Cycle of the Werewolf by Stephen King
I’ve been thinking about buying this book for a while but was put off because it was short (127 pages, my copy) and at more than £10 it didn’t represent value for money, for me. I didn’t realise that it came with illustrations. I then found out that it was originally a limited edition and then I understood why it was difficult to find. It was when it was delivered that I realised that it had illustrations in it. I decided to buy it because it was written by Stephen King and was, as far as I know, his only werewolf story.
The book is physically taller than I expected and I was pleasantly surprised by finding the illustrations, more so since they are hand drawn. The paper is good quality and there are a lot of very good illustrations, some of which are in colour. I prefer to use my own imagination but these illustrations did enhance the story. I bought it for the story and a cracker it is. In today’s day and age I’d hesitate to call it horror and I’ve always liked the fact that Stephen King doesn’t go into detailed blood thirsty descriptions (i.e. gore) when somebody is killed.
The book is divided into chapters, despite being so short, and these comprise the months of the year. There are as many illustrations at the beginning as there is story and I have to admit to feeling a little conned. But the story eventually takes over and the revelation of who the werewolf actually is and how he is discovered came as a complete surprise to me - the story has a great ending! - and King’s writing is as good as he gets.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and would recommend it, even although I read it in one sitting.