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A review by tbr_the_unconquered
A Mountain Walked: Great Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos by Donald Tyson, Michael Shea, T.E.D. Klein, Jason V. Brock, James Wade, Rhys Hughes, Joseph S. Pulver, Sr., S.T. Joshi, Stanley C. Sargent, Robert Barbour Johnson, Mearle Prout, Gemma Files, Lois H. Gresh, Walter C. DeBill Jr., Ramsey Campbell, David Ho, W.H. Pugmire, Thomas Ligotti, Cody Goodfellow, Caitlín R. Kiernan, C. Hall Thompson, Neil Gaiman, Mark Samuels, Patrick McGrath, Jonathan Thomas
3.0
The relationship that I share with the Cthulhu mythos is not a very robust one. There are some stories that hold me in thrall, some that unsettle me, some that draw me in but a lot many of them bore me to tears. There are imaginative retellings which use Lovecraft’s alien entities in the most terrifying ways possible but a lot many of the mediocre retellings have the authors perambulating the same beaten paths with dismal results. The name of S.T. Joshi, one of the foremost scholars of Lovecraftian literature was testimony enough for me to give this collection a shot.
Although it is a cliché to call an anthology a mixed bag, every collection has its share of duds and it goes without saying that this trend continues here too.
There are too many stories here and here are the ones that caught my attention :
The House of the Worm by Mearle Prout
Far Below by Robert Barbour Johnson
The Franklyn Paragraphs by Ramsey Campbell
Black Man with a Horn by T.E.D Klein
The Last Feast of Harlequin by Thomas Ligotti
Only the End of the World Again by Neil Gaiman
A Gentleman from Mexico by Mark Samuels
John Four by Caitlín R. Kiernan
Most of the rest is about people trying their best and worst ways to please the elder gods and end up spilling their marbles all over the place in the process. Loved some but most were just meh !
Although it is a cliché to call an anthology a mixed bag, every collection has its share of duds and it goes without saying that this trend continues here too.
There are too many stories here and here are the ones that caught my attention :
The House of the Worm by Mearle Prout
Far Below by Robert Barbour Johnson
The Franklyn Paragraphs by Ramsey Campbell
Black Man with a Horn by T.E.D Klein
The Last Feast of Harlequin by Thomas Ligotti
Only the End of the World Again by Neil Gaiman
A Gentleman from Mexico by Mark Samuels
John Four by Caitlín R. Kiernan
Most of the rest is about people trying their best and worst ways to please the elder gods and end up spilling their marbles all over the place in the process. Loved some but most were just meh !