While this is part of my re-read of Stephen King books I hadn’t actually read this before. I’d found the first book in The Dark Tower series a slog and only completed it for the first time a couple of years ago - and only then with the help of the audiobook, which I find a good way to get through books I want to finish but struggle with. As I’d found The Dark Tower I better on the second go-round as part of this re-read, I decided to give the next in the series a go when I reached it in the overall King publication order. And I’m so glad I did. 

 

The lack of depth I’d struggled with in the first book is no longer an issue. Here we see Roland make connections with new companions. These companions have autonomy and pull the last gunslinger into modern world experiences. All of which give Roland more texture, and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.