Rating: Summary: too much building, but professional Review: all-eye(wendigo-story) and glimpses (sorcery/yog-s.) were the two i really liked here. they had enough suspence. as for the rest.... there are no truly bad stories here. and they are surely professionally written. my problem with them is that they spend too much time "building". telling the complete life story of someone, is utterly unnecessary. there were too much building here. i wish there was more invested in descriptions, endings and good old-fashioned suspence. they simply didn't give me enough while i read them.
Rating: Summary: Stays with you Review: I first read a version of this volume in 1976, and the stories within have had a hold on me since then (especially the Erika Zann story). Well-edited volume with an eye for quality fiction, no clinkers here, and the quality isn't as uneven as some of the Chaosium anthologies seem to be. If you're an HPL fan, this book is a must. If you're not-a really good place to start. Most of he stories here are couched in contemporary language and are very accessible to the novice Cthuvian. This updated volume is as good as the original volume...which is high praise indeed.
Rating: Summary: This is where it all began Review: I tried to read Lovecraft when I was 12 and hated it. I got this book (in it's first edition) when I was about 17 and absolutely loved it. The good guys always die or go crazy in the end - I can't think of a better way for a horror story to end.Now I'm 29 and Lovecraft is tied with Tanith Lee and Anne Rice for my favorite author. The story didn't end but I'm already crazy (probably from reading these twisted tales).
Rating: Summary: This is where it all began Review: I tried to read Lovecraft when I was 12 and hated it. I got this book (in it's first edition) when I was about 17 and absolutely loved it. The good guys always die or go crazy in the end - I can't think of a better way for a horror story to end. Now I'm 29 and Lovecraft is tied with Tanith Lee and Anne Rice for my favorite author. The story didn't end but I'm already crazy (probably from reading these twisted tales).
Rating: Summary: Lovecraft hungry? Review: In my constant search to find more Lumley and Lovecraft I happened upon this little collection from Choasium. What I found were some excellent stories accompanied with some bland ones. The stories contained in this collection are: The Fairground Horror, by Brian Lumley The Silence of Erika Zann, by James Wade All-Eye, by Bob van Laerhoven The Tugging, by Ramsey Campbell Where Yidhra Walks, by Walter C. DeBill, Jr. Glimpses, by A.A. Attanasio Dope War of the Black Tong, by Robert M. Price Darkness, My Name is, by Eddy C. Bertin The Terror from the Depths, by Fritz Leiber Lumley's The Fairground Horror was a smooth flowing excellent story. The Silence of Erika Zann was surprising. I loved it. Dope War of the Black Tong was a cool action packed tough guy story which I found extremely entertaining, and finally Darkness, My Name is, was pretty good too. The other stories were easily forgotten. I'm not saying anything against them, I love Ramsey Campbell and the others, but the ones I mentioned earlier really stick out in my mind and were really entertaining. A couple of the stories I found not interesting at all though. Overall if you are an H.P. Lovecraft fan it is a pretty good collection I'm happy I got it.
Rating: Summary: 2d edition of the _first_ original anthology of the Mythos Review: This anthology is a 2nd edition, as opposed to a reprint
(originally published by DAW Books in 1976). I was unable
to locate the families of two of the writers so I had to
drop their stories. In their place, I included one story
that was supposed to have been in the 1976 edition and one
original story.
If you like this one, wait until 1998 for The Disciples of
Cthulhu II from Chaosium!
Rating: Summary: Cthulhu in the mid-70s Review: This is a reprint of a DAW original anthology from the mid-70s. I read the book back then and thought it was so-so. The Fritz Leiber "Terror from the Depths" was very good, and Leiber brought his usual skill to the Cthulhu Mythos. The Eddy Bertin story and the Lumley stories were good as well, but they stood out like stars amid the rest of the pieces.
Rating: Summary: Cthulhu in the mid-70s Review: This is a reprint of a DAW original anthology from the mid-70s. I read the book back then and thought it was so-so. The Fritz Leiber "Terror from the Depths" was very good, and Leiber brought his usual skill to the Cthulhu Mythos. The Eddy Bertin story and the Lumley stories were good as well, but they stood out like stars amid the rest of the pieces.
Rating: Summary: Cthulhu in the mid-70s Review: This is a reprint of a DAW original anthology from the mid-70s. I read the book back then and thought it was so-so. The Fritz Leiber "Terror from the Depths" was very good, and Leiber brought his usual skill to the Cthulhu Mythos. The Eddy Bertin story and the Lumley stories were good as well, but they stood out like stars amid the rest of the pieces.
Rating: Summary: Excellent Anthology Review: Usually when I review Chaosium products, I grade their material on innovativeness, an eye-catching twist, or some original element added to an otherwise-typical pastiche. For DISCIPLES OF CTHULHU, I was pleasantly surprised to be able to say that all these stories are excellent due to the quality of writing. These are some of the best Mythos stories that I have read to date, and I appreciate that they have been compiled together. It would be more appropriate to title this collection THE DISCIPLES OF LOVECRAFT, since few have to do with Cthulhu himself.
"The Fairground Horror": An unscrupulous carny worker wishes to learn the full power of his ancient artifacts so that he can use them for financial gain. Dreams come to him from an underground island of basaltic rock to warn him to take proper respect. Knowledge has its price...
"The silence of Erika Zann": A modern retelling of "The music of Erich Zann".
"All-eye": a story from the Great White North. A student tries to escape the clutches of a wendigo-spirit. What he finds is even worse.
"The Tugging": A story about a man's investigation of his past. As he learns more of his family's part in an unfolding story that he is reporting on, his investigation becomes an obsession. He learns the truth, but like Cassandra, his knowledge does not save him.
"Where Yidhra Walks": Set in the American West, describes an encounter with a different kind of Mythos being.
"Glimpses": An intriguing story about the investigation of time and space. The first part takes place in the past, as an initiate and his master investigate the mysteries of Yog-Sothoth. The second half deals with a future military research lab that attempts to use that knowledge to build a weapon. Of course, tampering with Things Man Was Not Meant To Know (tm) brings terrible results.
"Dope War of the Black Tong": A yellow peril story, in the same vein as some of Robert E. Howard's work. An enjoyable change of pace.
"Darkness, My Name is": It begins as a typical story about a skeptical mystical researcher dropped into a cult town and interfering with the ritual activities. Then we learn that the skeptical resrearcher has a much deeper past and is more intimately tied to the events than we thought.
"The Terror From The Depths": This story deals with one man's struggle with his true nature. It's actually a little difficult to follow, and more is hinted at than is spelled out clearly. The setting is California, which is a change of scenery for most.
This was a very enjoyable collection for me. Well-written stories are usually worth reading, and the pleasure is doubled when the subject is one that you follow.
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