THE NEW ANNOTATED H. P. LOVECRAFT: BEYOND ARKHAM / EDITOR: LESLIE S. KLINGER / PUBLISHER: LIVERIGHT / 24TH SEPTEMBER
The first volume of The New Annotated H. P. Lovecraft, published in 2014, contained 22 of HPL’s most popular stories, including all of the tales surrounding his well-known (and definitely culty) Cthulhu Mythos. This follow-up volume, as its title suggests, takes us Beyond Arkham, exploring 25 further terrifying tales written during the first half of HP’s career. The emphasis here is more on fantasy, science-fiction and the supernatural, rather than the cosmic horror themes that Lovecraft would later become famous for, but they’re no less strange and frightening.
Each of these stories are presented as “best guess” definitive versions of the originals, taken from manuscripts, first published appearances, reprints and some of HPL’s own revisions. While most of his better-known works were included in the previous volume, there’s plenty of classic genre fiction here, including “The Rats In The Walls” and “The Horror At Red Hook,” fan favourites like “The Outsider” and “The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath,” and several stories that are likely to be seen for the first time by the more casual Lovecraftian.
The annotations provided within each story give readers extra insight into the often confusing but always fantastical and bizarre worlds created within Lovecraft’s writing. They’re provided with a view to enhancing the entertainment value of the stories, rather than being intended as an academic text to be pored over and picked apart in minute detail, ensuring they remain informative and enjoyable rather than stuffy and serious.
The hundreds of photos, illustrations and pieces of intricately-researched information add a great deal to the stories themselves, but the layout leaves a little to be desired. Many annotations span multiple pages and, on many occasions, don’t even appear until several pages later. Checking the annotations while reading the main text often leads to turning backwards and forwards across multiple pages, breaking up the flow of the story. For the best experience, give yourself chance to read each tale uninterrupted before revisiting each one to dig deeper into the each tale’s background and meaning.
Invaluable for long-term fans and newcomers alike, Beyond Arkham takes us on 25 incredible journeys from one of literature’s most unhinged minds, the likes of which we’ll quite possibly never see again.
