King's Masterpiece : Dark Tower Series : 3. The Waste Lands

Roland, the last gunslinger, moves ever closer to the dark tower of his dreams and nightmares as he travels through city and country in Mid-World - a macabre world that is a twisted image of our own. With him are those he has drawn to this world: street smart Eddie and courageous wheelchair-bound Susannah. Ahead of him are mind-bending revelations about who and what is driving him. Against him is arrayed a swelling legion of foes-- both more and less than human.

When Stephen King began the Dark Tower series with the collection of short stories that made up The Gunslinger, his guarded vision of a magnificent fantasy world tantalized readers with a glimpse of something that left us with one thought...MORE. The next book, The Drawing of the Three, satisfied that craving, filled with vibrant, exotic creatures and locales and giving King's audience its first full-scale look at Mid-World. The third Dark Tower novel, The Waste Lands, is a continuation of what I think is the high point of creativity in Stephen King's career. 

The Drawing of the Three and The Waste Lands are the two books where King reached his full potential to write fantasy, action, and adventure. The novel opens with Roland, Eddie, and Susannah battling an 80-foot cyborg bear infested with disease and writhing white worms. After surviving this monstrosity, Roland's mind is nearly torn apart by a paradox he created in the last book when he saved Jake from the death he suffered in the first book. In a twist I never expected, the narrative picks up from Jake's perspective, whose mind is also stricken when he survives the moment his mind insists was to be his death. 

In a fascinating turn of events, Jake is drawn into Mid-World through a door the ka-tet creates in the middle of a speaking ring similar to the one in which Roland learned about his future in The Gunslinger. Jake is revealed to be the true third that was to be drawn in order for Roland to continue his quest. However, during the drawing, Susannah must "entertain" a demon the same way Roland did to get his prophecy, which in a later book is developed into one of the most shocking twists of the entire series.

After completing the group, the companions set out together on their way to the Tower, gaining a new member in Oy the billy-bumbler. This strange cross between a dog and a raccoon delights the group with his gold-ringed eyes and incredible intelligence, which allows him to speak and count at a rudimentary level. However, not long after Jake is rescued, the travelers are beset by Gasher, a diseased mercenary of Lüd who kidnaps Jake. Oy sets off after him with Roland following close behind. A thrilling chase ensues, culminating with a face-off between Roland, Gasher, and the Tick-Tock Man, a gigantic descendant of the mythical Lord Perth. With Oy's help, Roland kills his enemies, saves Jake, and races to find Eddie and Susannah. Once reunited, the group boards Blaine the Mono, a train run by a computer gone mad that carries them through The Waste Lands. 

The horrible, unnatural, mutated creatures they see in The Waste Lands turn out to be the least of their troubles, as Blaine voices its intentions to commit suicide at the end of its run, thereby killing Roland and his companions. King left the story on this gut-wrenching cliffhanger, torturing fans by making them wait six years to see how the dilemma is resolved. Just like the book that preceded it, The Waste Lands is an amazing, fast-paced ride full of thrilling story and dazzling creativity. I love the entire Dark Tower series, but I don't think Stephen King ever got quite as good at this type of writing as he did with the second and third books. The Waste Lands remains of the most impressive achievements of his career.