In a lot of ways, the final three books in "The Dark Tower" series are arguably the most urgent in Stephen King's magnum opus. Following a car accident that almost killed him, the fate of his future seemed unknown, especially when it came to his much beloved series. Would gunslinger Roland and the ka-tet ever get to see The Dark Tower, or is it all one of the biggest unfinished mysteries? Thankfully, King was of the mindset that the story needed to be told, and done before he met his inevitable fate (which as of 2018, has yet to happen thankfully). With "Wolves of the Calla," he returns the readers to Midworld, and specifically a group of people who are doomed to be attacked by wolves. It's another entry in the ribald and weird King that is delightfully desired. However, it may also have some signs that King's urgency comes with some errors.
For many, "The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass" was controversial because its story was more about the origins of Roland and his love Susannah. Without going into specifics, it derailed the plot and momentum towards the most recent of timelines in the book. While it actually does plenty to make Roland a more affecting and interesting character, it did leave a lot of hope for whatever lied ahead. From the sound of it, "Wolves of the Calla" was meant almost as an apology, or as a way to progress plot in the most electric and exciting way possible: an all out fight between gunslingers and wolves. Considering that King's adoration for pulp and horror, this should've been the great moment that the book was building towards. It should have been an epic conclusion to a story that has been suggested as a fantasy version of The Magnificent Seven film (with King even acknowledging influence from westerns in the back pages).
That isn't to say that he doesn't deliver, but more that it is the underwhelming climax. Again, many criticize the book for not progressing the plot significantly. It is about Roland fighting wolves to say a community that has been ravaged, whose children have been brutally deformed (or "roont"), and need some form of protection. This is achieved, but the book spends such a meandering amount of time assembling a team that it feels like the build to something greater. What it ends up being is not even a dozen pages of description, ending abruptly. This isn't to say that there aren't great moments within it, but there's so much impulsive nature of King in those actions, even adding Star Wars light sabers and Harry Potter "sneetches" that are humorously commented upon by characters who would never live to see the juggernaut J.K. Rowling series.
In that way, the book is a bit of a letdown, never quite getting the triumphant conclusion that is necessary to make this story pop. Everything before it is more of a grab bag and finds King again at his most urgent. The sequences where characters "todash" (or randomly transport to another time and place) are often interesting and are setting groundwork for the final two books, specifically in relation to an empty lot with a rose from 1977. With that said, very little of it needs to be paid off here, so there's little that's satisfying immediately about the act of todash. It's more of an establishment of a crazy concept in a book full of crazy ideas that show "The Dark Tower" franchise finally reaching the point of creativity where newcomers won't even understand the language on the page. Those who do will have a blast reading all of the exchanges, as King continues to get more confident in his approach. Still, he's got a lot of establishment here that is intriguing, but not satisfying without further text - such as the bizarre decision to add himself as a character to his own text.
There's also talk about a potential demon baby being born that is at times fascinating and others tedious. The pregnancy has been building since "The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands," and it's interesting to see the conflict arise. There's a lot of danger that now looms over the series, and there's likely to be some broken hearts somewhere along the road. However, it doesn't really come from fighting wolves. There's not a lot in those moments that aren't more than cool pulpy action. That would be satisfactory enough, but this series has built itself as a land of infinite possibility. Maybe the issue is that there's too much that it can be. Thankfully, it still has enough going for it in the character department, especially when making Jake and Roland far more compelling characters. With that said, it also ties in King's "Salem's Lot" as a central subject, so expect more books to be blatantly dropped into the middle of the story in the books to come. That's not a bad thing - as this is supposed to be the series that connects ALL of King's work - but still an odd one.
Depending on your fascinating with fantasy, "Wolves of the Calla" will be another engaging read from "The Dark Tower" series. There's nothing inherently wrong here, and the series does have a nice pick up of energy after "Wizard and Glass" chose a slower tale. However, the fact that the final three were released in quick succession does suggest that maybe the remaining series will not have as many satisfactory moments as the first four. While "Wolves of the Calla" is a nice addition that expands the world in meaningful and memorable ways, there's still moments that drag on or last for too short of a period. As a whole, it's a good read for those invested in the series - even if it's more about presenting details and plot points that will be of more use later. For now, it's a solid return to Midworld with enough moments to keep going.
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