The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger - Stephen King

Rating: 2 1/2
Read for: TBR Challenge 2008, RIP Challenge (and a birthday gift!)

A friend of mine is a huge fan of the Dark Tower series and bought the first installment, The Gunslinger, for my birthday last year, and I finally got around to reading it. The Gunslinger is the short introduction to Stephen King's series, described by many as his epic masterpiece. I had high hopes, despite not being a great fan of King, perhaps because my friend had raved about the book so much, and because this series does break away from the author's usual horror genre.

The story revolves around Roland of Gilead, the titular Gunslinger, and his journey to find The Dark Tower, and what it might mean for him and the world. A cross between fantasy and apocalyptic fiction, the story is in a western setting, with gunslingers, deserts, saloons and crazy preachers. We meet the Gunslinger as he is travelling through the desert, hunting the Man in Black, his reasons for this becoming apparent as the story progresses. As Roland's journey continues, the mystery slowly unfolds, as the story and its events get darker and darker. As our Gunslinger catches up with his quarry, he is left with a terrible decision, and though he discovers some answers, he is left with yet more questions.

To my disappointment, I found The Gunslinger quite a struggle. I found the story slow and laborious, with King taking far too much time with his descriptions of the landscape. Even Roland's dreams and memories weren't enough to capture my imagination. I have not read any of King's work since my teenage years, and though I am perhaps more patient now, I am also more critical, and found myself bored very easily. If the story were not so short, I may not have finished it. The ending was beautifully written and the philosophical musings were a welcome touch, and are probably what saved my review from being only 2/5! I am glad that I finished it, though it left me (along with Roland) with a lot more questions. However, I for one did not enjoy this journey enough to read the next chapter in the series, so mystery of The Dark Tower will remain just that.