Necronomicon: The Best Weird Tales of H. P. Lovecraft

This is a definitive Lovecraft collection!

HP Lovecraft created a type of horror genre that was not too gory, but grounded in a dark fantasy universe of his own making. The author grew up in Providence, Mass., and, by the time you are done, you will believe that this Massachusetts is the scariest place in the universe. Lovecraft wrote in the most "purple" of prose, one of the greatest pulp writers in history, inspiring fans that included other horror authors (like Robert Bloch, Robert E. Howard, and Clark Ashton Smith, to name three) who freely borrowed his concepts and locals, like the haunted town of Arkham, the dangerous and evil tome, the Necronomicon, and Cthulhu, the dark god. This book gathers all the really important short stories and novellas that Lovecraft wrote himself. The only down side of this collection is that its truly large and heavy, not a book to be carried around easily.

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Beautiful

Finally, a cover worthy of the content. I've worn out many paperback covers, but this edition has a classic and understated look and feel.

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All of Lovecrafts best in one book

This is a great book if you know you life HP Lovecraft and want to have an instant collection. If you aren't sure if you like all of his stuff or only want a few, it would be better to own a smaller volume

Enter the Sinister World of HP Lovecraft

Along the likes of Stephen King, H.P. Lovecraft is one of the most unique and distinguished horror writers of all time. ¿Necronomicon: The Best Weird Tales of H.P. Lovecraft¿ is an exhaustively comprehensive collection of his most famous works, including ¿The Call of Cthulu¿, ¿Herbert West- Re-Animator¿, ¿The Color Out of Space¿, ¿The Dunwich Horror¿, ¿At the Mountains of Madness¿ and many more. These tales deal with the strange and the occult- the living dead, ancient beings, mythical creatures, aliens and some of the vilest people on earth. Each story deals with a different part of the Lovecraft mythos and as one reads more and more, it not only gets more and more addictive but the themes and mysteries become clearer and clearer.
The main theme on display here is the unknown and how we will never be able to understand everything. Each story deals with it in a different way with, perhaps, the most effective use on display in ¿The Color Out of Space¿-a tale of a strange comet that crash-lands on Earth and sends an infectious feeling and presence across the countryside. In the story one never learns the mysteries behind what is happening. The audience never learns how, who, when or why this is happening, making the happenings all the more sinister and frightening. ¿At the Mountains of Madness¿ takes a different approach by explaining all of the mysteries surrounding the story, which regards an expedition to Antarctica that discovers terrible and horrifying secrets regarding the true history of the world. However, the mysteries explained spoil the effectiveness of many other pieces and, as such, ¿At the Mountains of Madness¿ should be one of the last Lovecraft tales read. Still, the story is extremely effective at explaining many of mysteries, however horrific they may be. These mysteries prove to be the backbone behind each and every Lovecraft story.
The title ¿The Best Weird Tales¿ does not disappoint, as they are truly some of the best and weirdest tales that I have ever read. ¿The Dunwich Horror¿, in particular, is one of the most horrific stories I have ever been exposed to. It details the life of the son of a family knee-deep in the occult. This son is extremely abnormal and has a special plan, given to him by the ¿Elder Ones¿ who created the world as we know it and now aim to destroy it. To give any more away would be a crime. However, as effective as these pieces are, there are a few problems. At times, Lovecraft trips up over his own wordiness and this leads a select few sections to drag, most noticeably in ¿At the Mountains of Madness¿. However, the stories are never boring and, in fact, they are some of the most interesting of any that I have read. Flaws and all, these stories are supremely entertaining and integral to both the history of horror literature as well as the history of American literature.

necronomicon review

I thought the stories were very original they give one a feeling that one is in a dream world they give one a feeling of a horror that is not quite seen but felt. As in all collections of stories some are better than others but overall I would give the book 5 stars. Also I was impressed with the binding and appearence of the book.

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