BOOK: The Wind Through The Keyhole

AUTHOR: Stephen King

PUBLISHER: Hodder & Stoughton (Hachette Aust)

RRP: $32.99

FOR the legions of fans of master storyteller Stephen King, this latest novel in the Dark Tower series is a chance to find out what happened to gunslinger Roland Distain and his band.

But even if you haven't been following the series, it will satisfy as a "stand-alone".

King's foreword ensures that you are conversant with Mid-World, a place "filled with monsters and untrustworthy magic".

He brings his old acquaintances from past stories once more to life in this epic fantasy adventure, which has more than its fair share of grisly, larger-than-life characters, leaving an ever-growing tide of violence in their wake

. This time he treats us to a story within a story, as Roland narrates a fairytale to his cohorts, replete with mystical forests, dragons, swamps and wicked step-parents.

This is an absorbing, multi-layered tale, told in King's unique style.