The Regulators

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The Regulators is a novel by Stephen King under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. It was published in 1996 at the same time as its "mirror" novel, Desperation.

King had previously "killed off" Bachman after the pseudonym was publicly exposed around the time of the 1984 release of the Bachman novel Thinner. However, on the book's jacket and in a tongue-in-cheek introduction by the book's editor, it was alleged that this 1996 work was written by Bachman years earlier, but the manuscript had only recently been discovered by his widow in a trunk.

The story takes place in the town of Wentworth, Ohio. On Poplar Street, an autistic boy named Seth has gained the power to control reality through the help of a being known as Tak. Soon, Poplar Street begins to change shape, transforming into a wild west caricature based on what Seth has seen on his television. Meanwhile, the other residents of the street are being attacked by the many beings that Seth's imagination is creating, due to Tak's control over them. These residents are forced to work together to stop Seth and Tak from completely transforming the world around them and stop Tak before he kills anyone else.

The Regulators was released simultaneously with Desperation (published by King under his own name). The two novels share many similarities, most notably the cast of characters. The original hardcover versions of the novels had artwork on the cover that connected when the two books were placed side by side.

The Regulators is King's last book under the name Richard Bachman to date. King once said that there may be another Bachman book, but there have been no further comments about this.

ISBNs

• ISBN 0670872814 (paperback, 1996)
• ISBN 0340671777 (paperback, 1997)