Andy Hageman and Ryan Gjerde
The sequel to The Talisman (1984) by Stephen King and Peter Straub has been hiding in plain sight for twenty-five years. Like the eponymous building at the dark core of Black House (2001), the novel itself has largely eluded the readership of scholars and fans alike. Considering the long-running popularity of The Talisman, including the recent boost from Duffer Brothers adaptation rumors, this overlooking is especially odd. With the final novel in the trilogy (Other Worlds Than These) set to release on October 6, however, now is an ideal time to read, research, and teach Black House. Beyond its present timeliness, Black House deserves attention as a terrifying, and often poetic, tale of a serial killer, the Crimson King (who is also central to King’s Dark Tower tales), the beloved protagonist Jack Sawyer, and other wonderful characters both new and returning from The Talisman. In this essay, we provide an ecohorror approach to the novel’s setting in a small Midwestern town on the Mississippi River, including insights on Straub’s personal connection to this region that ripple across Black House’s pages and into King’s other works as well.
