Dr. Sleep

By Stephen King

            Recently I decided to read The Shining by Stephen King, exclusively for this reason.  Dr. Sleep is King’s follow up novel detailing what happened to Danny Torrance after the incidents at the Overlook hotel. 

            The novel begins with our reintroduction to young Danny Torrance.  After the disaster at the Overlook Hotel, Danny has remained friends with Dick Halloran who served as a counselor for using his shining ability.  We jump forward 20 years to a Dan Torrance who is battling his father’s demons.  Dan is living his life from bender to bender, all over the country.  He hits his bottom after a one night stand with a woman named Deenie in Wilmington, North Carolina (This part is too powerful and haunting to spoil).  Stealing her cash and hitting the road, Dan soon ends up in New Hampshire.  With the help of his new boss, he joins AA to deal with his demons.  While this is going on, we are introduced to a group of “vampires” which feed on people who have the “shine” like Dan.  The True Knot is lead by Rose the Hat.  The True Knot travel the country in RV’s, feeding off “steam” that they capture by torturing children with "the shine."  Each member of the True Knot has their own unique talent, which they exploit to capture their victims.  We are then introduced to Abra Stone, a girl with a powerful "shine".  In Abra’s childhood, she begins showing unique psychokinetic powers and supernatural abilities.  The family is unnerved by her abilities, and as Abra grows older she realizes she needs to keep a lid on these abilities.  At this point, Dan Torrance is working nearby in hospice care at the Helen Rivington house in New Hampshire.  At the Rivington house he uses the shining, now unhampered by alcohol, to ease patients into the hereafter.  One night, he is contacted by young Abra who has felt the dangerous presence of the True Knot.  As Abra gets older, she keeps occasional contact with Dan.  Years later, Abra contacts Dan for help in finding the “baseball boy,” a boy who had been kidnapped by the “True Knot.”  Abra’s investigation into “the baseball boy” exposes her to Rose the Hat.  Running short of steam, the “True Knot” is beginning to suffer various diseases, which makes Rose the Hat desperate to capture Abra. Soon, Abra is in serious danger when a group of the True Knot travels to New Hampshire.  It’s up to Dan and his friends to save Abra, and he’s going to need his “shine” to do it.  The climax ultimately leads Dan to a familiar, and terrifying location from his past.  Is his “shine” powerful enough to save Abra from the evil “True Knot?”

When I heard that Stephen King was writing a sequel to The Shining, I had mixed feelings.  Either Mr. King had some unfinished business with one of his characters, or he had run out of ideas.  Fortunately for fans of his work, the reason was the former.  I really should not have been surprised, since I believe that one of the greatest strengths of King’s work is his character development.  There was obviously a lot of gas left in the tank with Danny Torrance, and Mr. King has produced another phenomenal story with well-developed and interesting characters.  Even if you have not read “The Shining,” this book stands well on its own.  I would highly recommend it.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Bunsen Burners

Up Next: Haunted or Damned by Chuck Palahniuk, Eye of the Needle by Ken Follett, The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie, Xenocide by Orson Scott Card, or Patriot Games by Tom Clancy.  I apologize to you, and myself for the severe backlog.