I'm not sure what possessed me to pick up a book with almost 800 pages when I'm already behind on my reading challenges for 2014, but there was just something about the blurb on the back that just sounded so deliciously CREEPY! And, although I haven't read a lot of Stephen King, I do adore his completely twisted perspectives on everything -- so, perhaps his son could accomplish the same without quite as much long-winded rambling? 
 (Oh wait, the book is 800 pages.... but, moving on...) 
 So, NOS4A2 centers around Vic McQueen, a dangerously lovable and flawed heroine who has been deeply touched by loads of magic (or mental illness?) that allow her to ride her childhood bike over a bridge that should no longer be in existence -- to appear on the other side wherever she needs to be, most often to find something beloved and special that has been pronounced missing by someone important in her life. Each trip across the forbidden (and nonexistent?) bridge leaves Vic a little more broken -- she feels the sharp and painful explosions, always above her left eye, that signal that something just isn't quite right. But still, Vic continues to cross her magical little bridge... 
 ... until she encounters Charles Talent Manx, a disturbing child abductor with an alarming preoccupation with playing a heroic role in the "rescue" of young kids -- and the resulting murders of their parents as vengeance and protection for the troubled youth. A spooky character, oddly reminiscent of Willie Wonka if he were possessed by Satan, Manx inhabits a mystical world called Christmasland that can be found on no ordinary map. In fact, it is as if Manx himself has willed his darkest imaginations into existence, using young children to feed his own youth and to keep his warped visions of happiness and comfort alive forever 
 Manx has never failed in his horrific child abductions -- until, that is, he counters Vic McQueen... the first child to ever escape the clutches of Manx and his magically evil Rolls-Royce Wraith, which bears a vanity plate spelling NOS4A2... 
 Many years later, Manx has been pronounced dead, and Vic McQueen has found herself a husband and young son, and she tries to distance herself from the past hallucinations that consumed her life for so long. But, Manx's body has been mysteriously "stolen" from the autopsy table -- and Manx is on a mission to locate the only child to ever get away... and he will stop at NOTHING to destroy McQueen and her son as viciously as possible. 
 But Vic may not be alone in her abilities to bring her deepest imaginations into a haunting reality -- and it's time for her to put her strength to the ultimate test... and failure is NOT an option... 
 I think what I loved most about NOS4A2 was the way that Hill skillfully injected metaphysical questions into a fast-paced exciting story in such a way that kept me, the reader, constantly wondering just what was real and what was nothing more than a product of a terrifying imagination (or mental illness?). As Vic questions her own sanity against the fading reality around her, the reader too is forced to question the reliability of this flawed narrator -- which keeps the story fresh and interesting, even through almost 800 pages. 
 The level of detail with which Hill creates this universe is both unbeliveable and oddly relatable, as the characters struggle to decipher the good from the evil (which is done in such a way that even the reader, at times, cannot quite determine what motivates the bizarre actions of these multi-faceted characters. And, it certainly doesn't hurt that the novel was full of entertaining twists and turns, carried along through witty writing and shorter chapters that maintained a delicious pace to it all. 
 If you're a fan of psychological horror and you're patient enough to devour 800 pages of insanity, I think that NOS4A2 may be just the read for you. I definitely plan to read more from Joe Hill in the future, and I can't wait to see what other twisted stories I will enjoy from this author!