The Affair of the Mysterious Letter is a homage to both Sherlock Holmes and Lovecraftian fantasy. The book is told as a memoir written by Captain John Wyndham, who finds lodging with a sorceress and named Ms. Shaharazad Hass. The Mysterious Letter is their first case together. The reader is dropped into the world of Captain John Wyndham. Everything takes place in a multi-dimensional, multi-timeline, multiverse world, with a roughly steampunk Victorian aesthetic. Ms. Haas … Continue reading The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall →
Winter Tide is the first novel in the Innsmouth Legacy series (it was preceded by a novella, The Litany of Earth). It’s one of a wave of recent books that re-imagines the legacy of H.P. Lovecraft in a feminist and otherwise inclusive and progressive light. It’s probably possible to enjoy this book without knowing anything about its inspiration, but here’s a refresher on the original Innsmouth story. “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” was written by H.P. … Continue reading Winter Tide by Ruthanna Emrys →
Lovecraft Country is tragically devoid of romance and yet I can’t resist reviewing it for you, dear Bitches, because it’s one of the most satisfying books I’ve read in quite some time. Lovecraft Country is a series of connected stories (together they form one cohesive arc, but most of the chapters could easily stand alone) about a Black family living in Chicago in the 1950s. The family business consists of publishing The Safe Negro Travel … Continue reading Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff →
H.P. Lovecraft was a creepy dude who wrote creepy stories that made a permanent mark on horror and pop culture. His most famous legacy is a series of stories that makes up the Cthulhu Mythos. In Lovecraft’s world, the universe is populated with bizarre and all-powerful beings (one of which is Cthulhu) who regard us as more insignificant than ants. Heroes in Lovecraft who learn of our true place in the universe almost always go … Continue reading She Walks in Shadows ed. by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. Stiles →