This is the beginning of Stephen King's famous magnum opus, the Dark Tower.

Here, the master of horror crafts his great work of fantasy, drawing inspiration from a combination of The Lord of the Rings and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

The opening line, "The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed," is not only simple and beautiful but also serves as the trademark and even a summary of The Gunslinger.

When starting to read this book, the reader knows nothing. The characters have illusive names like "the man in black" and "the gunslinger," and the setting is just a desert.

This has both pros and cons. The negative is that initially, nothing makes sense, and it's hard to care about the characters. The positive is that as you read on, you learn more and the story gets better.

The main character, Roland Deschain, is a determined and silent protagonist, similar to Clint Eastwood's character in the Dollars trilogy.

The writing is strange, switching between simplicity and complexity.

Despite some drawbacks, the author thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and is excited to continue the series.

It's too early to say whether to recommend the book or the series, as this one doesn't work as a standalone.

In the end, The Gunslinger didn't meet the author's expectations, but it's not a bad book either.

The author hopes the Dark Tower series as a whole lives up to the legend.

Dark Tower reviews:

#1 The Gunslinger

#2 The Drawing of the Three

#3 The Waste Lands

#4 Wizard and Glass

#5 Wolves of the Calla

#6 Song of Susannah

#7 The Dark Tower

My father is currently engrossed in reading 11/22/63, a book I gifted to him on Christmas. As he is a great admirer of JFK and had once told me he wanted to give Stephen King's works a try, this seemed like the perfect choice. He is completely spellbound by King's writing, and rightfully so. I thought it would be a wonderful idea to share with him about the King novel I've been reading simultaneously.

My attempt to explain the plot of The Gunslinger went something like this: There is a guy, a Gunslinger, who traverses a desolate desert in pursuit of a Man in Black, who is somewhat of a sorcerer. The latter is involved in something related to the World moving On and the destruction of the Gunslinger's home. The Gunslinger arrives at a house in the desert where he encounters another man and his talking crow. Over dinner, he reveals to that man how he wiped out an entire town. Later, in a deserted building, he meets a child who has been sent from the future or another world by the Man in Black. Then... spoilers, spoilers, spoilers. Are you confused? I was and still am to some extent.

What I'm trying to convey is that The Gunslinger is both confusing and frustrating. If you prefer a straightforward, clear narrative where you can easily understand what's happening, this book may not be for you. The plot is strange and surreal, filled with odd characters, some philosophy, blood, demons, witches, and a very long tunnel.

King himself acknowledges that the novel is difficult to understand, and he even attempted to rewrite some parts to enhance its readability. He began composing this at the young age of 19, and it's evident that he was striving to prove to himself that he could write and perhaps trying a bit too hard to sound intelligent.

It might have been a peculiar read, and at the end, there were more questions than answers, but I was hooked from the start by King's writing. I can't wait to read the sequels. I have until the 3rd of August (when the movie comes out) to read the remaining 3500 pages in the series. Wish me luck. 

***

The trailer is here! The trailer is here!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gjwfq...

The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower, #1), Stephen King

The Gunslinger is a captivating novel by the renowned American author Stephen King, serving as the first installment in the epic Dark Tower series.

As Roland embarks on a perilous journey across the unforgiving desert in pursuit of the enigmatic man in black, known to him as Walter, he stumbles upon a farmer named Brown and his crow, Zoltan. Roland spends the night at their place and is plunged into memories of his time in Tull, a small town he passed through shortly before the novel's commencement.

The man in black had also sojourned in Tull, where he performed a macabre act of bringing a dead addict of the opiate-like "devil grass" back to life and setting a diabolical trap for Roland. Roland encounters the leader of the local church, who reveals the man in black's heinous act of impregnating her with a demon. This turns the entire town against Roland, forcing him to take drastic measures and kill every resident. When he awakens the next day, his mule is dead, leaving him to continue on foot.

Roland eventually arrives at an abandoned way station and has his first encounter with Jake Chambers, a young boy. Overcome by dehydration, Roland collapses, but Jake comes to his rescue by bringing him water. Jake is bewildered, not knowing how long he has been at the way station or precisely how he got there. He had hidden when Walter passed through.

Roland hypnotizes Jake to uncover the details of his death and discovers that he died in a different universe that closely resembles our own. Jake was pushed in front of a car while walking to school in Manhattan. Before they depart, Roland and Jake search for food in a cellar and unexpectedly encounter a demon. Roland manages to master the demon and takes a jawbone from the hole from which it spoke.

The Gunslinger is a thrilling and mysterious tale that sets the stage for the rest of the Dark Tower series, captivating readers with its richly imagined world and complex characters.

ENGLISH (The Gunslinger) / ITALIANO

When I first read this novel over twenty years ago, I didn't truly appreciate it. Roland's story simply didn't have enough charm to captivate my distracted teenage mind. As a result, I prematurely decided to abandon the "The Black Tower" series. However, a few days ago, in a bookstore, I came across a copy of the new edition of "The Gunslinger". Reading the preface, I gained a couple of insights. First, not only was I young when I read the original edition eons ago, but Stephen King was also young when he wrote it. Second, to overcome the incomplete literary maturity of that time, King revised and enriched the original novel, publishing a new edition that I'll simply call "more mature". In fact, in that preface, King confesses that when he starts writing a novel, he has no clear idea of where it will lead, let alone when starting a multi-volume saga. In this light, the rearrangement of "The Gunslinger", done only after completing the last episode of "The Black Tower", was necessary.

The plot is straightforward. Roland, a gunslinger, chases the man in black across a deadly desert. Along the way, there are various meetings, new characters emerge, and flashbacks clarify the gunslinger's past. In my opinion, the most beautiful parts of the novel are precisely Roland's memories, which begin to give us a rough understanding of the meaning of "The Black Tower". King gives us the only hint about the time of the events almost at the end:

«Gunslinger, our fathers conquered the-disease-which-rots, which we call cancer, almost conquered aging, went to the moon...»,

indicating that we are in a vague future, far from our present day. The atmosphere is both suggestive and desolate. To give an example that only fans of Garth Ennis will understand, it resembles the atmosphere created by the British comic artist when describing the events of the Saint of Killers in his famous graphic novel "Preacher".

Although some details elude me at the moment, I have high expectations for this saga. I think this novel is a kind of introduction that I will fully understand after reading the next volumes. I probably will return to these reflections in the future to update my personal judgment of "The Gunslinger". For now, I trust the positive reviews of the next volumes. Overall, I trust the positive reviews of the "The Black Tower" series. But above all, I trust the author who, more than anyone else, has always stimulated my imagination. And that's no small thing!

My journey has just begun.

Vote: 7

Quando lessi questo romanzo più di vent'anni fa, non ne fui entusiasta. Evidentemente la vicenda di Roland non aveva colpito abbastanza la mia mente distratta e adolescente. Decisi pertanto di non continuare la serie de "La Torre Nera". Qualche giorno fa mi sono imbattuto in libreria in una copia della nuova edizione de "L'Ultimo Cavaliere", e leggendone la prefazione vengo a conoscenza di un paio di cose. UNO: non solo il sottoscritto, ma anche il buon Stephen era giovane, molto giovane, quando scrisse l'edizione dell'ultimo cavaliere che lessi eoni fa. DUE: per ovviare alla non piena maturità letteraria posseduta all'epoca, il buon Stephen ha pensato bene di rivedere ed arricchire il romanzo originale, mandando alle stampe una nuova edizione che per semplicità definisco "più matura". Difatti nella suddetta prefazione King confessa che quando inizia a scrivere un romanzo, non sa con precisione dove vuole andare a parare. Figuriamoci quando inizia a scrivere una saga di più volumi! In quest'ottica, il rimaneggiamento de "L'ultimo cavaliere", fatto solo dopo aver completato l'ultimo episodio de "La Torre Nera", è stato necessario.

La trama è semplice. Roland è un pistolero ed insegue l'uomo in nero. Su di loro domina il deserto, torrido e letale. Lungo il cammino avvengono degli incontri, entrano in gioco nuovi personaggi, mentre flashback di ricordi chiariscono il passato del pistolero. Sono proprio i ricordi di Roland le parti più belle secondo me, sono brani che cominciano grossolanamente a farci capire il senso della Torre Nera. L'unico indizio sull'epoca in cui avvengono i fatti lo si ottiene praticamente alla fine:

«Pistolero, i nostri plurisnonni debellarono il morbo che fa marcire, quello che chiamavano cancro. Quasi debellarono la vecchiaia, camminarono sulla luna...»,

ad indicare che ci troviamo in un futuro vago, lontano dai giorni nostri. L'aria che si respira è suggestionante e desolata. Per fare un esempio che coglieranno solamente i fan di Garth Ennis, l'atmosfera somiglia molto a quella creata dal fumettista britannico quando descrive le vicende del "Santo degli Assassini", uno dei personaggi chiave della sua graphic novel "Preacher".

Nonostante ci sono alcuni dettagli che mi sfuggono, mi aspetto molto da questa saga. Credo che questo romanzo sia una sorta di introduzione che comprenderò appieno dopo i volumi successivi, ed immagino che tornerò in futuro su queste riflessioni per aggiornare il mio personale giudizio de "L'Ultimo Cavaliere". Per ora mi fido delle recensioni positive dei prossimi volumi. Mi fido delle recensioni positive della serie "La Torre Nera" nella sua interezza. Ma soprattutto mi fido dell'autore che più di tutti ha sempre stimolato la mia immaginazione. E scusate se è poco.

Il mio viaggio è appena iniziato.

Voto: 7

All I could think throughout this book was… what the hell am I reading?!

This western fantasy has to be the most confusing book I’ve read in a long time. Some parts were more interesting than others, but overall I was very disappointed.

After hearing everyone rave about this series, I have a hard time understanding why. I don’t believe it would be this popular if it wasn’t for Stephen King’s name on it. There I said it!

I didn’t like the story very much, nor the writing. The plot seemed to jump around without much coherence, and the characters didn’t really come alive for me.

I had been warned that the first book wasn’t as great as the others, but I’m currently not in a rush to continue. I’m not sure if I’ll ever pick up the next book in the series. Maybe I’m just not the right audience for this type of story.

My third time reading this book! I have also delved into the same part of the story through graphic novels and recall its references throughout the remainder of the Dark Tower saga. Now, armed with more knowledge about the events preceding and following this book, my perspective has definitely shifted. I look back to the first time I read it and how I struggled to envision its place within a larger mythology. But now, everything seems to flow much more smoothly.

This is also part of my endeavor to reread all of King's books in chronological order. Did you know that he originally released this in the same year as Different Seasons, the Creepshow graphic novel, and the Bachman book The Running Man? Now you do! This fact provides some context about King's career at that time. He was grappling with many inner demons, and as many of you might know, one of the central themes of the Dark Tower series as a whole is the battle against inner demons. Understanding this now, it feels as if The Gunslinger must have been a very cathartic experience for King back then.

It's not my favorite in the series, and I think the writing shows the early stages of King's vision. However, it's still a fantastic introduction to the series, creating the perfect atmosphere and mythology without revealing too much. In the end, the build-up leaves you eager to discover what will happen next.

For those of you who haven't read this yet and might have been curious, here are a few things to keep in mind:

• If you have only a passing interest in trying King's works, this might not be the right choice for you.

• If you've only seen the movie released a few years ago, forget about it. And I mean completely IGNORE IT! I'm not sure what they were thinking when they wrote that script, as it has nothing in common with what you'll find here. Not even close. They should never have named that movie The Dark Tower or tried to connect it to this. I was even annoyed that the cover of the audio version I listened to was from the movie. That's why I reverted to the original paperback cover version I read 30 years ago.

• If you enjoy epic fantasy/sci-fi, world-building, quests, and a touch of western flavor, this series is for you! Give this first one a try, but don't make any final judgments about whether you like it or not until you've also read the second book. In my opinion, that one is the best.

I really enjoyed it! I'm so glad that I purchased the revised and expanded edition which comes with a new introduction and forward by KING. To be honest, I wasn't even aware of this when I bought it. But after reading the new introduction and forward, I have to say that he really set up the book in an enticing way. I'm already hooked and can't wait to keep reading. I only have 6 more books to go in this series and I'm extremely excited to see what happens next.

Update: May 15, 2017 - Wow! Dark Tower fans, you've got to check out the new movie trailer. It looks excellent! The movie is coming out on August 4th and I'm sure it's going to be a hit. I can't wait to see how they bring the story to life on the big screen.

Enjoyed it! Glad I purchased the revised and expanded edition with the new introduction and forward by KING. (which I wasn't aware of at the time) He really set up the book enticingly. Only 6 more to go. Can't wait to see what happens next!

\\n  Update: May 15, 2017 - Wow! Dark Tower fans.....Check out the new movie trailer - Excellent - Coming August 4th.\\n

Gloriously moody and atmospheric!

The Gunslinger presents a high plains, lonely traveler, much like John Wayne in a post-apocalyptic dystopia. It's truly a work of goodness.

With a survivalist main character accompanied by a dependent boy, they battle mutants and what were once human beings against the backdrop of a stark and desolate scenery. It feels very similar to Cormac McCarthy's The Road, which I had read recently and adored. Mysticism and Biblical references are abundant and at times, they seem to muddy the narrative waters. However, they never fully submerge it into an unhealthy miasma.

I adored the main story and regretted any digressions. King managed to generate enough interest in his main character to hold my attention through some lengthy flashbacked backstories.

King's writing here still has a flaw in his overuse of modifier shortcuts. He sometimes relies on adding "-ly" to describe emotions or actions, which could have been rectified in a few minutes at most. But then again, who has the time when writing thousands upon thousands of pages at such a notoriously breakneck speed that even SNL makes a skit about it (http://www.hulu.com/watch/280366). And who am I to judge when his books are flying off store shelves at unheard-of rates?

I almost thoroughly enjoyed this to the point of giving it a 5-star rating. But the showdown left me a little disappointed, as is sometimes the case with books that are to be continued.

...oh but it shall be continued, indeed. The reading will surely recommence!

Dark Tower, here I come!

This is the first installment in King's The Dark Tower series. I had a rough idea of what to expect - a Wild West setting, a gunman, a bad wizard, and a boy. But the details were a mystery to me.

I must admit that it took me a while to get oriented in this demanding multiverse. The story has flashbacks within flashbacks, making it as layered as an onion. The setting is also very bleak, especially in this first book. It's Western-like, but much more desolate than a typical Western. Everything is dead, or as they say in the book, "the world has moved on." We see remnants and crossovers from our universe, like burgers, beer, and old machines, but there are also demon-worshippers, oracles, talking ravens, and actual magic. Nevertheless, the world is pretty much dead, and it shows in the minds of those who still wander it. Roland is no exception.

We get a few glimpses of the Gunslinger's childhood and how he was taught the ways of the Gunslingers. Let me tell you, those people weren't entirely sane. All that was back in Gilead, where things were supposed to be better. Well, except for the fact that his mother cheated on his father - though I still don't understand why since she seemed afraid of Martin/Walter and he even beat her up.

Now, our "hero" (who is haunted by his past and dreads the future) is consumed by his quest to catch up to The Man in Black, the wizard. It's a race across a desert, with lethal obstacles.

One question that popped into my head was Why try to trap Roland if he was going to die from dehydration anyway? If it wasn't for Jake, Roland would be history and the Man in Black would have won. But then I remembered that he might need Roland for something AND he couldn't have known Roland would die from dehydration back when he caught Jake and took him to the world Roland is in - sucks to be a wizard but not knowing any tracking spells. *lol* So, the devil is in the details.

I can't say I liked Roland too much. He's been through a lot, but I get the feeling he was never a nice guy. I'm sure there will be good reasons for all the awful things he's done (matricide would be one), but at some point, one has to wonder if that really excuses his actions. I presume we'll get a redemption story in the follow-up volumes, but maybe not. SK has always been unapologetic about his asshole-characters. *lol*

The ending blindsided me. I was racing alongside a psychopath, getting all riled up for the big showdown, and then they have a heart-to-heart!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! That was a nice mindfuck for the readers. I liked it.

I certainly didn't expect Walter to hold a lecture on everything from philosophy to astrophysics.

I'm still mad as hell that Roland just gives in to "destiny", or ka, and actually let Jake die so he could get to Walter, though that wasn't really surprising. What was surprising was how much I cared already at that point. Well done, Mr. King!

So, did I love it? It's hard to say. I have to admit that I did, because otherwise Stepheny will do unspeakable things to me (and I believe her because she's learned from SK himself). ;)

From the start of this novel, it's clear that King has created one hell of a multiverse. There will be many parallel worlds opening up, and if they're all as immense as this one, I'll be very impressed.

Yes, this world is dead, but there's still so much to discover. The author hooks the readers with the setting, the action, and the mystery. It's like waking up in the middle of a desert with no water, no companion, and only a few puzzling hints. You have to follow them like breadcrumbs while trying not to lose your mind.

More than that, the Crimson King, who I'm finally meeting in person, so to speak, is prominent, and the implications of what he's planning give this story such a scale!

By the way, King was obviously inspired by this poem and the Grail Quest, and possibly J.R.R. Tolkien. To take inspiration from such different sources and combine them in such a way is very impressive.

Brad and I had an interesting conversation about the nature of King's version of the Grail Quest and how he seems to want to mess with his "hero" as much as possible. Brad, probably correctly, said that King wanted to turn the tale upside down by not letting the most noble being fight the ultimate evil, but instead showing that only a corrupted "hero" can actually go up against the ultimate bad. I mean, all the other Gunslingers ARE dead (if they were ever "good"). We'll see.

And to think that all this was just to set up the actual story... *shivers*

I’ve always heard great things about this series. People have been raving about it left and right, and I’ve been so curious to check it out for myself. So, when my bestie and her brother invited me to do a buddy read, I jumped on it without hesitation! I was really excited to finally get into this much-talked-about series.

As I started reading, I have to admit that there were times when I felt a bit confused. But I kept telling myself to keep plugging along, thinking, “I’m sure this will become clearer as I go.” And fortunately, it did. The story started to unfold, and the pieces began to fit together. Of course, there are still questions about the bigger picture that remain unanswered. But for this particular book, I’m satisfied with the way things turned out.

And that’s the beauty of a series, isn’t it? Each book builds on the previous one, leaving you with just enough answers to keep you satisfied, but also enough questions to make you eager to pick up the next one. I can’t wait to see where this series takes me next!

I just could not get into this book.

At the beginning, it seemed good to me, but then something changed. I don't know exactly what it was.

I liked certain aspects of it, but for the rest, I felt as if I wasn't fully understanding what was happening.

However, I'm not going to give up on the series. I'm determined to read it through and will re-read this book when I have the chance.

This is because I want to make sure that it wasn't just my mood or something else that affected my perception. After all, I love most of King's books.

In fact, I'm planning to re-read a lot of his works that I haven't touched since I was a child, as well as explore his new stuff.

I never had the opportunity to read this series before, and I really want to give this first book another try.

But we all know that we can't love every single book an author writes. Although when I'm a bit skeptical about something, I like to give it another shot at a later time.

Hopefully, things will work out this time and I'll be able to fully appreciate this book and the entire series.

This book is completely introductory, which is absolutely logical for the first in a series of seven books.

Although I can't say that I learned a lot of things, neither about the characters nor about the multi-story tower, the last few pages, however, aroused my curiosity for the continuation which I hope to read soon.

It seems that the author is laying the groundwork for something much bigger and more exciting.

The descriptions of the setting and the initial events are quite detailed, but at times it felt a bit slow-paced.

Nonetheless, I am intrigued enough to want to find out what happens next.

I'm looking forward to delving deeper into this world and getting to know the characters better as the story progresses.

Overall, while this first book may not have been a mind-blowing read, it has definitely piqued my interest and has me eager to continue with the series.