The Gunslinger
The Dark Tower I The Gunslinger is a dark-fantasy by American author Stephen King. It is the first volume in the Dark Tower series. The Gunslinger was first published in 1982 as a fix-up novel, joining five short stories that had been published between 1978 and 1981. King substantially revised the novel in 2003; this version has remained in print ever since, with the subtitle RESUMPTION. The story centers upon Roland Deschain, the last gunslinger, who has been chasing his adversary, "the man in black," for many years. The novel fuses Western fiction with fantasy, science fiction, and horror, following Roland's trek through a vast desert and beyond in search of the man in black. Roland meets several people along his journey, including a boy named Jake Chambers, who travels with him part of the way. "The Gunslinger" (October 1978) "The Way Station" (April 1980) "The Oracle and the Mountains" (February 1981) "The Slow Mutants" (July 1981) "The Gunslinger and the Dark Man" (November 1981)
Stats for nerds
3recommend
8mentions
8people
2012–2026years
38% recommend63% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- I've never been much fiction reader but I recently picked up The Gunslinger by Stephen King and it has been tough to put down.
- I loved the first three books when I read them back in the early nineties but The Gunslinger is my favourite of the series. It had a certain poetic beauty and mysterious quality to it that was unlike any other Stephen King book that I had read before – or since.
- Ever heard of The Dark Tower series, by Stephen King?
I actually started it about 6 years ago, but recently picked up The Wolves of Calla (the fifth book).
The Gunslinger (first in the series) is awesome.
- > I may be one of the few people who preferred the original version of The Gunslinger.
In case it isn't clear, I think poster I'm replying to is referencing the fact that King went back decades later and re-wrote The Gunslinger, mostly for continuity I believe. I've not yet read the rewrite, so I'm unsure if it changes the writing style at all. (I didn't mind the first book, it's just a bit slow)
- I really enjoyed Leaders Eat Last and Careless People.
2025 brought me to:
The Mom Test - Rob Fitzpatrick
Leaders Eat Last - Simon Sinek
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
The Time Machine - H.G. Wells
What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School - Mark McCormack
The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change - Adam Braun
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Blood of Elves - Andrzej Sapkowski
We Were Eight Years In Power - Ta-Nehisi Coates
Mort - Terry Pratchett
I’m Glad My Mom Died - Jennette McCurdy
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger - Stephen King
American Gods - Neil Gaiman
The Boy’s in the Boat - Daniel James Brown
Can’t Hurt Me - David Goggins
Rocket Fuel: The One Essential Combination That Will Get You More of What You Want from Your Business - Gino Wickman
Source Code - Bill Gates
Mythos - Stephen Fry
Educated - Tara Westover
Leaving Microsoft to Change the World - John Wood
Careless People: A Cautionary Tale of Power, Greed, and Lost Idealism is a memoir - Sarah Wynn-Williams
Hail Mary - Andy Weir
Slaughterhouse-Five - Kurt Vonnegut
The War of the Worlds - H. G. Wells
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? - Phipip K. Dick
The Blade Itself - Joe Abercrombie
- After the first sentence I was like 'yea but litte better than Piers Anthony' but then you nailed it with the YA tag.
I've read a lot of forgotten realms books, and Dragonlance, but as I've grown I wanted something more adult I guess.
I've read the Malazan Book of The Fallen series and loved it but I felt it went off-rails, I prefer sagas that at least know where they will end up- as opposed to just figuring it out as you go (like Stephen King's 'Gunslinger').
As I've gotten older I can't do filler (why I hate most modern anime without a site that tells you which are filler episodes and so safe to skip).
I refuse to even watch any anime series on Netflix as they are all filler except the first and last 2 episodes (that new olympus series is exactly this).
Anyway does anyone have some more 'adult' sci/fantasy books or series to recommend?
