ANOTHER offering from the fecund pen of 'the world's favourite horror writer!' as he's known to his detractors.

Actually, Stephen King seems to be moving further away from the world of nasty things under the bed - one suspects he finds the late 20th century contains enough horrors without making up more monsters.

Hearts in Atlantis comprises five stories linked by a common theme and set before, during and after the Vietnam War.

The first, Low Men in Yellow Coats, will be seized on by fans of King's Dark Tower as it superficially offers another glimpse into that world. Here, King returns to one of his favourite and most successful themes - childhood. The 'hero' is Bobby Garfield, who learns a hard lesson at the tender age of 11.

Bobby's best friend, Carol Gerber, provides the link to the title tale where a group of college kids become hooked on a card game that could cost them their grades, and go on anti-Vietnam marches.

Blind Willie features Carol's childhood bully, now a Vietnam vet who pretends a disability to beg on the city streets, while Why We're in Vietnam centres on Sully John, Carol's first boyfriend, stuck in a traffic jam and suffering the mother of all flashbacks to his time in the jungle. Sully John, a ghost to lay - and this revenant is sitting in the passenger seat of his car.

Heavenly Shades of Nigh are Falling is the final story, where Bobby returns to his home town - older, wiser and with a lengthy criminal record to his discredit. He expects to attend the funeral of a friend, but is actually presented with a last chance of redemption.

Hearts in Atlantis is a compelling, thoughtful book full of love and sorrow. It's engrossing, at times perplexing, but extremely satisfying and demands re-reading.

Even if you've never bought a Stephen King novel in your life, this one deserves a space on your bookshelf.

(Hodder & Stroughton £17:99)

Converted for the new archive on 25 January 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.