Stephen King has published a total of sixty-five novels: his most popular being The Shinning. He is well known for the horrors he has written and the movies that were based off these books.

Despite being known for horror, he did in fact write fantasy too. The Eyes of the Dragon is one of these fantasy novels, and unlike his more popular books, is written in an old-world style storytelling.

Much like stories of old, The Eyes of the Dragon begins with a lot of world building and can be perceived as slow-going. The story begins with, “Once, in a kingdom called Delain…” Delain is the kingdom that is home of two princes. The eldest and heir to the throne is Peter. The younger of the two brothers is Thomas. Although Peter was favored by his father, he was also accused of causing his death. This resulted in Thomas taking the throne. Though no one knew of the evil wizard playing the strings of court.

Stephen King wrote thirteen novels by the time he began working on The Eyes of the Dragon. His main inspiration for this novel is a story for his daughter, Naomi King. Naomi had “very little interest” in the monsters her father was writing about, according to him. He wanted something for his daughter to read that he wrote.

In The Eyes of the Dragon, there is a minor character named Naomi after his daughter. Naomi (in the story) helps Peter’s butler in their quest to free Peter and clear his name of the crime he has been accused of.

Stephen King also wrote The Dark Tower series and The Stand. Readers who have read these will likely be able to make the connection that the antagonist of The Eyes of the Dragon is Randall Flagg, who was the antagonist of the other novels previously mentioned. The Dark Tower series and The Stand do not have to be read in order to read The Eyes of the Dragon, but it is an interesting link between the books.

As mentioned before, this story is written in an old story-telling type of way. It has kings, dragons, wizards, and magic. It is written as an old story would be told. The Eyes of the Dragon reminded me of a classic, or something that could be used to prepare someone to read a classic. The way of the wording and sentences are different compared to other books, but it is a good break from the typical writing style. For something written so complexly, it is straightforward and easy to understand.

According to Stephen King the story “kidnapped” his daughter. The mystical storytelling and carefully thought-out plot made his daughter not “want it to end.” The Eyes of the Dragon is perfect for fantasy readers and definitely a story worthy to be read.