Ok, Stephen King, I enjoyed the hell out of The Institute. But, I have questions.

Well, one question really. And no, this isn't a fanboy reaction, it's an honest question: how in the hell did you get through this book without making, so far as I can tell (and I'll be the first to admit I might have missed it), any allusions to Firestarter?

I saw Bev's Diner (which is a different story, yes)... and I waited... and waited... and never caught a hint. Not even a joke about George C Scott in a ponytail. Nothing.

It doesn't take anything away from the story, at all. The first chapter grabbed me, and I was hooked all the way through. But now I'm wondering, mostly about the discipline it took, or the editor's careful razor cuts, to make it through this kind of story without the kind of allusions to the rest of your works that we've come to expect. This isn't criticism, it's just that... it's kind of like coming to Grandpa's house for the holidays and finding out he's been listening to the latest Lizzo record.

A little different, that's all.