Black House

A couple of weeks ago I picked up my copy of [b:The Talisman|59219|The Talisman (The Talisman, #1)|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1170530286s/59219.jpg|3324421] by [a:Stephen King|3389|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1362814142p2/3389.jpg] and [a:Peter Straub|6941|Peter Straub|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1200468903p2/6941.jpg], which I had read 25 years ago, and reread the first couple of chapters. It's about a boy, Jack Sawyer, who travels across America in search of a talisman that will heal his mother. Then I saw [b:Black House|10607|Black House (The Talisman, #2)|Stephen King|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388263466s/10607.jpg|1738813], by the same two authors, and took it out to see what else they had collaborated on. Only after reading the first 50 pages did I realise that this was a sequel to the first book, in which Jack Sawyer, now grown up, has become a police officer, and then retired to the Wisconsin countryside seeking a quiet life.

But there is a serial killer threatening the nearby town, and the local police want Jack to help them catch the perpetrator. Jack at first refuses, but then finds himself drawn in, as the killings seem to have links to his earlier journey, which involved hopping into and out of another world, which he called "The Territories". It's not a conventional murder mystery, since we know who the perpetrator is before the police do, and we also know that he is demonised, or at least influenced by a creature from another world.

I was not sure whether to give it three stars or four. The story held my interest, even though I thought some of the descriptions were too long and drawn out. I usually find confidential asides from the author to the reader annoying, and in this book whole chapters were written like that, especially the earlier ones. It had some good descriptive passages, and some very mediocre ones. One of the better ones was this evocative description of a seedy hotel:

The lobby of the Nelson Hotel always smells of the river -- it's in the pores of the place -- but this evening the smell is heavier than usual. It's a smell that makes us think of bad ideas, blown investments, forged checks, deteriorating health, stolen office supplies, unpaid alimony, empty promises, skin tumors, lost ambition, abandoned sample cases filled with cheap novelties, dead home, dead skin, and fallen arches.

I approached this book with a little reluctance, after my re-read of The Talisman last year proved less enthralling than I'd expected. I'm pleased to say that Black House, in contrast, exceeded my expectations. Perhaps that's because those expectations were lower, but all the same, I found it a much more engaging read. I also found that I liked the adult Jack Sawyer rather more than the twelve-year old Jack from The Talisman. I also found the secondary characters to be well-rounded and interesting - and on the whole, very likeable (except, of course, the ones we weren't supposed to like!) The pacing was just right, and the plot remained involving all the way through. I did find the narration/viewpoint a little distracting at times, but it didn't affect my enjoyment of the book.

If you like Stephen King's horror/dark fantasy novels (and presumably Peter Straub's although I'm not familiar with his other works), and especially if you liked The Talisman, then you should definitely read this one.