Doctor Sleep

 

The long awaited sequel to the novel of The Shining written by Stephen King, which is also my first book read by him, Doctor Sleep is an interesting continuation of what occurred previously and what will happen in modern times.

Dan Torrance, one of the survivors of the Overlook Hotel incident involving his alcoholic father and evil ghosts, still inhabits the special gift of the shining, which is amongst other abilities the privilege of being able to read minds and communicate mentally with others.

In present time, he now works at a hospice, where the elderly and dying patients are taken care of. As Dan gets to experience plenty of personal farewells, while often telling his patients to close their eyes and accept death, his colleagues nickname him Doctor Sleep.

Over the year, he notices that the ability of having the shining remains rare to experience. Making new friends along the way, Billy seems to be the only one who vaguely inhabits the shining, although on a lesser tone than Dan.

That is until Abra Stone starts communicating with him at the incredible age of only two months. It becomes clear that Abra is a very special girl having the strongest kind of shining seen yet, including telepathy, telekinesis, mind reading and prophesying future events. She reminded me of Carrie, another novel by King.

While Dan and Abra become friends and partners, the past hasn't gone away from Dan, and early on in the story he experiences the lady from Room 237 once again. The most terrifying memory is of how he abandoned a young woman and her child, which haunts him with guilt.

But the true danger comes in the antagonistic group of True Knot, an independent wandering tribe of abnormal humans who feast on the "steam" of their dead victims, and who are being led by Rose the Hat, who seems to know sorcery or occultism.

As Abra becomes the latest target of True Knot, Dan and his friends will have to protect the young girl from imminent danger, but Dan will also have to deal with the awakening of the evil influence of the Overlook hotel once again before there can be tranquillity.

Doctor Sleep is for the most part an engaging and suspenseful novel to read into, but my main criticism is with True Knot, which has way too many members with dull personalities or any available backgrounds, and the whole deal with absorbing steam felt odd, because I pictured them as cannibals first.

The antagonistic group also changed the mood and tone of the novel in my opinion, from a suspenseful horror mystery, to a more obvious action oriented good versus evil tale. I enjoy King's diversive writing, and I liked seeing modern references and his habit of referencing locations in Maine.

Rating: **(out of 4)