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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I have very mixed feelings about Lovecraft. He did create a world which still influences horror writing today, but he was a horrible racist and honestly, his writing just isn't very good. There are pages and pages of expository writing which flesh out the Mythos, but are mind-numbingly dull. Of these stories, only The Shadow Over Innsmouth and At the Mountains of Madness have any decent action sequences. I'm not sorry I read this but I'm glad to put it behind me.
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
My enjoyment of Lovecraft depended a lot on the placement of his racism. It's not a surprise or unknown how racist he is but some of the stories his racist beliefs are what inspired the "horror" whereas in other, usually the cosmic horror, it's just sprinkled in the background bc Lovecraft can't resist. I obviously only liked the later. I grew up/ still kind of do, have a fear of the Christian apocalypse, the idea that there's so unstoppable horror that will just happen randomly and is inevitable, and cosmic horror reminded me a lot of that kind of horror. A monster or slasher you can run from, but an ancient god you never know when might strike you cannot.
My favorite stories were: Call of Cthulu, The Dunwich Horror, The Beast in the Cave, The Cats of Ulthar, Dragon, Nyarlathotep, and Herbet West Reanimator.
My favorite stories were: Call of Cthulu, The Dunwich Horror, The Beast in the Cave, The Cats of Ulthar, Dragon, Nyarlathotep, and Herbet West Reanimator.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia
I really like the stories. The shadow over innsmouth was my favorite. They repeat to much for my liking.
I didn't get a chance to finish it, because it's hard to get through short stories because there just isn't the same momentum as a novel, and...it was alright. I think I prefer Poe, because he kind of has a better way with words. Plus Lovecraft is realllly old fashioned writing wise (though not content) for the time period.
Aggghhhh! Finally finished. It only took me forever! It's a great book. Lovecraft is absolutely fantastic, but after a while, it all starts to run together. Take a break every now and then.
It's with some dismay that I realized that I didn't actually own any H.P. Lovecraft, and this from a guy who doodled Elder Signs over all his high school notebooks. While his works are public domain, there's something to be said for physical books. This Canterbury Classics edition comes with a beautiful leather binding, an iridescent octopus on the cover, gold leaf pages, and an introduction giving an overview of his life and work. Inside are 26 short stories, arranged in chronological order, and covering the essential Lovecraft: The Call of Cthulhu, At the Mountains of Madness, The Shadow over Innsmouth, etc.
Reading them all in order is a burden. Early Lovecraft is not great, little gothick tinglers that require much faith and imagination from the reader that this is horrifying. When he hits his stride, Lovecraft is every bit as good as his titanic reputation deserves. The later stories contrast the growing insanity of their narrators against the dizzying cosmological nihilism of deep time, and the ancient civilizations of Elder Things and Old Ones and Mi Go and Deep Ones who once warred over Earth, and who's remnants trouble our dreams.
Selling an collection of free stories is always a little tricky, but this is worth it for the physical qualities of the binding, and for a strong editorial voice. A little bigger than the "core" Lovecraft, a little more portable than the "complete" Lovecraft, this is a great collection for any fan.
Reading them all in order is a burden. Early Lovecraft is not great, little gothick tinglers that require much faith and imagination from the reader that this is horrifying. When he hits his stride, Lovecraft is every bit as good as his titanic reputation deserves. The later stories contrast the growing insanity of their narrators against the dizzying cosmological nihilism of deep time, and the ancient civilizations of Elder Things and Old Ones and Mi Go and Deep Ones who once warred over Earth, and who's remnants trouble our dreams.
Selling an collection of free stories is always a little tricky, but this is worth it for the physical qualities of the binding, and for a strong editorial voice. A little bigger than the "core" Lovecraft, a little more portable than the "complete" Lovecraft, this is a great collection for any fan.