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Cthulhu's Reign Kindle Edition
Some of the darkest hints in all of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos relate to what will happen after the Old Ones return and take over the earth. What happens when Cthulhu is unleashed upon the world? What happens when the other Old Ones, long since banished from our universe, break through and descend from the stars? What would the reign of Cthulhu be like on a totally transformed planet where mankind is no longer the master? Find out in these exciting, brand-new stories.
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherDAW
- Publication date2 April 2010
- Reading age18 years and up
- File size1042 KB
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About the Author
Product details
- ASIN : B0030CVQRG
- Publisher : DAW (2 April 2010)
- Language : English
- File size : 1042 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 320 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: 851,459 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- 2,455 in Science Fiction Anthologies (Kindle Store)
- 2,735 in Fantasy Anthologies (Kindle Store)
- 4,399 in Fantasy Anthologies (Books)
- Customer reviews:
About the author
Mike Allen is an author, editor and publisher of science fiction, fantasy and horror. He has written, edited, or co-edited thirty-eight books, among them his forthcoming dark fantasy novel TRAIL OF SHADOWS and his new horror collection SLOW BURN.
UNSEAMING and AFTERMATH OF AN INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT, his first two volumes of horror tales, were both finalists for the Shirley Jackson Award for Best Story Collection, and his dark fable “The Button Bin” was a nominee for the Nebula Award for Best Short Story. Another collection, THE SPIDER TAPESTRIES, contains experiments in weird science fiction and fantasy. His dark fantasy novel THE BLACK FIRE CONCERTO combines sword and sorcery with a zombie apocalypse.
As an editor and publisher, he has been nominated twice for the World Fantasy Award: first, for his anthology CLOCKWORK PHOENIX 5, the culmination of the Clockwork Phoenix series showcasing tales of beauty and strangeness that defy genre classification; and then, for MYTHIC DELIRIUM, the magazine of poetry and fiction he edited for twenty years.
He’s a three-time winner of the Rhysling Award for poetry. His six poetry collections include STRANGE WISDOMS OF THE DEAD, a Philadelphia Inquirer Editor’s Choice selection, and HUNGRY CONSTELLATIONS, a Suzette Haden Elgin Award nominee.
With his wife, Anita, he runs Mythic Delirium Books, based in Roanoke, Virginia. Their cat Pandora assists.
Find him on Instagram and on BlueSky via his mythicdelirium handle.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonTop reviews from United Kingdom
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- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 July 2023Great stories for h. P lovecraft fans!
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 June 2013Pretty good - bit of a mixed bag. In many cases the idea is far better than the execution. Worth remembering that - unlike Lovecraft's stories - these are not all set in the same mythos, but in alternate versions; each author's own idea of what would happen when the stars are right ...
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 December 2015This review is written by someone who has recently edited their first volume of horror tales, which was a huge learning curve for me so I can appreciate what I uncovered about this book. Cthulhu's Reign highlights the importance of the editorial and proofreading process; this book unfortunately suffers from it and I found some glaring errors.
However, having said that I don't regret owning my own copy as it contains a some really decent tales - this isn't a feel good book by any means, it's concerned with the end of the world of humans so please remember to take a break between each tale, perhaps watch a few sunrises too, that'll help to cheer you up.
I don't think 'The Walker in the Cemetery' should have been used as the opening tale, in my opinion this was weak, really the opener should have been Don Webb's 'Sanctuary' followed immediately by Ken Asamatsu's 'Spherical Trigonometry' they are cracking tales. John R. Fult's 'This is how the world ends' should have been next then 'The Shallows' by John Langan. The last tale is 'Remnants' by Fred Chappell - a worthy tale which truly deserves to be placed at the very end of the book; it's always good to know that there's hope should a cosmic horror rain down its dread upon our lovely world.
I won't complain about the weaker tales as I don't want to be unfair but I would invite the curious to pick up a copy and see for yourself. We are often quick to judge and criticise books when don't meet our immediate expectations but I would ask that readers who enjoy reading Lovecraftian tales acquire their copy and please contribute your opinion to the reviews here. Like myself, I'm sure you'll find some rather pleasant surprises contained within. And as for errors in editing, well I understand how difficult it is to try to get it right for the deadline; it's a lesson learnt I'm sure but it certainly didn't spoil my enjoyment of it - in fact, I had fun with it.
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 April 2013The new era of Lovecraft's writers show that the legacy of the Master of the Horror never will fall in the oblivion.
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 14 January 2017Quite chilling some of them. Love it.
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 February 2013Goes the way of all Anthologies .in that there's alot of bad stories, a few ok stories and one or two quite good stories but overall not worth the price of admission .back to the drawing board Shoggoth lovers
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 October 2014Grim but impressive. Good gothic read.
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 April 2010Well I'm going to be perfectly blunt, this is not the greatest selection of stories based around the Cthulhu mythos I've ever read.
True there are some gems in this compilation but in general there are some real stinkers. Well maybe that's too harsh but I know of at least two stories that I just skipped through as they just seemed, well... dull!
Maybe it's the style of writing or something but I actually like a story where something 'happens' not just some bloke rambling on about (Elder) God knows what.
Out of 10 I'd give it a liberal 6, but to be fair I'm about 4/5ths the way through so there may just be that last couple of stories that just make the grade but at least half of the ones I've read so far have been 'so so' with only a few being memorable and unique.
I hate to slate peoples hard work but I have to be honest this was a really good idea but I'm afraid some of the stories seem a bit tedious and disappointing.
Top reviews from other countries
- Amazon CustomerReviewed in Canada on 23 January 2017
3.0 out of 5 stars Three Stars
Hit and miss, probably worth it if you're a fan.
- Matthew T. CarpenterReviewed in the United States on 10 April 2010
5.0 out of 5 stars A triumph for Darrell Schweitzer and DAW
The premise of Cthulhu's Reign is simple. What happens to humanity after the rising of R'lyeh? Most Cthulhu mythos fiction is concerned with discovering the existence of humanity's true place in the order of things or about cultists trying to bring back Cthulhu. Cthulhu's Reign takes a different perspective.
The book is a very nice mass market paperback with 309 pages, including a 7 page introduction, and a few pages of authors' biographies. All stores were newly published for this book; I did not see any major typographical errors. The attractive cover art shows immense tentacles rearing up out of the sea but I am not sure who created it, even after going over the book carefully. I was familiar with about half the authors in this volume. I was captivated by the uniformly high quality of the writing; there was not one story that I did not enjoy immensely. I have some beefs of course that I suppose I need to get out of the way. First, as a bibliophile I would have loved a limited edition hardcover, with interior illustrations. In fact, the last mythos anthology I can think of offhand that was published directly as a mmpb was Miskatonic University in 1996! Most such books at least start life as a trade paperback. Perhaps DAW only markets mmpbs? Perhaps it says something about the increasing popularity of fiction inspired by HPL's creations? My second issue is that the title is not listed as volume 1 in DAW's new series of Lovecraftian fiction. Oh, well, I can dream. The introduction by Darrell Schweitzer is, frankly, brilliant. It tells you just about everything you need to know to appreciate where these stories are coming from, and shows off his scholarly credentials to boot. If you never read anything by HPL, he suggests you read The Dunwich Horror, The Call of Cthulhu and The Shadow Over Innsmouth to get the gist. You can find the text of these stories free on line, if you are not a Lovecraftian and want to approach this book with proper frame of reference. The stories in Cthulhu's Reign are quite thematically similar but they are not really monster stories at all, like so many mythos stories are. This is more a series of meditations of human nature at the end of things, a sort of subset of post apocalyptic fiction, this time with tentacles. That makes the anthology all the more fascinating and, I think, broadens its appeal. Having a boatload of talented authors to call upon helped too!
Here are the contents:
The Walker in the Cemetery by Ian Watson - Ian Watson is new to me. Of all the contents, I found the prose here to be the most awkward. At first I was hesitant but I became an enthusiastic fan as Cthulhu spawn traps some surviviors of R'lyeh's rising and a game of cat and mouse ensues.
Sanctuary by Don Webb - Mr. Webb has a collection with many stories of interest to Lovecraftians, When They Came. A small village in south Texas has so far been overlooked, mstly, by the earth's new masters. This was absolutely wonderful. I hope Mr. Webb writes more mythos soon.
Her Acres of Pastoral Playground by Mike Allen - Another new author to me, Mr. Allen gives us a wrenching picture of a man struggling to hold his family together in the face of hopelessness.
Spherical Trigonometry by Ken Asamatsu - Asamatsu san edited the landmark series of Japanese mythos stories, Lairs of the Hidden Gods, published in 4 volumes by Kurodahan Press. His presence adds an international feel to the anthology. Everyone knows the Hounds of Tindalos cannot move through curved space. So what to do about that?
What Brings the Void by Will Murray - Will Murray has written a number of Cthulhu mythos stories, notably To Clear the Earth from The Shub Niggurath Cycle; I hope we see more from his pen soon. A NRO operative tries to use his psychic abilities to get intel on the invaders in this engaging story.
The New Pauline Corpus by Matt Cardin - Mr. Cardin has a collection, Dark Awakenings coming out from Mythos Books. It will contain his previously hard to get novella, The God of Foulness. Wow, what a magnificent story! A theologian tries to reconcile what has happened with what he spent his life studying.
Ghost Dancing by Darrell Schweitzer - The estimable editor of Chtulhu's Reign is a Lovecraftian scholar who wrote the biographical Discovering HP Lovecraft. He also wrote one of my favorite mythos stories, Why We Do It, found in Dead But Dreaming. What can you salvage at the end of all things? The allusion to the Ghost Dancing movement was acute.
This is How the World Ends by John R. Fultz - Mr. Fultz wrote a short novel online, The Wizards of Hyperborea, perhaps more in the vein of Clark Ashton Smith. Alas I don't know if the work is still available; I have not seen it in print. When R'lyeh rises will you fall, fight or be assimilated? Like many other stories here, the protagonist is moved to cling to his humanity.
The Shallows by John Langan - I am unfamiliar with the work or Mr. Langan but I have to remedy that! The Shallows is another brilliant story, as moving for what is says as much as what it doesn't, as a man clings to his daily routine.
Such Bright and Risen Madness in Our Names by Jay Lake - Another new author for me. A man, or what was once a man, joins with others to resist what has happened. The prose and plotting were top notch.
The Seals of New R'lyeh by Gregory Frost - Apparently Mr. Frost will be appearing at the 2010 Odyssey Writing Workshop; he is new to me. OK, we would like to think we will all behave nobly when the worst comes. Why then did I chortle so much while reading about these two petty crooks who keep trying to get aleg up, with mixed results.
Holocaust of Ecstasy by Brian Stableford - Mr. Stabelford has a short mythos novel coming out soon from Perilous Press, The Womb of Time. The title of this story comes from a line by HPL. What exactly he meant is open to speculation, so Mr. Stableford gives us his meditation on what the future holds.
Vastation by Laird Barron - I loved Mr. Barron's collection The Imago Sequence with the incredible story Old Virginia; his new collection Occultation will be out soon from Nightshade Books and I hope it has some Lovecraftian stories. Vastation was fascinating and complex, with layered prose and was also wonderful.
Nothing Personal by Richard Lupoff - Mr. Lupoff is well known to mythos fans for his collections Terrors and Visions. A first alien encounter doesn't exactly go as planned in this gripping story.
Remnants by Fred Chappell - I confess I could not stand Mr. Chappell's novel, Dagon, but I like his short fiction. Remnants may actually have been the most upbeat of all the stories here.
I think this book is a triumph. Although a Cthulhu mythos anthology, it focuses on the human response to the unthinkable. I really liked all of the stories and some were flat out brilliant, where usually in this type of book there are more than a few dogs; I credit Mr. Schweitzer's selection of talented writers for this. Furthermore Cthulhu's Reign is an inexpensive mass market paperback, making it a bargain. I only hope Mr. Schweitzer and DAW have more such books in the planning stages.
PS: The editor is not the only one who can use Cthulhu in a limerick:
A tentacled Old One named Cthulhu
In space devoured Captain Sulu
The Enterprise tasted
Not so bad when well basted
With the crewmen all crying, boo hulhu
-
Arno GündischReviewed in Germany on 26 April 2010
5.0 out of 5 stars Post-apokalyptische Szenarien
In der Vision von H.P.Lovecraft (1890-1937, Einsiedler von Providence und Vater des kosmischen Horrors) wird die Menschheit ständig von den "Großen Alten" bedroht, unfaßbaren gottgleichen Wesen aus einer anderen Raum-Zeit-Dimension, die , obwohl verbannt, dennoch auf Rache sinnen und die Erde wieder in ihren Besitz nehmen wollen (nachdem sie ihnen vor unfaßbar langer Zeit bereits einmal gehörte).
Was aber, wenn das Undenkbare geschieht, und diese monströsen Gottheiten zurückkehren? Welches wird dann das Schicksal der Menschheit sein?
Vorliegender Sammelband versucht durch seine Erzählungen eine Antwort darauf zu geben. Die Visionen sind dabei so verschieden wie die Autoren selbst.
Von der unerwarteten Invasion der Andersartigen in die Realität (Ian Watson: "The Walker in the Cemetery") über heldenhafte wie vergebliche Versuche, einen Schein von Normalität aufrechtzuerhalten (Don Webb: "Sanctuary", Mike Allen: "Her Acres of Pastoral Playground", John R. Fultz: "This Is How The World Ends") über pychedelische Visionen, die mehrere Zeitebenen umfassen (John Langan: "The Shallows", Laird Barron: "Vastation") bis hin zur Versenkung in das ultimative kosmische Grauen (Will Murray: "What Brings The Void", Brian Stableford: "The Holocaust of Ecstasy"-mein absoluter Favorit des ganzen Bandes) wird eine ganze Palette von apokalyptischen Situationen aufgezeichnet, in denen die Menschheit entweder resigniert (Ken Asamatsu: "Spherical Trigonometry", Darrell Schweitzer: "Ghost Dancing", Gregory Frost: "The Seals of New R`lyeh") oder im Gegenteil entschieden zurückschlägt (Jay Lake: "Such Bright and Risen Madness in Our Names", Richard A. Lupoff: "Nothing Personal", Fred Chappell: "Remnants").
Jenseits des kosmischen Horrors von Cthulhu und seinem Gefolge werfen diese Geschichten akute Fragen auf: Kann die Menschheit, so wie sie jetzt ist, auch Katastrophen größeren Ausmaßes bewältigen oder muß sie zwangsläufig untergehen?
Eine Frage, die aktueller nicht sein kann..
Die aufgelisteten Stories geben jedenfalls wenig Raum für Hoffnung, bestechen aber alle durch ihr durchweg hohes literarisches Niveau.
Wer von Lovecrafts Göttern, und/oder Filmen wie "Mad Max", "Independence Day", "Terminator 1-4" sowie den Alien/Predator-Verfilmungen nicht genug kriegen kann, dem sei dieser Band wärmstens empfohlen.
Cthulhu würde sagen: Fünf Punkte!
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KubelikReviewed in Germany on 18 March 2018
3.0 out of 5 stars Immer mehr Cthulhu
Diese Geschichten aus dem Cthulhu-Universum fand ich ansprechend, aber es sind nicht die besten Kurzgeschichten zum Thema. Dennoch liest der hungrige Lovecraft-Fan ja gern alles, was auch nur ansatzweise mit dem schlafenden Cthulhu zu tun hat. Für Zwischendurch schon in Ordnung als Gutenacht-Geschichten, aber nicht so fesselnd wie manch andere Sammlungen.
- carlos nuñezReviewed in the United States on 3 April 2011
3.0 out of 5 stars nice job
well considering that this is the ONLY book showing what would happen after cthulhu shows up i can say that is very original