Badkittyuno’s #CBR5 Review #64: The Wind Through the Keyhole (The Dark Tower #4.5) by Stephen King

I apologize for flooding y’all’s feed today. I read five books on maternity leave and haven’t written up any yet. So these reviews are to the best of my sleep-deprived recollection.

Full disclosure: I adore anything by Stephen King, specifically Dark Tower, so it was unlikely that I would dislike this book. But I really did think it was good. The Wind Through the Keyhole takes place approximately between Wizard and Glass (book four) and Wolves of the Calla (book five).
The Wind Through the Keyhole is a story within a story within a story. The ka-tet take refuge during a horrible storm, which reminds Roland of a similar such storm from his childhood (not that Roland was ever really childlike…). In this flashback, Roland and a friend find themselves investigating some murders in their capacities as young gunslingers. Roland finds himself needing to calm a younger child. To do so, he tells the boy the story of brave Tim Stoutheart. So we hear Tim’s story (which composes the bulk of the novel and is quite good), then learn the conclusion of young Roland’s tale, then finish the novel when the storm ends for the ka-tet.
If you have never read a Dark Tower book in your life, it’s still an interesting read because Tim Stoutheart’s tale of bravery can really stand on its own. But really, you should just suck it up and read the entire Dark Tower series. You’ll find your life was missing something without it.