Cycle of the Werewolf is an interesting little book from the man who brought us The Stand, The Tommyknockers and Needful Things. For one, it is really a little book - at 128 pages, I finished it a little more than a day. Secondly, it is articulated by the chilling and vivid illustrations of the renowned Bernie Wrightson. Thirdly, it is told in the present tense. Not mentioned in the same breath as Cujo and Christine, I didn't give much thought to Cycle of the Werewolf until my Stephen King rush kicked in a couple of weeks ago. But I figured that while I was in the man's twisted version of New England, a little stop in the quaint and idyllic Maine town of Tarker Mills surely wouldn't hurt.

In the bitter January cold, Arnie Westrum is slaughtered by something with yellow eyes and teeth the size of knives. In February, the unpopular and lonely Stella Randolph's dreams of a Valentine's Day lover are savagely answered. The killings continue, every month, and always on the night of a full moon. The frightened people of Tarker Mills start to whisper about something that is not quite human. A drifter is found with his throat ripped out and pawprints in the soft March snow around his corpse. A young boy out flying his kite in the spring winds of April sees something with vaguely human hands, and claws where the fingers should be. It is the last thing he ever sees. Meanwhile, the town's preacher has a dream of shambling, snarling creatures, and a disabled boy's private Fourth of July fireworks celebration draws the blood of the Beast that walks on two legs.

The presentation of Cycle of the Werewolf - one chapter for each month of the year - allows for some fascinating self-contained stories within each chapter. Each one leads up to the final confrontation between the Beast and Marty Coslaw, but they also make for gripping (and ripping, if you'll pardon the pun) reading on their own right. When Brady Kincaid is killed while flying his kite, King tells us that his mutilated corpse is found the next day with the kite

"in one stiffening hand… [The kite] flutters because the breeze has already come. It flutters as if it knows this will be a good day for kites."

Oh, King, you bastard.

The true identity of the man inside the Beast is hinted at throughout the story, but if it's King's attempt as a whodunnit, there's barely enough information for us to make any educated guesses. The moment of comprehension is slightly spoiled by an inconvenient placement of one of Bernie Wrightson's magnificent illustrations. I say "slightly" spoiled because it's truly a great visual, and the identity of the killer is revealed on the next page - but it's like seeing what your Christmas present is through the wrapper. I wasn't too thrilled with the human being behind the werewolf, either. The character's thought processes are a little too clichéd for me; however, I understand that Cycle of the Werewolf was based, to some degree, on certain werewolf legends in folklore, so imagine King's hands were somewhat tied.

My gripe with the placement of the revealing picture shouldn't detract from Wrightson's work, which is downright terrifying. His visions of the Beast are guaranteed to raise the hair on your neck, and they perfectly accentuate the passage of time - and growing body-count - of the Cycle of the Werewolf. The book would be chilling enough in its own right, with how King describes the Beast, a creature of hideous power, bloodlust and nightmares. To see it articulated by Bernie Wrightson is enough to make you cast a nervous eye to the midnight sky and hope the moon is not full.

Cycle of the Werewolf is a departure from the books Stephen King is best known for, but it shows his absolute mastery of the craft of horror writing. Most everything he's done - vampires, extra-terrestrials, a rabid St. Bernard, a possessed car, a pseudonym come to life and a defective pet graveyard - has turned to gold, and while Cycle of the Werewolf may not be remembered in the same category as The Stand, The Shining or Misery, it is a very pleasant hidden gem in King's extensive and blood-curdling catalog.