Desperation and The Regulators are linked, not only by a common monster, but by an overlapping cast of characters. People in the Wentworth, Ohio, of The Regulators also appear in the Nevada mining town of Desperation. In some cases, these pairs seemingly have only a name in common.

Other pairs, to varying degrees, share similar past histories and appearance. The Tom Billingsley of both books is, for example, an elderly retired veterinarian able to keep his head in a crisis. In Desperation, but not The Regulators, Tom has a drinking problem. King simply posits differences between paired characters through a kind of authorial fiat. The reader never learns, for example, what choices or experiences led one Tom Billingsley to become an alcoholic and the other not.

Pairs of characters are linked by recurring imagery. The Peter Jackson of The Regulators, an Ohio State English professor, is, for example...