BOOK REVIEW: THE INSTITUTE BY STEPHEN KING

I’ve read many Stephen King novels in recent years, including recently completing his multi-volume magnum opus, The Dark Tower. With novels such as The Stand (which I reviewed previously), IT, ‘Salem’s Lot and 11.22.63, King’s imagination and brilliantly observed characterisation always shines through, whether working with horror, fantasy or science fiction elements, or portraying gritty realism. So, I was looking forward to reading The Institute and it did not disappoint.
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Luke Ellis, a twelve-year-old genius is abducted and his parents murdered. Luke is taken to a secret government facility in Maine, where children with powers of telepathy and telekinesis are drugged and subjected to cruel experiments to exploit their abilities for a mysterious purpose. The situation looks hopeless, with any thought of escape just an impossible dream, but the arrival of young Avery, whose powers outstrip anything seen before, encourages Luke and his friends to plot a way out… 

The Institute by Stephen King

Although The Institute is not as overtly frightening as some of King’s work, it is a deeply unsettling and suspenseful page turner, and I raced through the novel’s final hundred pages.

There may not be literal monsters in The Institute, but the casual and unquestioning cruelty of the adult staff – personified by Mrs. Sigsby and Trevor Stackhouse – is horrifying. They commit inhuman acts and deceive the children in their ‘care’ at every turn, not because they are demons, but because it is their job, and although some claim to work for a higher purpose, their lack of conscience is both disturbing and all too plausible.

The imprisoned children suffer enormously, but show resilience, courage and a macabre humour in the face of evil, and their reactions always feel authentically child-like and believable. Their friendships – forged through mutual torment at the hands of callous adults – are hard-earned and touching, perfectly captured through King’s well-tuned dialogue.

There are plot twists aplenty, which I won’t reveal here, but it is another plotting masterclass from King. And King displays his talent for creating a vivid sense of place - alongside the more fantastical parts, the community of a small town, of people doing their best to get through tough challenges in life, is sensitively and movingly portrayed.

The Institute might not be quite as well-known as some of Stephen King’s other novels, but this is a top-notch, inventive thriller, the impact of which lingers long after the final page.