Stephen King is one of the most iconic and successful writers of our generation. With the possible exception of J.K Rowling, no author of fiction is more synonymous with the novel in the past forty years. But while Rowling is defined by the Harry Potter universe, King continues to have the freedom to write whatever he pleases, reaching the bestseller lists with every new release in horror, thriller or even romance. His latest entry, The Institute, is billed as his next great read. Yet with a string of books that have failed to capture the power of his early works, can King remain relevant to a new uprising of readers? Read on…

The Institute tells the tale of Luke Ellis; an extremely intelligent pre-teen who is sent to a facility that performs experiments on children with telekinetic and telepathic powers. These powers are present on a very small scale, tracked from birth and barely strong enough to push a plate off a table. Nevertheless, the Institute captures these children and houses them in dorms resembling their own rooms. To say more would put King’s page turning tome in jeopardy, but there is also another main character (Tim Jameison, an ex-cop taking a night knocker job in a small town) that helps lead the narrative. King also takes delight in writing chapters from the POV of Luke’s captors, providing the opportunity for the reader’s opinion on events.

The good: Intriguing, multi-faceted, easy to read, thought-provoking

King creates worlds that live and breathe, and this book is no exception. The reader desires the conclusion, and King knows they’ll trudge through 500 large pages to get it. His language isn’t difficult and the subject matter isn’t hard to grasp, even though some of the scenes are rather horrific (experiments on kids, what could go wrong?). Yet this is not a horror novel. Psychological thriller would be more accurate. The powers of the children are not for superhero battles, which is a relief. They are a means to an end.

The conclusion, which I will provide no details of, leaves us with many questions to ponder. Questions about our own morality, mortality and how far we would go to save ourselves, despite the impact on others. King does this better than he has in the past. The Institute leaves us with thoughts that transcend the page and don’t rely only on fear, which appears to be a new gun in his arsenal.

The bad: Predictable at times, a far cry from horror, few memorable characters, simplistic dialogue

I love King as a writer. He is the greatest influence on my work. But at his age, he may have finally lost a level of touch with the minds of youth. The dialogue of the characters feels rather cliché. Tim and the inhabitants of DuPray appear more realistic than the children in the Institute, who use language that lacks the blunt edge of the social media age we live in. In IT we saw how King could tap into the fears and actions of a younger crowd, but the Instutite presents every stereotype possible; cool kid, joker, hot girl, twins, broad bully, alternative emo, scared little boy. For the first time, his dislike of Trump actually seeps into the narrative. Adding a political agenda is nothing new for a writer, but at times it is clear his characters are repeating his thoughts on America’s political climate.

In terms of characters, King wants you to know that he’s added diversity. Sometimes too much is said about a person, rather than allowing the reader to build their own love/hate. Often he tells, rather than shows, holding our hand and leading us into a room that is too bright for dark themes. But if we’re grading this book on being a good read, this cannot be denied. It moves at a slow pace, builds suspense, and keeps you wondering; this is because we know King as a horror writer, so surely there can’t be a happy ending…right?

While overall The Institute is not King’s best work, it is definitely a return to form. He still has the ability to delve into strange circumstances and make all the occurrences feel too real. I applaude him for this, and his career. So much so that I will now read all his works, starting from Carrie (1974), to find the definitive King novel.

Follow me on this journey, if you will – C. J. Sutton

Result: 3.8/5