King Sorrow by Joe Hill is a dark academia meets urban fantasy with some horror elements. I have been waiting 9 years for another full-length novel by Joe Hill. And, man, did he deliver this epic 880-page tome. The novel is an ensemble of 6 characters, Hill said on the Talking Scared Podcast. He was inspired by the show Friends to create the character dynamic. The basic plot is that six friends conjure a dragon to incinerate some people. But the dragon sticks around and demands a sacrifice every year, or a member of the group gets it. The plot reminded me of the Anime Death Note, where the guy has a list that a demon takes out. There was another part that reminded me of the show Grimm, where a bit of fairy tale meets real life. The novel is broken up into different books. We get a new perspective with each book. All 6 friends have their own perspective. One chapter is a shared perspective. The pace of the story is incredible for a story of this size. There was only one part in the middle where I felt the lag. For the most part, the novel is a breeze. I read it in a week and two days. The story nails the college to adulthood eras. The characters continue growing throughout the story, some learning from their ways and others digging in. I do like that no character is safe. Hill will keep you on your toes to see who lives and survives. I have read all of Joe Hill’s novels, all of his short story collections, and most of his graphic novels. I think King Sorrow is his most ambitious novel to date. King Sorrow was first published on October 21, 2025.

Why did I read King Sorrow by Joe Hill? I have been waiting 9 years for another Joe Hill novel. Joe Hill is one of my favorite writers. He is one of only 4 authors for whom I buy a new book when they publish. I have read and reviewed most of his works.

Plot Summary: Arthur waits in line at the jail to visit his mother. While in line, he notices Tana, a townie who is with her older sister and boyfriend. Tana’s clothes are too revealing, and she is not going to be allowed to see her mother. Arthur takes the sweatshirt off his back and gives it to Tara for the visit. This nice gesture doesn’t go unnoticed, as the older sister and her boyfriend who are drug dealers and see an easy mark. Tara leaves with his sweatshirt. She calls about a week later to meet her at work. When he arrives, he meets the sister and her boyfriend, who have pictures of a knife next to his sleeping mother in jail. Arthur works in the library at his college and specializes in rare books. They want him to steal 60,000 dollars of rare books for his mother’s life. Arthur doesn’t tell his 4 college buddies: Van, Colin, Allie, and Donna, and the high school girl, Gwen, who helps clean at the manor they hang out at. Arthur reluctantly steals books, but nothing too expensive, and everyone hurts. But the blackmailers aren’t happy with the haul. He vows that he is done, and the next time he visits his mother, he can’t see her since a shiv was found in her cell. The blackmailers confront him on Halloween when he is about to go out with his friends. All his friends get in a fight, and he confesses to them what he’s been doing. The blackmailers are mad because of the fight, and they tell him they want a rare book that is about the dark arts and made of human skin. He steals that book, but the group uses it first and conjures a dragon. He gave the blackmailers the book. The dragon starts stalking them, with his eye in the rearview mirror. The dragon can talk and tells them who sent it, and on Easter, they will burn. After all is said and done, the dragon shows them all the horrifying ways he gets rid of the pair. He wants another next year. The group will have to come up with a sacrifice every year; if they do not, it will eat one of them. Some take pleasure in the kilss, and some will try to stop the dragon.

What I liked: The story is epic, taking place all across the world. However, it remains fairly intimate at the same time. The horror is used very well. It is not throughout the book, but very well placed. I’m not scared of spiders, but the way Joe Hill wrote that scene made me feed into their fear. I love how much time was spent on character growth. I did like that the book took modern day characters to fight a fire breathing dragon. I witnessed it change throughout the years. The writing was amazing, and I could not predict where the story was going to go. I like that Hill does stuff in the middle that other authors would save until the end. Hill did a great job with side characters; I was rooting for a couple all the way to the end. I do like that Hill ties some of his dad’s (Stephen King’s) works to King Sorrow. We get a big reference to The Dead Zone. We also get two small references to the opening lines from The Gunslinger. Additionally, there is a really obscure reference to General, the last story in the movie for Stephen King’s Cat’s Eye. There are a lot of references to The Hobbit and Arthur and the Round Table. The book has two LGBTQ characters, one of whom is very strong, and the other finds it within the story. This story spans 25 years. There is some slight gay bashing. However, the view changes as people do over 25 years.

What I Disliked: There is one book in King Sorrow about interrogation. It was written well but went on too long without new information. My favorite character was not in the book as much as I wanted them to be. The first chapter being in jail threw me off. It took me a little bit to get into the story.

Recommendation: King Sorrow is a great book. It is a book that will fit into multiple genres: horror, fantasy, dark academia, and thriller. I feel like this novel is a cross between Stephen King and Michael Crichton. Joe Hill is one of the most inventive writers out there. I am eagerly anticipating his next release. It is already slated for next year. King Sorrow is very good and will probably be my number one book of the year. To my followers, please read this book! I always seem to read books with a lot of trigger warnings, but this book does not have many.

Rating: King Sorrow by Joe Hill. I rated 4.8 out of 5.

Ranking: I have read many Joe Hill novels, short story collections, novella collections, and graphic novels. However, I have not fully reviewed them all. In this ranking, I will only rank what I have fully reviewed. I will rank 13 Joe Hill books from favorite to least favorite (all highlighed links are clickable): 1) King Sorrow, 2) NOS4A2, 3) Locke and Key Volume 1 Welcome to Lovecraft, 4) Basketful of Heads, 5) Locke and Key Volume 6 Alpha & Omega, 6) Full Throttle, 7) Locke and Key Volume 5 Clockworks, 8) Heart-Shaped Box, 9) Locke and Key Volume 2 Head Games, 10) Plunge, 11) Locke and Key Volume 4 Keys to the Kingdom, 12) Strange Weather, and 13) Locke and Key Volume 3 Crown of Shadows.