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brannigan 's review for:
The King in Yellow
by Robert W. Chambers
A mixed bag. As others have wrote, the first four stories are pithy and disturbing, especially the first - 'The Repairer of Reputations'. This was one of the most effective uses of the unreliable narrator device I have ever come across, and it stands as a chilling first-person portrayal of insanity. I was brought to Chambers by True Detective, and this story provides pretty much all I needed in terms of understanding the show's lore.
As for the rest... Mostly forgettable, definitely dated. There's one about a cat and another about a ghost. There's a few more that I've forgotten already. The Parisian war story was just bizarre, and I didn't finish the last two (romances of upper class Americans adventuring in Paris). I just don't have time for that shit.
In sum, Chambers doing horror: five thumbs up. Chambers doing anything else: no thumbs up.
As for the rest... Mostly forgettable, definitely dated. There's one about a cat and another about a ghost. There's a few more that I've forgotten already. The Parisian war story was just bizarre, and I didn't finish the last two (romances of upper class Americans adventuring in Paris). I just don't have time for that shit.
In sum, Chambers doing horror: five thumbs up. Chambers doing anything else: no thumbs up.