This is NOT my least favorite of the series. My least favorite was Wizard of Glass. I didn't like the diversion into Roland's past. I liked to have him left in a shroud of mystery. This would probably be my second least favorite, but not my first.

Not to say that the back story for Roland wasn't good, I just thought the parts about his past should have been made into a different book, and then we keep on with more about their journey in that particular book.

I used to not really like Susannah but she grew on me, and I liked that they did more with her character. She seemed 2-dimensional for a while, but that was partly her disorder. True, she was not as well-rounded a character as Eddie, or Roland, or Oy, but neither was Jake and almost everyone likes Jake!

As for his books, I felt the last four were not as rounded, and were more forced - as has been said before - than the first three. The first three absolutely hands down some of the best books ever, the last 4, well I'm waiting for the revised editions.