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A review by linorosa
The Complete Cthulhu Mythos Tales by H.P. Lovecraft
2.0
I really wanted to like Lovecraft. I slogged through long descriptions of gambrel roofs, churches, rocks, a gibbous moon here and there, cemeteries. All the while hoping to be rewarded at the end. But invariably I reached the climax of each story and the narrator either refused to describe it, or excused himself saying it was "impossible to describe".
Saying something is scary doesn't make it so, and it felt that's what Lovecraft is doing on each story, as in "believe me, something really scary was there". Maybe that worked in the 1920's, but not today, not for me at least.
Sometimes there are plot twists, or surprises at the end. But they're old-fashioned and not really surprising. Most are even somewhat funny when retold aloud to someone, as they have become clichés over the years.
Out of everything I've read, only 'The Colour out Of Space' is really good. 'The Call of Cthulhu' is alright too, but the rest bored me to death.
Saying something is scary doesn't make it so, and it felt that's what Lovecraft is doing on each story, as in "believe me, something really scary was there". Maybe that worked in the 1920's, but not today, not for me at least.
Sometimes there are plot twists, or surprises at the end. But they're old-fashioned and not really surprising. Most are even somewhat funny when retold aloud to someone, as they have become clichés over the years.
Out of everything I've read, only 'The Colour out Of Space' is really good. 'The Call of Cthulhu' is alright too, but the rest bored me to death.