BOOK REVIEW: WEIRDER SHADOWS OVER INNSMOUTH / EDITOR: STEPHEN JONES / PUBLISHER: TITAN BOOKS / RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 30TH

Fans of H.P. Lovecraft and horror will just love this latest collection of fiction compiled by Stephen Jones. A continuation of his work on previous collections; Shadows over Innsmouth and Weird shadows over Innsmouth; Weirder Shadows over Innsmouth sees a well thought-out and wonderfully curated homage to Lovecraft’s work.

Much like the previous books, Weirder Shadows over Innsmouth brings together a collection of short stories inspired by Lovecraft’s classic horror novella The Shadows over Innsmouth. Each one unique in its own way, but still retaining those crucial similarities that brings them all together in this compilation. Two selected works by the master himself round it off to a perfect collection of horror stories.

From military operations to secretive clans and even garish seafarers, each story takes on its own unique twist, whilst still paying a perfectly fitting homage to Lovecraft’s work.

Whether it’s a look at the horrors of the modern world interwoven with a heavy dose of cosmic horror in Brian Hodge’s The Same Deep Waters As You, or a light-hearted look at Lovecraft’s classic creatures seen through the eyes of a child in Kim Newman’s Richard Riddle, Boy Detective in ‘The Case of the French Spy’, each story has its own unique take on the classic story, with the authors’ own personal touches transfixing the reader with their tales of malignant horror.

Whilst this compilation of stories may have been somewhat of a struggle to come to light, it’s one that’s certainly been worth it, with the end result being a perfectly thought-out collection of tales that makes for a fitting homage to Lovecraft’s work. Each author breathes new life into the classic horror genre, making for an enjoyable read that’s a delight for fans; let’s just hope that they haven’t sprung a set of new gills in the process of compiling this magnificent compilation of horror stories.