The True Knot

The True Knot are the main antagonists in the Steven King novel Doctor Sleep, which is a sequel to The Shining.

Background
The True Knot are a group of nomadic psychics who feed off the life force of spiritually-gifted children. They call this life-force "steam", which when consumed keeps them young and extends their lifespan beyond its natural limits. Despite this, the True Knot members can be killed. Due to their age, none of them have developed immunities to modern diseases. When one member feeds off a boy who had measles, he contracted it and died shortly afterward. When a True Knot member dies, their physical form fades away and all that's left are their clothes.

Role in the Story

The True Knot discover a girl named Abra who shows incredibly high psychic abilities. Their leader Rose the Hat orders the True Knot to track her down so they can harvest her steam. When Abra gets in contact with Dan Torrance (the son of Jack Torrance from The Shining), they make plans to stop the True Knot.

Notable Members
Rose the Hat

Rose is the True Knot's leader. She's described as being inredibly beautiful, with curly black hair, pale skin and a magician's hat. After a psychic encounter with Abra, Rose's reasons for finding her become personal and she begins to lose her sanity. When she appears to someone who possesses the shining, she is shown to possess only one deformed tooth.

Barry the Chink

Barry is the one who caught measles and spread it to the rest of the True Knot. He's caucasian, but because of his slanted eyes he's nicknamed "the Chink".

Crow Daddy

Crow Daddy is Rose's lover. He's sent to capture Abra while the other members of the True Knot take on Dan and his allies. He successfully captures and drugs Abra, but Dan takes over her mind and wills Crow into killing himself.

Grandpa Flick

the oldest member of the True Knot. He dies early on in the story, which acts as a catalyst as it reminds Rose that the True Knot aren't immortal and need to find someone with enough steam to keep them alive, leading her to discover Abra.

Snakbite Andi

Andi was the first member of the True Knot to be introduced. She was sexually abused by her father, leading her to develop a hatred of all men and subsequently become a lesbian without realising it. She's nicknamed Snakebite because of her snake tattoo. Andi has the ability to make people fall asleep through suggestion. She's in a relationship with fellow True Knot Silent Sarey.