thoughts needed put down. I will revise before posting, but if there ARE any they are apt to be smaller, rather inconsequential.
Copied and pasted from a photo of the physical page; any errors are mine:
'True enough, Roland said, and hoped neither his voice nor his face would give away any of the sorrow and regret he suddenly felt. Here was a boy who was now ashamed of being a boy. He had made a friend and the friend had invited him to stay over, as friends sometimes do. Benny had undoubtedly promised that Jake could help him feed the animals, and perhaps shoot his bow or his bah, if it shot bolts instead of arrows). There would be places Benny would want to share, secret places he might have gone to with his twin in other times. A platform in a tree, mayhap, or a fishpond in the reeds special to him, or a stretch of riverbank where pirates of eld were reputed to have buried gold and jewels. Such places as boys go. But a large part of Jake Chambers was now ashamed to want to do such things. This was the part that had been despoiled by the doorkeeper in Dutch Hill, by Gasher, by the Tick-Tock Man. And by Roland himself, of course. Were he to say no to Jake's request now, the boy would very likely never ask again. And never resent him for it, which was even worse. Were he to say yes in the wrong way - with even the slightest trace of indulgence in his voice, for instance - the boy would change his mind.
——
Then Oy rose up on his rear legs, stuck one of them forward, and actually bowed over it. He wavered but kept his balance.
His little black paws were held out with the palms up, like Roland's. There were gasps, laughter, applause. Jake looked thunderstruck.
'Oy!' said the bumbler. 'Eld! Thankee!' Each word clear. He held the bow a moment longer, then dropped onto all fours and scurried briskly back to Jake's side.
╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡
Actual review (lol):
Eddie, Susannah, and Jake are now real life gunslingers, no longer apprentices. Susannah has another personality trying to break through - I don’t love this. She’s also pregnant which has been hinted at for several books now so this isn’t a spoiler; I despise the pregnancy trope more than almost anything but it hits different in a SK book. I don’t dislike it more than I dislike yet another personality coming forth I can tell you that much. Father Callahan from ‘Salem’s Lot has landed in this world so far from his previous, and is the first to approach our ka-tet seeking aid. This small farming town has an abundance of twins born, with nearly no “singletons.” Every 20 years or so vicious men from the east, known simply as the wolves, come in and take one of every pair. If the people try to fight, they die. The stolen twin is returned/shows back up a few weeks later completely addled in the brain and there is no recovery. One father decides they should make a stand. Most of the town says to lose one of every pair is horrid, but what if they lose every one of them? But ka is at work because the gunslingers arrive. They spend close to month in this town, trying to figure out what the hell is going on. There are also a couple side quests into 1977 NYC to try and obtain the vacant lot the rose resides in. Time, which from the time they woke up in the woods some 30 miles from the castle of Oz, has been slipping and becoming stagnant but now that they have many things to accomplish it has become real again, and is rushing towards them fast. What’s more important? Saving the rose? Doing their duty as gunslingers and helping the people who’ve asked? For if they forsake the people for the rose, will ka abandon them for not doing what they should? How about the town; how many will stand with them? Who will try and hinder them? Who are the spies? For someone is passing information to the wolves. If our ka-tet gains one yet loses one what happens to the rose, the tower?
I think Roland shows real growth here. There are many instances of him consciously choosing his ka-tet when previously he would’ve disregarded them. He’s giving more responsibility and trust to Jake while also lamenting the fact that Jake should be a regular boy and yet is quickly leaving whatever passes for childhood behind as he becomes a gunslinger. He passes the responsibility of speaking to the folken several times to Eddie; this may seem like he’s shirking it, tossing it away because he doesn’t want to do it, but that’s not it. He relies on Eddie, he trusts him. And that’s So Huge. I think Eddie is my favorite, aside from Oy of course. Oy is out here putting in work too, hear me well. I’m still very upset with myself from what I spoiled in the final book, googling something in book 3 knowing damn well I shouldn’t have! I won’t ruin it for you too though.
╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡
Thoughts:
I’m not finished yet but I’ve got to get some of these thoughts down. Callahan’s story was absolutely insane. The way it tied in Brautigan and the Low Men, the way we got something like closure for Ben and Mark (‘Salem’s Lot), really even for Callahan himself because the way SL ends doesn’t appear to be good for the old priest. That it put him adjacent to Roland and Jake’s first journey and Walter put him some place years and worlds away to stop them should everything else fail. The level of thought and competence and creativity this takes is mind-blowing. I’ve read 300 page books where the author calls a character 2 different, albeit similar, names because they can’t even remember that, and here King is flawlessly (as far as I can tell) tying in like idk 10+ books from different whens and wheres, and across real world decades and dozens of unrelated books. He’s a motherfuckin BEAST. But anyway, Susannah just realized she may be in a family way and I can’t wait to see where this takes us.
╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡
Upon completion of this wonderful book, I’m unsure I have the words necessary to convey how deeply it affected me. I also know how often I say things similar to this, and for those who don’t know me in real life probably think I’m overly dramatic, but make believe stories and worlds have always held much more weight for me than the real world which sucks, and I do my best to avoid it at many costs. I may love a lot of books and series as I’m reading them or right after finishing them, and I do go back and read a fair amount of them multiple times (especially in the last three years or so since I started doing my rereads on audio), and many of them do remain in my top “whatever” list (such as Green Creek, TOG, PJ, TID, ASOIAF, Outlander) but there are different calibers of writing and storytelling and different depths of characters and conflicts. I realize this has very little to do with the book itself or even the series, but I’m trying to tell you that when I say this will become and remain in my top 5 probably, it’s Serious Business. I’ve been trying to think of what to do for my tattoo for it, because it’s definitely joining the ranks (currently have Percy’s trident, a Shadowhunter’s symbol, a tarot card for The Night Circus, a Wolfsong/Green Creek “packpackpack,” and two for HP - very much before JKR outed herself as a TERF).
Anyway. I told you I wasn’t sure I could adequately describe this book. I could rant and rave and gush and tell you all my thoughts and feelings and worries, as I’ve been doing to my boyfriend via text even though he doesn’t read and has no idea what I’m talking about, but I don’t want to ruin anything.
Possibly my favorite of the series so far. All of the characters were believable. All of the local politics were interesting. And the HUGE twist at the end makes me glad I don’t have to wait to read the next one.
Loved this, but the last of the great books of the series.
This was another solid entry, and I really think the series has hit its stride. The Wolves plaguing Calla Bryn Sturgis were a wonderful "side quest" for the ka-tet of 19 on their continued path toward the Tower. I guessed that the Wolves would be robots fairly early (who would have thought that the one robot in town who knew all about the Wolves would be a traitor?), but the build up to the fight was still fun. Although once they knew the secret to winning, the fight itself seemed almost too easy to justify 600 pages of preparation.
Father Callahan was a fun addition to the crew. While I haven't read 'Salem's Lot, I did watch the old 1979 movie/mini-series in preparation. Callahan's life story of traveling America acted as a sort of sequel to the events of 'Salem's Lot and were a treat.
Susannah's extra personality (Mia) and the "chap" was disturbing and seems to be the focus of the next book, which I look forward to. I've come to really like how her character is portrayed and I hope that continues to be the case.
Eddie has really come a long way, and I've enjoyed seeing his character grow from the wise-cracking junkie to the wise-cracking gunslinger.
Jake continues to seem a hell of a lot older than he's supposed to be, but considering what he's been through then it only makes sense. His inner turmoil about his new friend and the traitor father was heartbreaking, especially when the kid died so needlessly.
And Roland of course continues to be the stoic lead that the gang needs. He's learning to not keep secrets and that's all for the better but his age is catching up to him, and I don't know how much longer he can go on with the arthritis creeping up.
The ending of the book was especially filled with mind blowing revelations. The wolves turned out to be Doom Bots weilding Lightsabers and explosvie Golden Snitches, straight from the zeitgeist of American culture. And now they're finding Stephen King books written about the very characters that they're traveling with. Very strange stuff.
Father Callahan was a fun addition to the crew. While I haven't read 'Salem's Lot, I did watch the old 1979 movie/mini-series in preparation. Callahan's life story of traveling America acted as a sort of sequel to the events of 'Salem's Lot and were a treat.
Susannah's extra personality (Mia) and the "chap" was disturbing and seems to be the focus of the next book, which I look forward to. I've come to really like how her character is portrayed and I hope that continues to be the case.
Eddie has really come a long way, and I've enjoyed seeing his character grow from the wise-cracking junkie to the wise-cracking gunslinger.
Jake continues to seem a hell of a lot older than he's supposed to be, but considering what he's been through then it only makes sense. His inner turmoil about his new friend and the traitor father was heartbreaking, especially when the kid died so needlessly.
And Roland of course continues to be the stoic lead that the gang needs. He's learning to not keep secrets and that's all for the better but his age is catching up to him, and I don't know how much longer he can go on with the arthritis creeping up.
The ending of the book was especially filled with mind blowing revelations. The wolves turned out to be Doom Bots weilding Lightsabers and explosvie Golden Snitches, straight from the zeitgeist of American culture. And now they're finding Stephen King books written about the very characters that they're traveling with. Very strange stuff.
One of my favorite movies is Seven Samurai, which this books takes its central theme from. It makes it fun and exciting, though barely moves the plot of the Dark Tower forward. It almost seems like a standalone story within the Dark Tower world. The story is good and well written, like all the other books. It has its slumps along the way, in my opinion has too many flashbacks, and can feel unnecessarily long. Overall it is still great. It gets weird at a lot of points, which I think helps redeem the book at points. The narrator is different then the previous books. It takes a little while to get used to him, but he does a good job overall. I think just Eddie's voice is where he lacked in.
I remember enjoying this when I first read it years ago. The pages just flew by and I couldn't wait for the next book to come out. My second reading was an entirely different experience. Summed up, this book is simply the gunslingers' attempt to save a town. That's it. As far as main plot points go, there may have been two or three in the entire book. We get some more information on New York and the vacant lot, and another of the magic rainbow objects is found. Everything else really is just preparing to defeat a group of unknown attackers in a random small town.
We are introduced to a large number of the people in the town, and we are supposed to care about their plights, and care about their back stories even though they have no effect on the grand scheme of things. If this were a stand alone novel, then that would be perfectly fine, but we are reading this because it is Dark Tower V, not because we care about what some mystery beings are doing in some tiny town kidnapping children. I did want to know what the wolves were and why they were taking children to some extent, but that wouldn't have been enough for me if this weren't a part of the Dark Tower series. A series that I thought I loved I might add. I find it hard to believe that this somehow stretched over so many pages when very little actually happened, but it's Stephen King, so it should be expected I guess.
Wolves of the Calla isn't a bad book, but it isn't great either. I really wanted more to happen, or maybe something different to happen. I didn't care about the new characters, and I really didn't care about some drunken preacher's back story, but I do care about the series as a whole. I can only hope that the next book is as good as I remember it, and that some plot progression occurs. Otherwise, this entire series is simply one big chunk of meandering nonsense.
We are introduced to a large number of the people in the town, and we are supposed to care about their plights, and care about their back stories even though they have no effect on the grand scheme of things. If this were a stand alone novel, then that would be perfectly fine, but we are reading this because it is Dark Tower V, not because we care about what some mystery beings are doing in some tiny town kidnapping children. I did want to know what the wolves were and why they were taking children to some extent, but that wouldn't have been enough for me if this weren't a part of the Dark Tower series. A series that I thought I loved I might add. I find it hard to believe that this somehow stretched over so many pages when very little actually happened, but it's Stephen King, so it should be expected I guess.
Wolves of the Calla isn't a bad book, but it isn't great either. I really wanted more to happen, or maybe something different to happen. I didn't care about the new characters, and I really didn't care about some drunken preacher's back story, but I do care about the series as a whole. I can only hope that the next book is as good as I remember it, and that some plot progression occurs. Otherwise, this entire series is simply one big chunk of meandering nonsense.
Even though I am a fan of the series' very end, I remember the journey from book 5 to the end being less than spectacular, but this was better than I remembered. Hoping the same for the rest.
Second time reading this series; originally read it back when it came out. I was a different person then.
Had alot better of a time this time around. Knowing how the epic will end certainly helps, I found. My expectations having since been quelled I can read it through another lens. As its own story. And what a story.
Although quite alot of stuff happens here that affects the overall Dark Tower tale, this story is essentially a kind of side story, as far as I am concerned. Stephen King exploring The Magnificent Seven/7 Samurai story trope with his own team of ne'er do well gunslingers. In DnD terms this could be viewed as a side quest... but since Ka brought them to Calla, this story can't be a one-shot, can it? Since more information is doled out here about their path along the beam than say, Wizard and Glass (which could easily have been a side story and not labelled as book #4 of this epic), or Little Sisters of Eluria, or Wind Through the Keyhole (don't get me started on those) that you can't simply write this off as filler. Because it most certainly isnt.
But is there filler in here? Well it is Stephen King so yes. The time it takes for him to tell Father Callahan's story is excruciatingly overblown. Did I enjoy it, oh yes. Where is that movie? That is a movie right there. Callahan! But I digress, Sai King, he does like to meander and for most of his constant readers that is why we stay. He is a masterful storyteller... blah blah blah. But man oh man, he needs an editor? I think of him as George Lucas, surrounded my Yes men.
The story is simple, gunslingers happen upon a town in need of saving, and spoiler alert, they do. Which of course you should have figured that out. Some people triumph more than others, and maybe people lay dead in the wake. With great twists Book #5 really sings the second time around, and this reader had a delightful time. Did it need to be so long? Yeah no probably not, but you are never bored with King.
My memory of reading this way back when was more of disappointment that it felt like a book spinning its wheels while I desperately pondered the future of the series (especially after having so much time off between books and of course almost losing Mr King to that accident) and having hardly any movement at all. I still feel as a whole this so-called epic has not moved at the pace we all expected, but the damage is done- now we can see it through King's eyes. What did he want the say?
Overall, good times.
Next books I am coming in wi
Had alot better of a time this time around. Knowing how the epic will end certainly helps, I found. My expectations having since been quelled I can read it through another lens. As its own story. And what a story.
Although quite alot of stuff happens here that affects the overall Dark Tower tale, this story is essentially a kind of side story, as far as I am concerned. Stephen King exploring The Magnificent Seven/7 Samurai story trope with his own team of ne'er do well gunslingers. In DnD terms this could be viewed as a side quest... but since Ka brought them to Calla, this story can't be a one-shot, can it? Since more information is doled out here about their path along the beam than say, Wizard and Glass (which could easily have been a side story and not labelled as book #4 of this epic), or Little Sisters of Eluria, or Wind Through the Keyhole (don't get me started on those) that you can't simply write this off as filler. Because it most certainly isnt.
But is there filler in here? Well it is Stephen King so yes. The time it takes for him to tell Father Callahan's story is excruciatingly overblown. Did I enjoy it, oh yes. Where is that movie? That is a movie right there. Callahan! But I digress, Sai King, he does like to meander and for most of his constant readers that is why we stay. He is a masterful storyteller... blah blah blah. But man oh man, he needs an editor? I think of him as George Lucas, surrounded my Yes men.
The story is simple, gunslingers happen upon a town in need of saving, and spoiler alert, they do. Which of course you should have figured that out. Some people triumph more than others, and maybe people lay dead in the wake. With great twists Book #5 really sings the second time around, and this reader had a delightful time. Did it need to be so long? Yeah no probably not, but you are never bored with King.
My memory of reading this way back when was more of disappointment that it felt like a book spinning its wheels while I desperately pondered the future of the series (especially after having so much time off between books and of course almost losing Mr King to that accident) and having hardly any movement at all. I still feel as a whole this so-called epic has not moved at the pace we all expected, but the damage is done- now we can see it through King's eyes. What did he want the say?
Overall, good times.
Next books I am coming in wi
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes