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A review by octavia_cade
The Thing on the Doorstep by H.P. Lovecraft
dark
medium-paced
3.0
I found myself really enjoying this, which is always a surprise with Lovecraft. Consistently, the stories of his that I most admire are the ones that are most stripped back, with a strong central focus that isn't muddled by too many horrific elements piled on top of each other to the detriment of all. Here, the possession of a young man by his wife (or by his wife's father) is a slow, seeping threat that's all the more credible for the everyday trappings of the characters.
It's a really effective body-swapping piece, and I seriously considered giving it four stars. There's one aspect of it, though, that lets the story down somewhat, and that's the treatment of gender. I think it's fair to say that Lovecraft doesn't have a great deal of interest in writing women, but when a mind goes back and forth between a male and a female body... there should be some exploration of how this affects identity, surely? Lovecraft also seems to have very little interest in depicting sexuality in any meaningful way, and that particular choice necessarily, and somewhat frustratingly, limits the narrative here. I can't help but wonder what a more modern writer might have done with a man who takes over his daughter's body, and then uses that body to marry another man in order to possess that body as well. It does seem like an opportunity wasted...
It's a really effective body-swapping piece, and I seriously considered giving it four stars. There's one aspect of it, though, that lets the story down somewhat, and that's the treatment of gender. I think it's fair to say that Lovecraft doesn't have a great deal of interest in writing women, but when a mind goes back and forth between a male and a female body... there should be some exploration of how this affects identity, surely? Lovecraft also seems to have very little interest in depicting sexuality in any meaningful way, and that particular choice necessarily, and somewhat frustratingly, limits the narrative here. I can't help but wonder what a more modern writer might have done with a man who takes over his daughter's body, and then uses that body to marry another man in order to possess that body as well. It does seem like an opportunity wasted...