The Book of Cthulhu

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The Book of Cthulhu Pub. Date: 8/30/2011 Publisher: Night Shade Books

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Overview

The Cthulhu Mythos is one of the 20th century''s most singularly recognizable literary creations. Initially created by H. P. Lovecraft and a group of his amorphous contemporaries (the so-called "Lovecraft Circle"), The Cthulhu Mythos story cycle has taken on a convoluted, cyclopean life of its own. Some of the most prodigious writers of the 20th century, and some of the most astounding writers of the 21st century have planted their seeds in this fertile soil. The Book of Cthulhu harvests the weirdest and most corpulent crop of these modern mythos tales. From weird fiction masters to enigmatic rising stars, The Book of Cthulhu demonstrates how Mythos fiction has been a major cultural meme throughout the 20th century, and how this type of story is still salient, and terribly powerful today.

Table of Contents:

Caitlin R. Kiernan - Andromeda among the Stones Ramsey Campbell - The Tugging Charles Stross - A Colder War Bruce Sterling - The Unthinkable Silvia Moreno-Garcia - Flash Frame W. H. Pugmire - Some Buried Memory Molly Tanzer - The Infernal History of the Ivybridge Twins Michael Shea - Fat Face Elizabeth Bear - Shoggoths in Bloom T. E. D. Klien - Black Man With A Horn David Drake - Than Curse the Darkness Charles Saunders - Jeroboam Henley''s Debt Thomas Ligotti - Nethescurial Kage Baker - Calamari Curls Edward Morris - Jihad over Innsmouth Cherie Priest - Bad Sushi John Hornor Jacobs - The Dream of the Fisherman''s Wife Brian McNaughton - The Doom that Came to Innsmouth Ann K. Schwader - Lost Stars Steve Duffy - The Oram County Whoosit Joe R. Lansdale - The Crawling Sky Brian Lumley - The Fairground Horror Tim Pratt - Cinderlands Gene Wolfe - Lord of the Land Joseph Pulver, Sr. - To Live and Die in Arkham John Langan - The Shallows Laird Barron - The Men from Porlock

Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

The Cthulhu Mythos was first conjured up in twenties by the hyperactive imagination of H.P. Lovecraft and his circle, but this arcane fictional realm has since taken on a robust life of its own. The latest rich spawn of the mythos is this 500-page anthology assembled by Ross Lockhart. The author list includes Elizabeth Bear, Laird Barron, Caitlin R. Kiernan, David Drake, Gene Wolfe, W.H. Pugmire, Ramsey Campbell, Kage Baker, Cherie Priest, Brian McNaughton, and Silvia Moreno-Garcia. (P.S. Many of the contributors are accomplished young authors fantasy aficionados should know.)

Publishers Weekly

The enduring allure of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos, now nearly a century old, is evident in this representative anthology of modern tales, most of which were written in the last decade. The breadth of cosmic horrors they evoke range from the parochial fear of monsters found in Michael Shea's "Fat Face," to the apocalyptic doom forecasted in Ramsey Campbell's "The Tugging." Some of the stories, notably Brian Lumley's "The Fairground Horror" and Brian McNaughton's self-consciously satirical "The Doom that Came to Innsmouth," are ripe with Lovecraftian references. Most others, including Joe R. Lansdale's weird western "The Crawling Sky" and Laird Barron's backwoods monster tale "The Men from Porlock" (original to the book), are more oblique and allusive. To the book's credit, none of the twenty-seven stories read like slavish Lovecraft pastiche, which makes this volume all the more enjoyable. (Sept.)

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Library Journal

From tales of the malevolent Great Old Ones that exist beyond the dimensions of this world to beings that inhabit the Dreamlands that border on sanity, the creatures of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos have held the imagination of writers and lovers of dark horror for over a century. Edited by the managing editor of Night Shade Books, this collection of 27 tales pays homage to one of horror's most compelling voices. Standout entries includes T.E.D. Klein's 1983 classic tale of exotic horror ("Black Man with a Horn"), Charles Stross's 2000 story of political and supernatural horror ("A Colder War"), and Brian Lumley's 2011 portrayal of a traveling fair with a darker than usual secret at its heart ("The Fairground Horror"). Other notable contributors include Kage Baker, Gene Wolf, Thomas Ligotti, and Elizabeth Bear. VERDICT This smorgasbord of Lovecraftian horror should gratify the author's many fans.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781597802321
Publisher: Night Shade Books
Publication date: 8/30/2011
Pages: 500
Sales rank: 281,190
Product dimensions: 6.00 (w) x 8.80 (h) x 1.50 (d)

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Section8

Posted February 8, 2012

Excellent

This an excellent anthology - every story is memorable.
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Paul_Genesse

Posted January 29, 2012

Highly Recommended for fans of H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen King

The Book of Cthulhu is an anthology of short stories featuring authors who have written tales that carry on the Cthulhu tradition, as Lovecraft wanted. The editor, Ross Lockhart compiled most of these largely literary stories from other sources, packaging them up nicely, and also presents a few new ones. It’s hard to review so many stories, but I’ll give each one a line or more, and all of the stories had good qualities, but I connected with some more than others. Everyone has different tastes, and if you’re looking for lots of gore or crazy action this isn’t for you, but if you like to read some of the best authors writing today, check this out.

Caitlin R. Kiernan: Andromeda Among the Stones—five stars, (new story). This is arguably the best story in the anthology. It evokes everything that Lovecraft created and more. The alien horror of the otherside and the sacrifices that must be made to keep the evil at bay are real and palpable in this brilliantly written and menacingly beautiful story set (mostly) in the early 1900’s just before World War I. A terrible apocalypse can be averted, perhaps, if a terrible cost is paid, and the family in this story is right there at the edge of the sea, staring into the depths of the void. Brilliant story.

Charles Stross: A Colder War—five stars. A completely awesome story set during the Cold War told by a master writer. You think nuclear bombs are bad. They turn out to be nothing to worry about when the power of the Elder Gods can be harnessed and used for world ending destruction. Great story featuring top secret reports, Cthulhu bombs, and well, the end of life on Earth as we know it.

Molly Tanzer: The Infernal History of the Ivybridge Twins—five stars. One of the most awesome and horrifying stories in the anthology about two disgustingly awful children, who should probably have been drowned at birth, though the girl wouldn’t have drowned . . . . This was such a creepy and cool story, and I loved the narrator’s voice. Great story.

David Drake: Than Curse the Darkness—five stars. This was the most powerful story in the book for me. I loved it, and was blown away. David Drake is a master and he really hits the dark note of the Cthulhu mythos on this one. This tale is set in darkest Africa and is somewhat reminiscent of Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, with a very supernatural twist. The natives resort to dark magic to get revenge upon their Belgian colonial oppressors at the turn of the century, and some white people come up river to stop what is coming. The characters were awesome and this was an extremely entertaining story.

Cherie Priest: Bad Sushi—five stars, best character story in the book. I’d heard how awesome Cherie Priest is and now I know why. No other story in the book paints a more complete and awesome picture of a character. In this case a World War II Japanese veteran who works in an American Sushi restaurant. Lets just say that when his boss changes sushi suppliers things get really bad at the restaurant. Note: beware anyone who is addicted to sushi.

Steve Duffy: The Oram County Whoosit—five stars. Brilliant story. Lovecraft would be so proud of Steve Duffy’s tale, which recounts the discovery of a thing (actually a couple of things—or whoosits) that had been buried for millions of years, and should have been left deep in the ground.

Fans of H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen King, and horror in general will love this book. Highly recommended.

Paul Genesse
Editor of
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Posted August 22, 2011

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Posted January 23, 2012

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