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stevenyenzer 's review for:
The Call of Cthulhu and Other Dark Tales
by H.P. Lovecraft
Although I enjoyed this collection, I wasn't blown away by it. I think reading so much Lovecraft in quick succession reveals how repetitive and formulaic many of his stories are.
The standard Lovecraft tale goes like this: "Have you heard about that crazy shit that happened in [New England town]? Well I was there. And I'll tell you, it's even crazier than you think. When I went there, at first I didn't think there was any crazy shit going on. And then I heard from this guy everyone thinks is crazy that crazy shit was going on. I was skeptical at first. But then I sort of kind of saw the eldritch/noisome/Cyclopean horror for myself, and although it was super-crazy, I can't describe it in too much detail because the very sight of it drove me insane. So here I am, pretty insane."
Although it was enjoyable to read the many variations on a theme, and I did particularly like a few of the tales ("The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" was my favorite), overall I was unimpressed with Lovecraft's storytelling abilities and particularly his writing style. I understand the outsized influence he's had on horror, and he had a lot of great ideas, but I don't find his stories nearly as entertaining as others apparently do.
The standard Lovecraft tale goes like this: "Have you heard about that crazy shit that happened in [New England town]? Well I was there. And I'll tell you, it's even crazier than you think. When I went there, at first I didn't think there was any crazy shit going on. And then I heard from this guy everyone thinks is crazy that crazy shit was going on. I was skeptical at first. But then I sort of kind of saw the eldritch/noisome/Cyclopean horror for myself, and although it was super-crazy, I can't describe it in too much detail because the very sight of it drove me insane. So here I am, pretty insane."
Although it was enjoyable to read the many variations on a theme, and I did particularly like a few of the tales ("The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" was my favorite), overall I was unimpressed with Lovecraft's storytelling abilities and particularly his writing style. I understand the outsized influence he's had on horror, and he had a lot of great ideas, but I don't find his stories nearly as entertaining as others apparently do.