Two
words come into mind when I think of BAG OF BONES --- vintage
King.

The story revolves more around the imagination and mental games
that surrounded the early works of King than it does around blood
and gore. And the fact that the gristle is missing does not have
the story lacking --- not in the least bit.

As the book opens Mike Noonan, a bestselling novelist has just lost
his wife to a brain aneurysm. Noonan has just discovered that his
wife Johanna was pregnant with their daughter when she died, so his
loss is doubled.  

Driven by the need to discover why Johanna kept her pregnancy from
him, Mike investigates her death. His investigation leads us to
King's usual geographical surroundings --- the story begins in
Derry, Maine. There Mike starts to experience all kinds of ghost
activities in his summer home --- aptly named Sara Laughs --- which
is located in an area called TR-90. There he finds himself unable
to write. Even an attempt to write throws him into a panic attack.
He starts having nightmares which occur with more and more
frequency. The ritual that he and Johanna once practiced ---
Johanna typed the last line of every novel --- is not longer
possible. Nor is there anyone with whom to clink the empty
champagne flute.

He traces Johanna's steps and discovers many things that make him
question himself and their relationship. He is driven to do things
he doesn’t understand, but he is unable to stop himself. What
drove his wife's behavior? Was it another man? Or something else
that she has learned?

Shortly after Mike arrives and is settled in to Sara Laughs, he
rescues Kyra, a 3-year-old girl who is walking down the middle of a
highway. Through Kyra, Mike meets Mattie --- Kyra's mother --- and
a close bond develops almost immediately among the three of them. A
romantic interest even sparks between Mike and Mattie. Later Mike
discovers that Kyra can read his mind.

Mike hires a lawyer to represent Mattie against her evil, wicked
and twisted father-in-law, Max Devore, who is seeking custody
of  Kyra. Max has the whole town in his pocket and uses
some methods to win Kyra which are pretty frightening.

BAG OF BONES is an intricately woven story --- full of emotion and
energy. As the back cover so aptly puts it, BAG OF BONES is a
haunted love story. To write again Mike will need to listen to the
woman he loved and kill an image from the past. He also must cope
with more loss from the new life he has created for himself.

King creates a warm, likeable, believable character in Mike. You
feel his nightmares. You laugh at the wry humor that King is so
good at portraying through his characters.

While BAG OF BONES is not a "gory" read, it does have death. Here
the character portrayal is again so strong that each loss is felt
--- and remembered.  

Knowing how King has repeated characters such as Thad Beaumont (THE
DARK HALF) and Bill Denbrough (IT), and places such as Castle Rock
and Derry, I can’t help but hope that there will be another
book where we’ll see these characters again. I was left with
too many questions unanswered. Since King uses the same characters
often, I wonder if the TR will be the new Castle Rock? As Johanna
always said, "then that's all right, isn't it?"