Doctor Sleep - Review

4.5/5 stars

When I bought Doctor Sleep by the great King of the horror Stephen, I followed my instincts—it was the sequel of The Shining after all—but secretly I feared it could end up a total disappointment: I was quite fond of Danny. I started it when a friend suggested I should give it a try, and that was the little push I needed to set aside my doubts and, besides, "FEAR stands for fuck everything and run—Old AA saying" and I'm no quitter so I had to read it. The first book was a masterpiece, but this sequel does not shatter the idea you may have of the world created in the Overlook Hotel. If you did not read the first, you may have some difficult in understanding a few things, and if you think the film by Stanley Kubrick is enough, I will use Stephen’s own words. In the Author's Note he graciously slapped the movie, saying that "you should note that Doctor Sleep follows the latter (aka the novel), which is, in my opinion, the True History of the Torrance Family".

After a brief "catching up" starting right where The Shining left off, the reader gets to know older Dan (alas, he's not Danny anymore), who still has the shining and has not lived a quiet and ordinary life, far from it actually. He did carry his talent and his story everywhere he went, no matter how he tried to drown his memories, “Because that was then and this is now. Because the past is gone, even though it defines your present”— something that's true for all of us, I think. Hunted by his old ghosts, he struggles with his alcohol addiction and abuse, like his father before him. As the chapters follow one another new characters are introduced, expanding the narrative to different voices that are all intertwined somehow, you'll discover how as the years go by.

Some known "friends" return and they all have to play a part in the bigger scheme, from old buddy Dick Hallorann to Tony, who has found someone else to play with, Abra. A powerful (in every way) new member of the shining crew, a girl who is not only sweet and smart, but is way tougher than she looks. And then we make the acquaintance of the True Knot, also known as "True Trouble" to those who pay attention to the details. But first and foremost we follow Dan’s descent into his personal abyss until he hit rock bottom, and then his struggle to cure himself and those around him. Doctor Sleep may not be a real doctor, but he gives his "patients" peace and that definitely counts for something.

I don't want to spoiler anything, I will only thank Stephen also for the breadcrumbs he left here and there of his body of work, the hint at the city of Jerusalem's Lot (and I loved Salem's Lot back in the day) or the line "There are other worlds than these" that immediately awakens the spirit of Jake from the Dark Tower series, or the fact that Abra's favourite boy band are the 'Round Here, or an innocent allusion to Charlie Manx. The consistency is one of King's traits and is never disappointing.

The book definitely taught me something:

a) beware of people wearing tophats (jauntily cocked or not), because you don't know what they are hiding under the it;

b) watch out for Winnebagos and Bounders while travelling, especially if you are alone.

The story must end where it all begin, in a circle that ties the loose ends and answers some question that remained after the final pages of the Shining: "Life was a wheel, and it always came back around".

Yes Stephen, as a Constant reader I can say we are all good, I definitely enjoyed finding Danny Torrence again, following his new adventures and understanding more about the universe of the shining.

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