Other Worlds Than These by Stephen King and Peter Straub review – a self-indulgent finale to the Talisman trilogy

There are moments of shivering joy as the protagonist of two enduring classics, Jack Sawyer, returns – but this time his journey feels endlessly repetitive Bear with me, because there is some backstory to get through before we can talk about the book I am actually here to review. Back in 1984, Stephen King and Peter Straub collaborated on the fantasy novel The Talisman.

Like all the best King stories, it follows a young boy: in this case Jack Sawyer, 12, whose mother, Lily, is dying. Jack learns that a magical object called the Talisman might save her – if he can find it in a parallel world known as the Territories. Straub and King followed this up in 2001 with Black House , in which an adult Jack investigates a series of child murders that turn out to have disturbing links to the Territories. The books are very different: one a coming-of-age cross-country quest, in…