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	title:	The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower
	author:	Stephen King
	format:	Hardcover
	publisher:	Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
	released:	September 21, 2004
	isbn:	0340827211
	isbn-13:	9780340827215

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Book Details / Review - supplied by Amazon UK
The Dark Tower is the final volume in Stephen King's 34 years in the writing septet with which it shares its title. Not only does the book complete the 3000-plus page quest, but also weaves together much of King's fiction from his entire career. It is, as King notes in his afterword, as much the summation of his own journey as it is of the last gunslinger, Roland Deschain. The story continues directly from the end of Song of Susannah, but this time is much more of an epic fantasy than a surreal metafiction (a word King tells us he hates, but is stuck with). Roland finally reaches The Dark Tower, but getting there is a wonder in itself, a bleak and often tragic tale with King pulling no punches as the small band of warriors find their destinies. There is more action and excitement, suspense and adventure than in the two proceeding volumes--from desperate chases to battles with a giant spider--while the tone is often melancholy with the remorseless of fate. King works within the patterns of the great fantasy epics, from the Arthurian legends to The Lord of the Rings and his writing is as beautiful as it is unsparingly graphic. The final 100 pages are simply breathtaking in their perfect dark beauty. Doubtless the meaning of it all will be debated for decades to come, with some loving the ending, others feeling let down. But the result is an immensely bold piece of work which avoids the clichés of stock heroic fantasy while completely fulfilling the series' atavistic promise. One thing is certain, the final pages will make many readers head straight back to the first volume, The Gunslinger to make the journey all over again.--Gary Dalkin

Book Details / Review - supplied by Amazon UK

The Dark Tower is the final volume in Stephen King's 34 years in the writing septet with which it shares its title. Not only does the book complete the 3000-plus page quest, but also weaves together much of King's fiction from his entire career. It is, as King notes in his afterword, as much the summation of his own journey as it is of the last gunslinger, Roland Deschain.

The story continues directly from the end of Song of Susannah, but this time is much more of an epic fantasy than a surreal metafiction (a word King tells us he hates, but is stuck with). Roland finally reaches The Dark Tower, but getting there is a wonder in itself, a bleak and often tragic tale with King pulling no punches as the small band of warriors find their destinies. There is more action and excitement, suspense and adventure than in the two proceeding volumes--from desperate chases to battles with a giant spider--while the tone is often melancholy with the remorseless of fate. King works within the patterns of the great fantasy epics, from the Arthurian legends to The Lord of the Rings and his writing is as beautiful as it is unsparingly graphic. The final 100 pages are simply breathtaking in their perfect dark beauty. Doubtless the meaning of it all will be debated for decades to come, with some loving the ending, others feeling let down. But the result is an immensely bold piece of work which avoids the clichés of stock heroic fantasy while completely fulfilling the series' atavistic promise. One thing is certain, the final pages will make many readers head straight back to the first volume, The Gunslinger to make the journey all over again.--Gary Dalkin

Books Related to The Dark Tower VII Stephen King - ISBN: 0340827211
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Customer Reviews
King's Masterpiece - Rated This is an excellent finale to the seven-volume epic of The Dark Tower. From the very beginning (The Gunslinger) and all the way through it is a story that only the inimitable King could write. And it must have been some effort. As a bit of a writer myself I can only imagine the torments he must have gone through to finish this work. Stephen King fans would have already read this but I recommend the entire work to anyone who loves books. Brian The end of an era... - Rated Well, where to start? (Minor spoilers) Having completed the Dark Tower series in just over a year, I truly feel like its the end of an era, and am grateful I didn't have to wait 20 years like some people! The final volume is, to be fair, the best of the final three, as it seems to me that this is where King knew exactly what he wanted to do. Wolves of the Calla was a good read, but still far too slow for my liking, whilst Song of Susannah was all over the place and a low point in the series. The series, it is clearer than ever here, has become a true 'labour of love' for sai King, 'labour' being the key word. So much so has it affected his life that he couldn't avoid writing himself into the narrative. As he stresses numerous times, this was not based on any delusions of grandeur, but simply his way of dealing with the tremendous pressure the books put on him. All things considered, a series weaving cowboys, robots, time-travelling, Arthurian legend and vampires into the same plot was an immensely tall order, and King does a remarkable job. King has said numerous times that he doesn't write the book as much as it writes itself, but one of the main problems I had with this book was in fact, not the meta-fiction, but the almost embarassingly ad-hoc demise of all of its major villains, particularly one major character who has existed since the first book. It seems that some of the narrative strands introduced in the last few books inadvertently overcomplicated things and left King with no other way out. The fact that he himself references the phrase 'deus ex machina' more than once, before clearly employing the technique in serveral occasions, is unfortunate, but perhaps inevitable. Roland's world is, as always, wonderfully portrayed down to the last ruined building or dead treee, and, although there is little 'action' say compared to, say, 'Drawing of the Three', but in a way, this recalls the surreal spiritual isolation of the first book. The battle scenes are in all but one unfortunately quite anticlimactic when they do erupt (King at one point even gives up trying to describe it), but for their briefness forgivable. The book shines, as they always have done, when Roland's ka-tet are together and engaged in light-hearted 'palaver' (banter) as they journey through strange places and encounter the weird and wonderful that only King could conjure up. The ending is something that every Dark Tower reader should discover for themselves, for they have earned it. For me, the book is about obsession over a difficult, tormenting goal, both on the part of Roland and Stephen King. I would strongly advise not trying to learn the ending before finishing, as I did, although I will say that I still found myself in awe as the book shifted into the final chapter. The ending is the only ending, and despite the imperfections of the series, I am glad I took the journey. Brilliant final - Rated Some time ago I have written a review on Gunslinger then I have decided to refrain from reviewing the rest of the series until I have finished The Dark Tower VII. Now, I have reached the destination. I have finished the last book in the saga. It was indeed a very long journey. It started almost 1 year ago. While reading the series I picked up a few more books to get a bit of a rest from the series (after the first 4 volumes), then I re-read Gunslinger and understood/liked it much more than when I read it for the first time. I have also read Salem's Lot and Hearts in Atlantis between volume VI and VII. I would suggest reading them after Wizard and Glass, book 4. It would make Father Callahan's story in Wolves of Calla, book 5 more interesting. I didn't know what to expect from The Dark Tower VII. I have read too many negative reviews about S. King screwing it up completely and its ruined ending (as well as a lot of unsympathetic moaning about Wolves of Calla and Song of Sunnah). I don't know what everybody expected from the series. The ending is completely unpredictable and different from any other book I have ever read. It was certainly highly unusual... I still think it was interesting how he did it, by tying it into his view of the Dark Tower. Sure some people would like a more traditional finish but I think this particular ending is very good. As King said, it could not be different and the journey was fantastic as well. When I finished the book, I felt a little bit disappointed by the ending, but why? I could not explain it to myself, so I re-read the last chapter (Coda/Found) the next day in the morning. Then I have done some thinking about it and the more I thought, the more I became convinced that the ending is brilliant?! It is not a Hollywood happy end, but if it were anything like that it would have an artificial/contrived feeling to it. The ending as it is does feel very natural, very fit and thoughtful. I believe I quite like it, I almost love it. Another thought have crossed my mind. I would like to re-read The Dark Tower in future. I know how it is going to end and still I would like to re-read the series. Moreover, I have this feeling right now, right after I finished the series vs. having the same feeling in 5 years time when I remember next to nothing. I wonder, what does it mean? There were many books I enjoyed and I liked their happy or not very happy endings. However, I didn't feel like I want to re-read them in order to go through all the details of the saga, to start the journey from the beginning. I guess it is like The Lord of the Rings. We know the ending (actually we might hate it) but we would like to come back for details. I think it is a mark of a greatness of a book. I believe this is what makes a particular book/series outstanding. Actually, I feel a little bit sad that I have so say Goodbye to Roland and his company with whom I spent almost a year. I would definitely recommend the series to my friends. A few more words about this edition. It has quite a few illustrations that help you to immerse deeper into an atmosphere of the book. I like the quality of this edition (good solid paper and even a bookmark :)) You come so far why not come a little further - Rated So after almost a year of reading the Dark Tower Series the final book was released and this wasn't a small book by any means. I seen people love or hate this book mainly because of the ending. I loved the ending! Everything else in this seris has been so fresh, new, different, exciting, mind bending, pushing boundaries of writing .... I could go on for a while. Why spoil it with and they all lived happily ever after non sence. This book is an excellent end to an excellent series and completes them all. Must read Great journey and amazing story - Rated I must say, i'm sad that it's over. it has taken me quite a few months, a bit at a time. The whole story was great.... this book was very good. cause the emotions that king brought out were that of a rollercoater... it was really happy at times. very tense...and really sad. (had a lump in my throat at times) Everybody moans that the ending isn't like every other typical story ending... everyone expects a perfect fairytale ending.... life isn't perfect and thats what makes this ending great. if you're reading this review and haven't finished this chapter... (bravo to the person who gave away most of the book because they we sulking) don't expect a perfect ending... just let go and take the ending for what it is...like i did.... and i really enjoyed the book and i loved the entire series. i must say if this had the movie budget of lord of the rings...it would really make an amazing movie if done right.

Customer Reviews

King's Masterpiece - Rated 5/5
This is an excellent finale to the seven-volume epic of The Dark Tower. From the very beginning (The Gunslinger) and all the way through it is a story that only the inimitable King could write. And it must have been some effort. As a bit of a writer myself I can only imagine the torments he must have gone through to finish this work.
Stephen King fans would have already read this but I recommend the entire work to anyone who loves books.
Brian

The end of an era... - Rated 3/5
Well, where to start? (Minor spoilers)

Having completed the Dark Tower series in just over a year, I truly feel like its the end of an era, and am grateful I didn't have to wait 20 years like some people!

The final volume is, to be fair, the best of the final three, as it seems to me that this is where King knew exactly what he wanted to do. Wolves of the Calla was a good read, but still far too slow for my liking, whilst Song of Susannah was all over the place and a low point in the series.

The series, it is clearer than ever here, has become a true 'labour of love' for sai King, 'labour' being the key word. So much so has it affected his life that he couldn't avoid writing himself into the narrative. As he stresses numerous times, this was not based on any delusions of grandeur, but simply his way of dealing with the tremendous pressure the books put on him. All things considered, a series weaving cowboys, robots, time-travelling, Arthurian legend and vampires into the same plot was an immensely tall order, and King does a remarkable job.

King has said numerous times that he doesn't write the book as much as it writes itself, but one of the main problems I had with this book was in fact, not the meta-fiction, but the almost embarassingly ad-hoc demise of all of its major villains, particularly one major character who has existed since the first book. It seems that some of the narrative strands introduced in the last few books inadvertently overcomplicated things and left King with no other way out. The fact that he himself references the phrase 'deus ex machina' more than once, before clearly employing the technique in serveral occasions, is unfortunate, but perhaps inevitable.

Roland's world is, as always, wonderfully portrayed down to the last ruined building or dead treee, and, although there is little 'action' say compared to, say, 'Drawing of the Three', but in a way, this recalls the surreal spiritual isolation of the first book. The battle scenes are in all but one unfortunately quite anticlimactic when they do erupt (King at one point even gives up trying to describe it), but for their briefness forgivable. The book shines, as they always have done, when Roland's ka-tet are together and engaged in light-hearted 'palaver' (banter) as they journey through strange places and encounter the weird and wonderful that only King could conjure up.

The ending is something that every Dark Tower reader should discover for themselves, for they have earned it. For me, the book is about obsession over a difficult, tormenting goal, both on the part of Roland and Stephen King. I would strongly advise not trying to learn the ending before finishing, as I did, although I will say that I still found myself in awe as the book shifted into the final chapter. The ending is the only ending, and despite the imperfections of the series, I am glad I took the journey.

Brilliant final - Rated 5/5
Some time ago I have written a review on Gunslinger then I have decided to refrain from reviewing the rest of the series until I have finished The Dark Tower VII.
Now, I have reached the destination. I have finished the last book in the saga. It was indeed a very long journey. It started almost 1 year ago. While reading the series I picked up a few more books to get a bit of a rest from the series (after the first 4 volumes), then I re-read Gunslinger and understood/liked it much more than when I read it for the first time. I have also read Salem's Lot and Hearts in Atlantis between volume VI and VII. I would suggest reading them after Wizard and Glass, book 4. It would make Father Callahan's story in Wolves of Calla, book 5 more interesting.

I didn't know what to expect from The Dark Tower VII. I have read too many negative reviews about S. King screwing it up completely and its ruined ending (as well as a lot of unsympathetic moaning about Wolves of Calla and Song of Sunnah). I don't know what everybody expected from the series. The ending is completely unpredictable and different from any other book I have ever read. It was certainly highly unusual... I still think it was interesting how he did it, by tying it into his view of the Dark Tower. Sure some people would like a more traditional finish but I think this particular ending is very good. As King said, it could not be different and the journey was fantastic as well.

When I finished the book, I felt a little bit disappointed by the ending, but why? I could not explain it to myself, so I re-read the last chapter (Coda/Found) the next day in the morning. Then I have done some thinking about it and the more I thought, the more I became convinced that the ending is brilliant?!
It is not a Hollywood happy end, but if it were anything like that it would have an artificial/contrived feeling to it. The ending as it is does feel very natural, very fit and thoughtful. I believe I quite like it, I almost love it.

Another thought have crossed my mind. I would like to re-read The Dark Tower in future. I know how it is going to end and still I would like to re-read the series. Moreover, I have this feeling right now, right after I finished the series vs. having the same feeling in 5 years time when I remember next to nothing. I wonder, what does it mean? There were many books I enjoyed and I liked their happy or not very happy endings. However, I didn't feel like I want to re-read them in order to go through all the details of the saga, to start the journey from the beginning.
I guess it is like The Lord of the Rings. We know the ending (actually we might hate it) but we would like to come back for details. I think it is a mark of a greatness of a book. I believe this is what makes a particular book/series outstanding.
Actually, I feel a little bit sad that I have so say Goodbye to Roland and his company with whom I spent almost a year.
I would definitely recommend the series to my friends.

A few more words about this edition. It has quite a few illustrations that help you to immerse deeper into an atmosphere of the book. I like the quality of this edition (good solid paper and even a bookmark :))

You come so far why not come a little further - Rated 5/5
So after almost a year of reading the Dark Tower Series the final book was released and this wasn't a small book by any means.

I seen people love or hate this book mainly because of the ending. I loved the ending! Everything else in this seris has been so fresh, new, different, exciting, mind bending, pushing boundaries of writing .... I could go on for a while. Why spoil it with and they all lived happily ever after non sence.

This book is an excellent end to an excellent series and completes them all.

Must read

Great journey and amazing story - Rated 5/5
I must say, i'm sad that it's over. it has taken me quite a few months, a bit at a time. The whole story was great.... this book was very good. cause the emotions that king brought out were that of a rollercoater... it was really happy at times. very tense...and really sad. (had a lump in my throat at times)

Everybody moans that the ending isn't like every other typical story ending... everyone expects a perfect fairytale ending.... life isn't perfect and thats what makes this ending great.

if you're reading this review and haven't finished this chapter... (bravo to the person who gave away most of the book because they we sulking) don't expect a perfect ending... just let go and take the ending for what it is...like i did.... and i really enjoyed the book and i loved the entire series.

i must say if this had the movie budget of lord of the rings...it would really make an amazing movie if done right.

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