Now that Roland has begun to form his group, we begin to learn more of the history of his world, and of how all the worlds fit together. The group begins to travel... and yet Roland is having problems, and is slowly losing his mind. But is he?

He completes his group, and they travel on... and they find a city from the far past, haunted by the ghosts of technology and the superstition of the inhabitants. After making it through, we see the REAL Waste Lands, so much more terrible than the wide desert Roland crossed at the beginning of King's tale.

The book is quite well written, and very consistent... we see the wheel of ka turning through everyone's life, drawing them together. Quite a few things you learn here become important later on... and for fans of his other books, we even see an old friend.