I think I’ve read:
Desperation
Insomnia(which I’m sure mentioned the Dark Tower, but it was years ago)
Rose Madder
I’m half-way through Eyes of the Dragon as well, which I’m reading with extra time and I don’t have Dark Tower with me.
Ah. Remember Topeka, where everyone had died of the Superflu? They touched the world in which “The Stand” took place.
The only book that I would recommend reading before Mahaloth gets to book five would be Salem’s Lot. You don’t have to read them in that order, but I read Salem’s Lot after I finished the series and found myself wishing that I had read it first. It’s the only one though.
It’s probably a good idea to put a gap between book 4 and 5 anyway.
I think it’s kind of the other way around, actually. You can read and enjoy the whole of The Dark Tower without reading any of the other books, but if you read the rest of the King canon without reading The Dark Tower you’d be missing a bit - just a bit - of depth.
When you’re done with DT, read Hearts in Atlantis and the title story of Everything’s Eventual. And The Stand and Salem’s Lot.
But actually, read most of them, if you like the writing in DT. The three that you’ve actually read are actually three of the weakest.
Looking forward to following you through the ending, actually. I’m a huge fan of this series, and I thought the ending - both conception and execution - was one of the more brilliant things I’ve read in my life.
Glad to hear it. I’m staying optimistic and open-minded.
I understand if not everything is explained and if the ending is unsatisfying in some ways, but I also didn’t mind the ending to LOST or Battlestar Galactica.
Is there a lot of hate for books 5, 6, and 7? I know he made us wait a tremendous amount of time(with his accident and all).
Should I really take a break between 4 and 5? I was planning to read right through the whole series, actually.
I guess I’m wrong that John Farson(The Good Man) is The Man In Black. I could have sworn this would be the case.
His making us wait had nothing to do with the accident, the accident is what got him to finish the series. There was, going by memory, almost 15 years between the publication of the Wasteland and Wolves of the Callah. Book 5 is my least favorite of the series, in that it feels largely unnecessary to me. Book 6 I think is quite good and book 7…well let us know when you get there. I thought that the ending was a cop out personally but it’s not really that bad. Other people really like it.
Yeah, it goes:
Gunslinger: 1981 or so
Drawing of the Three: 1987
Wastelands: 1991
Wizard and Glass: 1997
Wolves: 2003
Susannah: 2004
Dark Tower: 2004
I feel so bad for people who were reading the series as it was published. Six years until Blaine’s segment could be finished.
Yeah, and I saw it coming a mile away. Six years to be…right.
Finished Wizard and Glass(book 4):
Don’t answer any of my questions. They are just speculations.
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Wow, the ending with the Oz stuff was great, actually. I felt terrible for Roland killing his mother, but I agree that he is relatively innocent and the witch is to blame.
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I love the series, but again, he did not need 500 pages(in my version) to tell the back story. It was good, but not my favorite stuff. This is the weakest book for me because of it.
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Wow, Allain and Cuthbert survived the book. I’m stunned. I hope we learn how they died. I’m quite curious.
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I want to know how Rhea the witch died, as well. Eddie seems to think Roland did kill her based on the look in his eyes when he talks about her.
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Is that it for the Tick-Tock man? Dude, if so, disappointing.
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Uh, so King seems to suggest in the foreward to the next book that John Farson is Marten is Randall is Maerlyn. Is this correct then? You can answer this one for me if you feel it isn’t major spoilerific.
Just started book 5:
Uh, am I supposed to know why they are obsessing on “19”? Was this mentioned before?
Is it just part of the mystery, 'cause I don’t remember 19 playing a large role until this book started saying they are obsessed with it.
I’m only 40 pages in, by the way.
200 pages into Wolves of the Calla:
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Wow, seeing the rose in NY when they todashed was a really cool moment. I’m surprised he didnt’ force us to wait for the end of the book for that to happen. Very cool.
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Surprised that Allain’s and Cuthbert’s deaths were touched on in a brief todash between worlds. At least we know how they died.
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Uh, did Eddie just sense that they are characters in a book? I mean, he told Roland that everything feels real…but not real at the same time. Weird.
Just speculation. Please don’t spoil. 
Nope. But if you were to go back through the first 4 books (especially the revised Gunslinger version), you’d see it all over the place. It may have been even more prominently mentioned in the first book, but I can’t remember at the moment.
Yeah - when they go to NYC and see the rose, that was really cool. When you finish everything, dig around on the 'net to see real-life tours/pictures/etc. of the location. There’s an actual turtle there!
Speculation:
- Uh, Eddie just pointed out how unreal the whole situation feels. It’s like he knows they are in a story. Weird.
Speculation:
- The Wolves of the Calla are robots, like Andy. This is how he knows when they are coming. If so, I have no idea what they are doing to the kids they take. Perhaps using them to test previously radioactive areas.
Oh, I was wrong. Unless it turns out different, it looks like they are Zombies, servants of the vampires of Thunderclap.
I am wondering if the ka-tet will head over to Thunderclap to deal with vampires.
Mahaloth - if you haven’t finished Wolves, could you give us a thorough impression of the book so far? Any more suspicions, things of interest, confusions? Really, anything that might have come to mind.
Finished:
Thoughts
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Oh, it was robots. Indeed, rather predictable.
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Lightsabers? Snitches?(sneetches)? Dr. Doom? Salem’s Lot? Dude, these people are fictional. I called it awhile ago. Weird.
Speculations:
No idea what to expect in books 6 and 7. They will try to seek out Stephen King to see if he knows anything about the Dark Tower? Perhaps even to find out if it is real?
I’m surprised this “Mia” character has been invented. This storyline, just like the Wolves, seems to have come out of nowhere. I assume she will give birth to something…no idea what.
Questions:
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Were the Wolves using the twins to help…create telepathic creatures or something. Telepathic zombies or something like that? Answer this one if it isn’t massive spoilers for the next books, please.
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Were people a bit disappointed after a big wait? I mean, the whole Wolves storyline is neat, but it doesn’t exactly seem to fit into them questing for the Tower. Honestly, I liked this book a lot. Probably was my favorite except for 2 and 3.
On to Song of Sussannah…
Did you notice the font used for the chapter titles was the Harry Potter font?
I honestly can’t remember, but that seems familiar.
I started reading right before Wolves came out, so I didn’t have a big wait. I really enjoyed it as well.