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chaydata's review against another edition
Only read a few:
The Broadsword (Laird Barron)
Sometimes I felt very confused about what was happening and it was annoying. Also not into the hellish world description in one part. Too difficult to grasp it all. The creatures were disgusting and effectively creepy..
Copping Squid (Michael Shea)
Was covered on hppodcraft. It's ok I guess. One continuous scene through a few interesting settings. Urban and still feels current.
The Correspondence of Cameron Thaddeus Nash (Ramsay Campbell)
The most enjoyable of the three for me. A crazy fan's letters with Lovecraft. Felt very real. But there is a supernatural twist and it becomes somewhat disturbing and pretty creepy in the end. The name calling is silly and fun e.g. Loathecraft. The sequential references are cool for those who know Lovecraft's stories and related authors etc.
It seems the stories are not accessible to light readers like me. You've gotta be really into literature and in this case Lovecraft to properly appreciate and enjoy them.
Returned the book to the library, wasn't in the mood to try out more of these and already had another book on the go.
The Broadsword (Laird Barron)
Sometimes I felt very confused about what was happening and it was annoying. Also not into the hellish world description in one part. Too difficult to grasp it all. The creatures were disgusting and effectively creepy..
Copping Squid (Michael Shea)
Was covered on hppodcraft. It's ok I guess. One continuous scene through a few interesting settings. Urban and still feels current.
The Correspondence of Cameron Thaddeus Nash (Ramsay Campbell)
The most enjoyable of the three for me. A crazy fan's letters with Lovecraft. Felt very real. But there is a supernatural twist and it becomes somewhat disturbing and pretty creepy in the end. The name calling is silly and fun e.g. Loathecraft. The sequential references are cool for those who know Lovecraft's stories and related authors etc.
It seems the stories are not accessible to light readers like me. You've gotta be really into literature and in this case Lovecraft to properly appreciate and enjoy them.
Returned the book to the library, wasn't in the mood to try out more of these and already had another book on the go.
coralyn_x's review against another edition
Did not finish the book. The short stories are unoriginal and repetitive, never scaring me a bit, never filling me with either dread or intrigue. They were mostly poorly written or just plain corny. Often they were weirdly racist too and I don't think it was supposed to paint the characters more clearly as much as it was a reflection of the authors' views.
sab754's review against another edition
3.0
DNFing at 58%. Unfortunate.
There's a definite laziness in my opinion when an author decides to use self-harm as a shortcut for horror, especially when dealing with Lovecraftian sorta stuff. There's so many more dimensions to horror than just "ha ha knife go brrrr" - and I guess it's a very sensitive topic for me, so that doesn't help.
There were a few good stories in here, but it's a very hit-and-miss collection in my opinion.
There's a definite laziness in my opinion when an author decides to use self-harm as a shortcut for horror, especially when dealing with Lovecraftian sorta stuff. There's so many more dimensions to horror than just "ha ha knife go brrrr" - and I guess it's a very sensitive topic for me, so that doesn't help.
There were a few good stories in here, but it's a very hit-and-miss collection in my opinion.
buffyb's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not really a huge fan of Lovecraft but I was surprised to find that I enjoyed this book. There were some really chilling stories in it. It's a good book to read when Halloween is coming up.
hucklebuck411's review against another edition
4.0
For those who love horror this volume contains many horrific short stories inspired by Lovecraft. Some are closer to Lovecraft's style of writing but most may just pay a slight homage to Lovecraft and others not at all. Most, if not all, were entertaining in a, oh so gruesome, sort of way. I like short story anthologies, since I can be reading another full novel and then switch up and read a couple of short stories in a different genre at bedtime. I plan on moving on to the next volume of Black Wings of Cthulhu to see what dark corridors the next batch of writers may take me down.
jsimpson's review against another edition
4.0
very nice anthology, edited by the world's preeminent Lovecraftian scholar. Bang up tales from the likes of Laird Barron and Caitlin R. Kiernan. A useful insight into the new wave of weird authors, doing new and interesting things with the mythos, and refining the rest.
More thorough review pending...
For Lovecraftian fans, this is essential.
More thorough review pending...
For Lovecraftian fans, this is essential.
feathersmcgraw's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
3.0
Averaging out the short stories at 3/5 doesn't quite reflect the reading experience.
The stories that I liked, I really liked! Waller, One Tree Hill and Further Beyond in particular were a lot of the fun.
Unfortunately, there was no middle ground. The stories I didn't enjoy, I really did not enjoy. Weltchmerz was a bizaare plot involving a manic pixie dreamgirl-esque character. I found Down Black Staircases to be almost incomprehensible (and not in the fun way). Thistle's find was so lecherous that I question its inclusion at all. No-one in the history of ever is going to comment on the labia of a ghoul whilst it is charging towards them .
The stories that I liked, I really liked! Waller, One Tree Hill and Further Beyond in particular were a lot of the fun.
Unfortunately, there was no middle ground. The stories I didn't enjoy, I really did not enjoy. Weltchmerz was a bizaare plot involving a manic pixie dreamgirl-esque character. I found Down Black Staircases to be almost incomprehensible (and not in the fun way). Thistle's find was so lecherous that I question its inclusion at all. No-one in the history of ever is going to
arthurbdd's review against another edition
2.0
Finds the anthology series grinding deeper into the rut it has created for itself. Full review: https://fakegeekboy.wordpress.com/2021/10/18/black-wings-the-final-flight/