A review by ppkfs
The Gunslinger by Stephen King

3.0

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

I'm a massive fan of King, but I've tried to get into the dark tower multiple times to no avail. This time I finished the first book. It was alright, I suppose.

The setup of the whole thing is excellent - I cannot fault the suspense, the worldbuilding, the mystery. But that's about it for this book. I'm reminded of The Stand, my favourite of King's works - and I vaguely remember theories about Randall Flagg being the man in black, but I don't know any more - but it feels like just the opening of a book. There's Roland, he goes to some places, some encounters happen, and then it ends. It just feels like the intro part of a book, not a whole book.

Of course, it has still got to have one of the best opening lines of fiction.