Ok, let's face it, if you are a fan of horror fiction you absolutely have to be a fan of the Grand Master of that genre, Stephen King. For the past couple of decades this author has sold millions upon millions of copies of his novels. Sure, some have been much better than others but, for the most part, this man has more memorable titles associated with his name than any other author I can think of.

Now, I am one of those who definitely feel that Stephen King's best work was his early stuff--you all know which books I'm talking about here: Carrie, Salem's Lot, The Shining, IT, The Stand, Christine, and on and on. Let me tell you that the very first book I ever read that gave me a nightmare was King's, Salem's Lot. Although it was many years ago, I still remember that dream clearly. Even thinking about it now, I get a strange tingling at the back of my neck. A sure sign of a horror master.

That is why, without fail, I continue to give Stephen King's work a chance with each new book he puts out. Sure, some of the new stuff is not always up there with the rest of it but, hands down, the man still has talent. On the other hand, with the almost clear expectation that a newer King novel is not going to be as good as his past work, imagine how happy I am whenever one of his newer novels jumps up and surprises me with its excellence?

Such was the case with DREAMCATCHER, a mammoth tome of fiction that blends horror with science fiction. Yes, Stephen King has tried this before (the most obvious example being THE TOMMYKNOCKERS), with limited success, but this time--with DREAMCATCHER--he succeeds on a grand scale.

Let me set the scene for you: four men who have been close friends since childhood are deep in the Northern New England woods on their annual hunting trip when something strange happens. A man comes wandering into the area of their cabin mumbling about being lost out in the woods. While two of the friends have driven through a major snow storm in to the only store in the area to re-supply for their stay in the cabin, the other two show this man into the warmth of their cabin and offer to let him relax and gather his bearings. This is where things begin to go wrong...

Alright, let me take that back, a lot of the background that is included up to this point definitely shows where things have already gone wrong in their pasts and where things continue to go wrong for some of them (particularly Jonesy and Henry), but the part at the cabin with the lost newcomer is where things really get strange...

...just take my word for it. This book really had me going, it gave me the creepy- crawlers, the heeby-jeebies, I think you get the point. I will not go any further into the plot at this time in fear of ruining the entire thing for you. What I will say is this, Stephen King has written a novel here that takes you back and forth through time utilizing the memories of these four friends. He brings you back to their childhoods, brings you back to their present predicament and takes you back again and again flawlessly. You learn as much as you need to know about these four men and what their lives have been like since they were kids. You learn their funny little inside jokes, their tired old sayings that they all still cling to like children to security blankets, their weird use of language and the camaraderie that is often very hard to come by between two people, let alone four.

And then there's the military...yep, another whole side to this tale that takes the reader off on another tangent entirely. And yet, throughout the great girth of this book, King manages to switch back and forth between all of his characters like a well- oiled machine. This is vintage Stephen King at work here, folks, make no mistake. This book is on a par with his early classics, of that there is no doubt. I must admit, this novel took up space on my hardcover book shelf for quite some time, sitting there unread, intimidating me with its vast length. But, ever since I decided to pick it up in early March, I am as happy as I can be with that decision. I raced through this book, turned the pages eagerly, eating up the story as only Stephen King can make readers do...often long into the night.

This one is a winner, folks. Let me be clear...however...there is a dark and dangerous thing that each of you must avoid. At all costs, do not do the one thing that you might want to do as you check your local movie listings this weekend. DO NOT GO TO SEE THE MOVIE THAT WAS MADE OF THIS BOOK!!! I implore you, do not ruin this tale so thoroughly by wasting your time and money on the DREAMCATCHER MOVIE. I saw it last week, just days after finishing the book, and wished that I had never set foot in that theater. Some books just can not be done justice to with a movie and, although an attempt was made in earnest this time, the movie just wasn't up to the challenge. Now, granted, it is awfully hard to turn a near-700 page book [the hc edition - Steve] into a two-hour movie and cram everything that needs to be in there in there. So why do they keep trying to do such things in Hollywood, you might ask? Who knows the answer to that question, I surely do not.

But, if it's a top-notch s/f--horror blend of a book that you're looking for, I think you will find that DREAMCATCHER more than does the trick. Bravo to Stephen King for this effort. I can only hope that his recent announcement that he is calling it quits when it comes to writing books will wear off and wear off soon. If he can still write like this, this fellow wants more.