The Orphan Palace by Joseph S Pulver
Monday, November 14, 2011
The Shadow of the Unknown Lovecraftian Anthology
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
The Shadow of the Unknown is the latest anthology to emerge from a real grassroots level in the Lovecraftian arena. Though some of the names aren't yet quite as well known as more established writers, one never knows when they are looking at the next generation of successors to the two or three Lovecraftian waves who have issued out of the literary leaves since Lovecraft exited this earthly plane. This latest book collects nearly thirty tales inspired by the modern weird and its finest attendants.
Going into untested waters isn't always easy, particularly when Lovecraftian fiction is one sub-genre with a history marred by crude pastiches. Still, the endorsement of important rising authors like Jeffrey Thomas indicates that The Shadow of the Unknown is one more effort that's helping re-polish Lovecraft's legacy up to a glowing aura. Consider picking up this anthology for a look at genuine home grown horror with an HPL inspired bent.
-Grim Blogger
The Earth Rejects Him by Jared Skolnick
Sunday, September 25, 2011
An eerily minimalist trailer for The Earth Rejects Him has been uploaded by Lovecraftian film producer Jared Skolnick. Details about this new production are scant, but the inspiration is unsettling enough:
A young boy discovers a corpse while biking in the woods, then faces unexpected and macabre consequences when he tries to bury it.
Jared Skolnick previously created an excellent adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's tale, "The Music of Erich Zann." Look for this latest Lovecraft driven effort to appear sometime in the next year. Although HPL is likely the artistic tip of the spear for this movie, Skolnick states it also takes its cue from the films of Guillermo del Toro and Werner Herzog.
-Grim Blogger
The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath Comic
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Dance of the Damned by Alan Bligh Expands Arkham Horror Franchise
Saturday, September 10, 2011
There are rare times when Lovecraftiana comes full circle. It happened with Chaosium, where the company manufactured H.P. Lovecraft's febrile horrors into a popular franchise of role playing games, only to turn their sights back to the text realm with books. Many of their collections subsequently collected scenarios into full blown stories in the older Cthulhu Mythos tradition.
Now, Fantasy Flight Games, the entity behind the Arkham Horror board games, appears to be set on doing the same. Their first book, Arkham Horror: Dance of the Damned, is slated for a December release. It follows the adventures of a Miskatonic University librarian and bounty hunter as they fight to unravel a supernatural mystery in Lovecraftian Kingsport. This is due to kick off a more comprehensive trilogy called "The Lord of Nightmares."
Alan Bligh is a writer behind several other books serialized from gaming series. However, he seems to be a newcomer to the circles of Lovecraftian and weird fiction. Hopefully, this will result in a surprise win for Arkham Horror's foray into book form. Lovecraft purists and weird fiction literary fanatics shouldn't expect groundbreaking experiments in supernatural literature with Dance of the Damned, but it's likely to offer gamers and adventurous Lovecraftians a fun ride.
-Grim Blogger
The Damned Highway: Fear and Loathing in Arkham
Monday, September 5, 2011
As the Cthulhu Mythos ages, it must probe its tentacles into successively stranger territory to achieve favorable responses from readers. As a result, we get books like The Damned Highway: Fear and Loathing in Arkham, written by Nick Mamatas and Brian Keene. Curiously, the volume mashes, inverts, and reconstructs parody not just from H.P. Lovecraft, but from Hunter S. Thompson's infamous drug fueled journey across Las Vegas.
Like Thompson's living nightmare masquerading as atmospheric mind alteration and social commentary, Keene and Mamatas set out to make Lovecraft's Arkham even tripper than it is by default. The Damned Highway actually journeys through multiple Cthulhu hot spots, including Innsmouth and the bewitched hills of New England. The narrative is notable for throwing politics into mix, since few modern Mythos tomes dare to tread in that direction, even if the monstrous corruption exposed is primarily that of the Nixon years.
There's something oddly humorous and chilling about throwing Nixon and his underlings into an environment seething with cultists. After all, the President is one of the few on record who discussed observing the ritualistic hijinks in Bohemian Grove.
As far as literary style goes, Keene and Mamatas break their usual boundaries with this book, and that's a good thing. This is a frontal assault on convention. The Damned Highway: Fear and Loathing in Arkham snaps the chains around familiar Lovecraftiana, and pushes both authors into uncharted territory. While any Lovecraft fan hopes the Cthulhu Mythos won't devolve into parody-upon-parody, well executed and imaginative tales like this one can play a pivotal role that innovates and entertains.
-Grim Blogger
Mrs Midnight Collection by Reggie Oliver Nears Release
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Tartarus Press has announced that the latest short story collection by Reggie Oliver is nearing completion. It should arrive this September, re-introducing Oliver to the short story scene, after he briefly turned his attention to the first novel of The Dracula Papers: The Scholar's Tale (read the full Dracula Papers review here). His latest collection, Mrs. Midnight and Other Stories, indicates that Oliver shows no sign of letting up in the weird short fiction realm, a form that introduced him to eager readers.
As with other Oliver stories, the titles can suggest almost anything, but why not let the imagination run wild in the meantime? Here's the line up reported by Tartarus for the new volume: "Mrs Midnight", "Countess Otho", "Meeting with Mike", "The Dancer in the Dark", "Mr Pigsny", "The Brighton Redemption", "You Have Nothing to Fear", "The Philosophy of the Damned", "The Mortlake Manuscript", "The Look", "The Giacometti Crucifixion","A Piece of Elsewhere", "Minos or Rhadamanthus."
-Grim Blogger
Eddie: The Lost Youth of Edgar Allan Poe by Scott Gustafson
Monday, August 22, 2011
Books employing Edgar Allan Poe as a character must always veer off into fantasy. Somehow, this is a modest disappointment, since his real life was so tragic, so real, and so bizarre that it makes excellent fodder for the imagination. Eddie: The Lost Youth of Edgar Allan Poe by Scott Gustafson must go one step further, for better or worse.
As a children's volume, the book seeks to present a heroic Poe. It begins well before Poe's troubles like alcoholism set in, effectively masking the more controversial elements of his life from young minds. This allows the author to reinvent the horror master as he pleases. Surprisingly, though, Gustafson's story does not shirk from horror. His version of the youthful Poe is one who deals in intrigue and the macabre equally.
As a cultural artifact, it's interesting that Eddie: The Lost Youth of Edgar Allan Poe is aimed at children. Too often, Poe is introduced, and then quickly left behind. If there's any conspiracy in American English classrooms today, it's a tendency to avoid dwelling on the bleak prose of scribes like Poe in favor of global diversity with a message that is, in some way, uplifting.
This is a shame, since Poe's brutal realism and morose imagery is truly different, and far more enlivening than many modern contemporaries. Although Gustafson's contribution won't necessarily lead kids to pessimistic, strange horror, it will certainly introduce or re-introduce Poe, and possibly lead to a greater exploration filled with literary darkness.
-Grim Blogger
Cliffourd the Big Red God by Kenneth Hite
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Capitalizing on the success of humor in the Cthulhu Mythos, Kenneth Hite's new tome, Cliffourd the Big Red God, is one more illustrated oddity to add to a Lovecraftian collection. The book takes its name from the popular children's character, a big red dog, and adeptly parodies the concept. Humor and horror fall into the mix equally. The book is not quite as in depth or original as Hite's earlier work, Where the Deep Ones Are, but Lovecraft fans with a kick for Mythos laughs won't be disappointed.
The faux children's volume is right in line with the Cutethulhu phenomena too. For years, Kenneth Hite has been a leading observer and arguably an instigator of the Lovecraftian parody that tries to soften the Great Old Ones into Great Cartoons. With the popularity of similar art and fiction online, the Cutethulhu movement shows no signs of slowing.
Consider Cliffourd the Big Red God as the latest installment in Lovecraftiana's curious transition. Fortunately, these comedies turn out better when they are in capable hands like Hite's, and there's certainly more to appreciate in this book than in LOLthulhu like web memes.
-Grim Blogger
The Inhabitant of the Lake and Other Unwelcome Tenants by Ramsey Campbell
Monday, August 8, 2011
Ramsey Campbell's best known volume of Lovecraftian stories is back in a new edition from PS Publishing, following a lengthy absence on the weird fiction market. The Inhabitant of the Lake and Other Unwelcome Tenants collects the notable UK horror author's early efforts at producing stories in the Cthulhu Mythos tradition. The new version constitutes a limited print run of signed hardcovers, with a classically Lovecraftian illustration by Randy Broecker.
Campbell's work is well known in the weird horror community today. He is one of the few writers to use Lovecraft as a launching pad to a full blown career in horror fiction. Campbell's relationship with Lovecraft's work has been famously volatile. He vigorously rejected any aping of Lovecraft during the 1970s, almost to the point of denouncing HPL's craftsmanship. Later, Campbell rehabilitated his Mythos based stories as he reached a much more balanced and mature view, and he has continued to produce new stories in a weirdly Lovecraftina spirit since.
Readers who are new to Campbell or on the fence about picking up The Inhabitant of the Lake should treat themselves to his mammoth paperback collection, Alone With the Horrors: The Great Short Fiction of Ramsey Campbell 1961-1991. Love him or hate him, this British author is sure to remain entrenched on the weird and Lovecraftian scene for decades to come. This newest reprinting of his old Arkham House collection only confirms that.
-Grim Blogger
Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Mystery by Graphic Classics
Friday, August 5, 2011
Eureka Productions is scheduled to release another installment of their famous Graphic Classics series shortly. Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Mystery brings together several new illustrated stories previously unseen in their series. It's a full color volume that seeks to breathe new life into Poe's old stories - an increasingly challenging order for artists to fulfill. The decision to ink each story, rather than leave it in black and white, is sure to add a new impressive layer to their well established franchise.
Fortunately, their previous volumes with tales by Poe have been among the better visual art homages to this titan of weird horror. The new book contains over a dozen works, including "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar," "The Man in the Crowd," "The Murders in Rue Morgue," and "MS Found in a Bottle." Although it mixes mystery as well as weird horror, there's plenty of strangeness to make the graphic novel worth the price of admission for literary horror fans.
Look for Edgar Allan Poe's Tales of Mystery by late August. It should ship arrive in brick-and-mortar stores and embark from online retailers like Amazon in due course.
-Grim Blogger
Forever Azathoth by Peter Cannon
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Peter Cannon's well received book of Lovecraftian parodies is scheduled to make a return this August. Forever Azathoth has been out of print for years, after originally being released by Tartarus Press. Subterranean Press has taken the liberty of publishing the new edition. Cannon's sixteen story collection exemplifies well done Lovecraftian humor.
In fact, he seems to have made it a hallmark of his literary career in the Lovecraftian arena. Not long ago, Cannon published The Lovecraft Chronicles, an alternate history biography where HPL lives until the 1960s. Rather than resorting to campy pastiche, Cannon wields his extensive knowledge of Lovecraft and other writers to craft weird fiction that's thought provoking and funny.
Forever Azathoth contains several prime examples where Lovecraftian themes are successfully merged with those by other authors. Cannon's parodies are nearly as much a homage to Ramsey Campbell, T.E.D. Klein, William Faulkner, and more classic writers as they are a tribute to H.P. Lovecraft. With any luck, the collection will gain renewed attention as its new signed, limited edition begins hitting readers. Cannon's work is just the literary medicine needed to help flesh out Lovecraftian humor into a lively and meaningful practice, rather than a vapid one whose jokes rely upon face value observations and word play.
-Grim Blogger
The Thing: 2011 Official Trailer
Thursday, July 28, 2011
The first trailer for the follow up film to John Carpenter's Lovecraftian hit, The Thing, has surfaced. In this prequel, which is also titled The Thing (the franchise could stand to learn some originality with names), a Norwegian science team discovers an extraterrestrial entity in the Antarctic. This Shoggoth like monstrosity relies upon imitating terrestrial creatures, and is later responsible for the horrifying events in Carpenter's film.
It's difficult to gauge whether or not this prequel will live up to its predecessor. Still, it's good to see a touch of the Lovecraftian back in the Antarctic, especially after Guillermo del Toro was forced to cancel his At the Mountains of Madness project earlier this year. Look for 2011's rendition of The Thing to appear in theaters this October.
-Grim Blogger
The Merkabah Rider by Edward M Erdelac
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Cthulhu Mythos and heroic adventure tales writer, Robert E. Howard, pioneered the sub-genre of the weird western. Curiously, while many have followed up on Howard's epic barbarian and Cthulhuvian stories, his westerns have been neglected. That is, until now. Edward M. Erdelac has revived the spirit of Howard's wild and unusual western heroes with the Merkabah Rider series.
These tales place the Rider, a Jewish mystic and gunslinger, into an alternate American Southwest. Demons and other blasphemies reminiscent of the Cthulhu Mythos show up along the way. Not content to stand on Robert E. Howard alone, Erdelac introduces H.P. Lovecraft's familiar entity, Shub-Niggurath as a major plot device. Magic and inter-dimensional horrors surface along the way, balancing adventure and the supernatural with excellence.
Better yet, it's set to comprise an ongoing series. There have been two books released to date. The story begins in Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter, and continues in the latest installment, Merkabah Rider: The Mensch With No Name. Erdelac has wisely made his titles available in both paperback and Kindle format, making it easy for fans of Howard's work and the strange to access these new bizarre chronicles.
-Grim Blogger
The Agonizing Resurrection of Victor Frankenstein by Thomas Ligotti on Pre-Order
Monday, July 11, 2011
With far less pomp than it deserves, Centipede Press' new edition of The Agonizing Resurrection of Victor Frankenstein and Other Gothic Tales went up for pre-order last week. Until now, this book of unusual vignettes, sequels, and horror tributes to famous horror icons by Thomas Ligotti was his rarest title on the second hand market, and certainly one of the most expensive. Fortunately, the Centipede reprint revives the book's greatest wonders and unleashes some new ones.
Just like his other definitive collections currently being published by Subterranean Press, Ligotti has revised The Agonizing Resurrection, aiming to make the stories more like they were always intended to be. Longtime fans will notice that Harry O. Morris has provided the illustrations for the volume's own not-so-agonized resurrection. Many will rejoice, since Morris played a crucial role throughout Ligotti's career, as publisher and illustrator of Nyctalops, as well as the first edition of Songs of a Dead Dreamer, and several other works.
According to reports, orders are rapidly pouring into Centipede's database. Fans, dealers, and cynical investors are wasting no time with this title, and for good reason. The handsome looking hardcover is limited to five hundred copies. In a move that mirrors the exceedingly rare red leather edition of its predecessor, Centipede is producing fifteen deluxe copies for $1750 each. While only a few lucky collectors will seize this edition, there's still a chance to move on the far more affordable trade hardcover. Get your order in now.
The Agonizing Resurrection is the third book by Thomas Ligotti released in 2011, and almost certainly the finest. It's due to ship out by late September. Until then, look for Subterranean Press' revised edition of Grimscribe: His Lives and Works, and the new paperback edition of The Conspiracy Against the Human Race.
-Grim Blogger
Dead But Dreaming 2 by Miskatonic River Press
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Miskatonic River Press has finally published its long awaited follow up to one of the best Lovecraftian anthologies in recent memory. Dead But Dreaming 2 picks up where the first book left off, plunging readers into territory where the traditional Cthulhu Mythos rarely tread. Like its predecessor, editor Kevin Ross has managed to line up some of Lovecraftiana's best writers. Readers can look forward to stories by Scott David Aniolowski, David Annandale, Donald R. Burleson, John Goodrich, Cody Goodfellow, T.E. Grau, Rick Hautala, Walt Jarvis, Erik T. Johnson, William Meikle, Will Murray, Daniel W. Powell, Wilum Pugmire, Joseph S. Pulver Sr, Pete Rawlik, Kevin Ross, Brian Sammons, Darrell Schweitzer, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Michael Tice, and Don Webb.
In many ways, Dead But Dreaming 2 promises to match or outshine the first Dead But Dreaming, which I previously reviewed. The book serves as an excellent reminder of the literary work Miskatonic River Press continues to do, aside from its extensive publications in Lovecraftian gaming. Next year, books featuring new stories devoted to Thomas Ligotti and Robert W. Chambers' King in Yellow are set to appear.
Weird fiction has always been a narrow field, but the big players in publishing are identified by their quality. Consider Miskatonic River Press one of the foremost purveyors carrying on a richly Lovecraftian and strange tradition in these times. The ongoing horror manifest in volumes like Dead But Dreaming 2 is proof of that.
-Grim Blogger
Eldritch Tales: A Miscellany of the Macabre
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Eldritch Tales: A Miscellany of the Macabre is a new illustrated collection of H.P. Lovecraft stories set to appear later this year. Longtime horror anthology editor Stephen Jones is behind it, and Les Edwards is providing the artwork. The book is actually a followup to 2008's Necronomicon: The Best Weird Tales of H.P. Lovecraft. This title gave Lovecraftian devotees and newcomers a handsome bundle of his best known stories.
The new volume promises to pick up where Necronomicon left off. It's due to offer an affordable set of Lovecraft's lesser known tales, miscellaneous writings, and poetry selections, such as the "Fungi from Yuggoth" sonnets in their entirety. These contents make it the cheapest way for Lovecraft completists to get their hands on the more obscure works. Eldritch Tales will hit retailers as a hardcover, oversize paperback, and e-book for the Kindle. Look for it around Fall, 2011.
-Grim Blogger
Preview: Mick Garris' Interview with John Carpenter
Sunday, February 27, 2011
For decades, John Carpenter's weird visions have terrorized the screens of millions. Unlike others, Carpenter never confined himself to cheap and easy thrills, but genuinely shocking displays of cinematic horror that also brought eerie ruminations after the monster faded from the screen. For weird horror fans, who can forget the combo of freakish transformations and the consequences of a malevolent cosmos wrought by Carpenter's extraterrestrial in The Thing? Or what about the Lovecraftian imagery and meta-fictional play that sardonically jeered audiences when In the Mouth of Madness premiered?
Next week, FEARnet is due to unleash a new interview with John Carpenter conducted by Mick Garris. They have kindly allowed this preview clip to be posted below. Carpenter discusses his film making icons and influences - the obscure and the celebrated - in a short, but illuminating talk. Like his influences from literature, it seems Carpenter isn't shy about plugging obscure mentors, such as Howard Hawks. His Lovecraftian influence has never been a secret, even at a time when H.P. Lovecraft's work was far less known than today.
The interview is a part of a series of talks by Garris with some of horror cinema's biggest names. Check out the full interview this February 28 on FEARnet's John Carpenter page.
-Grim Blogger
Miskatonic River Press to Release Ligotti, King in Yellow Anthologies in 2012
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Last week, weird horror writer-turned-editor Joseph S. Pulver made a tantalizing announcement. He's begun work piecing together two new tribute anthologies due to be published by Miskatonic River Press in 2012. The Grimscribe's Puppets will feature a selection of stories that are a homage to Thomas Ligotti. It will be the first book by multiple authors dedicated to the Ligottian aesthetic, and will join only a handful of others that pay respect to a living writer of weird fiction.
A Season in Carcosa will collect new tales inspired by Robert W. Chambers' The King in Yellow. Tributes to Carcosa's mad sovereign have been done before, but only on an extremely limited basis (see Rehearsals for Oblivion by Elder Signs Press for a recent example). There's more than enough untapped horror to help build up a Yellow universe - possibly even an incipient Mythos based around the blasphemous play.
Since its earnest resurrection over a year ago, Miskatonic River Press has rolled out several new works. Their new Lovecraftian anthology, Dead But Dreaming II, can be expected later this year as well. The book is a follow up to the hyper-rare and well received Dead But Dreaming, which I previously reviewed here.
-Grim Blogger

















