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Sweet Ermengarde
This comic short story is a parody of romantic melodrama, centering on Ethyl Ermengarde Stubbs and her relationships with villainous mortgage-holder Squire Hardman, would-be rescuer Jack Manly and fiancé Algernon Reginald Jones.
First published January 1, 1943
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About the author
H.P. Lovecraft
6,111 books19.2k followersHoward Phillips Lovecraft, of Providence, Rhode Island, was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction.
Lovecraft's major inspiration and invention was cosmic horror: life is incomprehensible to human minds and the universe is fundamentally alien. Those who genuinely reason, like his protagonists, gamble with sanity. Lovecraft has developed a cult following for his Cthulhu Mythos, a series of loosely interconnected fictions featuring a pantheon of human-nullifying entities, as well as the Necronomicon, a fictional grimoire of magical rites and forbidden lore. His works were deeply pessimistic and cynical, challenging the values of the Enlightenment, Romanticism and Christianity. Lovecraft's protagonists usually achieve the mirror-opposite of traditional gnosis and mysticism by momentarily glimpsing the horror of ultimate reality.
Although Lovecraft's readership was limited during his life, his reputation has grown over the decades. He is now commonly regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the 20th Century, exerting widespread and indirect influence, and frequently compared to Edgar Allan Poe.
See also Howard Phillips Lovecraft.
— Wikipedia
Lovecraft's major inspiration and invention was cosmic horror: life is incomprehensible to human minds and the universe is fundamentally alien. Those who genuinely reason, like his protagonists, gamble with sanity. Lovecraft has developed a cult following for his Cthulhu Mythos, a series of loosely interconnected fictions featuring a pantheon of human-nullifying entities, as well as the Necronomicon, a fictional grimoire of magical rites and forbidden lore. His works were deeply pessimistic and cynical, challenging the values of the Enlightenment, Romanticism and Christianity. Lovecraft's protagonists usually achieve the mirror-opposite of traditional gnosis and mysticism by momentarily glimpsing the horror of ultimate reality.
Although Lovecraft's readership was limited during his life, his reputation has grown over the decades. He is now commonly regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the 20th Century, exerting widespread and indirect influence, and frequently compared to Edgar Allan Poe.
See also Howard Phillips Lovecraft.
— Wikipedia
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 122 reviews
June 27, 2021
If you're looking for something completely different written by Lovecraft this is it. Set in 19th century USA a young woman is torn between two men. One is an evil but rich schemer. The other is different. Ermengarde is abducted by the schemer and later comes to work for a rich elderly lady. Who is this lady and what is the connection to her mother? What about the family's property? Will things go well in the end? The whole story strongly reminded me on a play and seems to be a parody. Quite untypical for his other writings but interesting and fast paced.
December 11, 2020
Who'd have thought that one of the world history's primary horror authors could write such a hilarious romance parody? It just goes to show that we all have a hidden side and that you should never take anything for granted.
August 30, 2015
2.5
Lovecraft and comedy.
Sweet Ermengarde is a parody of a romance. It has an unexpected ending. I found its exaggerations pretty funny.
Lovecraft and comedy.
Sweet Ermengarde is a parody of a romance. It has an unexpected ending. I found its exaggerations pretty funny.
December 10, 2020
Hilarious parody by a major horror writer. People take HPL much too seriously. They should read this and see he wasn't all rats in walls or Cthulhu.
May 1, 2020
La verdad que me ha sorprendido mucho este relato largo de Lovecraft, primero porque resultó ser una historia de amor, pero una de esas muy trágicas por supuesto, pero es que está historia da varios giros.
Lo primero a destacar es que sus personajes son muy marcados, la dulce chica que es muy buena y muy bonita, el galán que es pobre pero muy muy enamorado, el villano que es más malo que el veneno, de esos villanos hasta caricaturescos, casi que me lo imaginaba torciéndose los bigotes.
La cosa es que es Lovecfrat y no podemos esperar otra cosa que un buen giro bastante retorcido en el final.
Como siempre digno de leerse y también muy cortito
Lo primero a destacar es que sus personajes son muy marcados, la dulce chica que es muy buena y muy bonita, el galán que es pobre pero muy muy enamorado, el villano que es más malo que el veneno, de esos villanos hasta caricaturescos, casi que me lo imaginaba torciéndose los bigotes.
La cosa es que es Lovecfrat y no podemos esperar otra cosa que un buen giro bastante retorcido en el final.
Como siempre digno de leerse y también muy cortito
August 21, 2019
A fun, self-aware pastoral tale in the style of those found in Cervantes's Don Quixote. It's also very atypical of Lovecraft. While this style is not his fort, Lovecraft manages to form an entertaining enough story that gave me a chuckle or two.
October 23, 2024
HP Lovecraft wrote this very on, in 1921. But it was not published until 1943, after his death. It is a genuinely odd tale for Lovecraft. It deviates from the fantasy genre of his earlier work and the cosmic horror he is best know for. It’s a kind of satire, with hints of folktale. It is clever and well written, but in the end it doesn’t quite work. As far as I know, this is his only effort at this kind of work, and I’m glad he turned his efforts elsewhere. He is better at scary and fantastical tales.
May 19, 2020
No es más que una tragicomedia romántica, que sólo me parece comica si imagino a un tipo como Lovecraft, a quien tenía por sombrío, escribiendola.
Pero bueno, igual me equivoco, si me detengo he hilo fino, puedo decir que la evolución de los personajes es mucho mejor que las que unas cuantas novelas contienen, y teniendo en cuenta en la ridículamente pequeña extensión del relato en que consigue esto, es bastante genial.
También hay que reconocerle que salió de su zona de confort, esto no tiene nada de horror cósmico, y si antes tu me mostrabas este relato y me decías que es de H.P, yo te diría; -Vamos a ver. Primero ilustrate un poco, ignorante, y después me hablas-, así tal cual de estúpida.
Es que este relato tiene una moraleja tácita; NO cocificar a los autores, y de paso, tampoco a los actores, mira que el trato que está teniendo Zac Efron es una vergüenza a la humanidad.
Pero bueno, igual me equivoco, si me detengo he hilo fino, puedo decir que la evolución de los personajes es mucho mejor que las que unas cuantas novelas contienen, y teniendo en cuenta en la ridículamente pequeña extensión del relato en que consigue esto, es bastante genial.
También hay que reconocerle que salió de su zona de confort, esto no tiene nada de horror cósmico, y si antes tu me mostrabas este relato y me decías que es de H.P, yo te diría; -Vamos a ver. Primero ilustrate un poco, ignorante, y después me hablas-, así tal cual de estúpida.
Es que este relato tiene una moraleja tácita; NO cocificar a los autores, y de paso, tampoco a los actores, mira que el trato que está teniendo Zac Efron es una vergüenza a la humanidad.
March 4, 2020
Sweet Ermengarde is quite funny! Not horrifying at all, but a rare romp through Lovecraft's comic side.
December 30, 2024
3 ⭐
Tragicomedia, yesss
Tragicomedia, yesss
September 19, 2025
3.25 - Actually love that Lovecraft made a romance parody
January 30, 2016
Ermengarde was a goofy, melodramatic romance parody, all the way to the bitter end.
June 5, 2019
This was an absolutely horrible story. The plot is childish at best, and all the characters act abominably in the end.
June 23, 2022
no way this is written by h.p. lovecraft, I giggled
December 31, 2025
H. P. Lovecraft one day sat down and wrote a 15-page romance, sort of. Who knew Lovecraft could write a funny short story skewering the nature of the courtship wooing so often the subject of stories and early movies in the Romance genre? The proof is ‘Sweet Ermengarde’. I am reminded a little of the comedy in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Ernest, except Lovecraft’s little parody about love is quite a bit more skeptical.
I have copied the book blurb:
”Sweet Ermengarde or The Heart of a Country Girl is a short comedy ( 2,740 words ) by H. P. Lovecraft under the pseudonym "Percy Simple". It was probably written between 1919 and 1921 and is the only work of fiction by Lovecraft that cannot be dated with precision. The story is a parody of romantic melodrama, centering on Ethyl Ermengarde Stubbs and her relationships with various suitors.”
Quote:
”Ermengarde Stubbs was the beauteous blonde daughter of Hiram Stubbs, a poor but honest farmer-bootlegger of Horton, Vt. Her name was originally Ethyl Ermengarde, but her father persuaded her to drop the praenomen after the passage of the 18th Amendment, averring that it made him thirsty by reminding him of ethyl alcohol, C2H5OH. His own products contained mostly methyl or wood alcohol, CH3OH. Ermengarde confessed to sixteen summers, and branded as mendacious all reports to the effect that she was thirty. She had large black eyes, a prominent Roman nose, light hair which was never dark at the roots except when the local drug store was short on supplies, and a beautiful but inexpensive complexion.”
“But alas for the sinister designers of a villain—Squire Hardman was not the only suitor for the fair one. Close by the village dwelt another—the handsome Jack Manly, whose curly yellow hair had won the sweet Ermengarde’s affection when both were toddling youngsters at the village school. Jack had long been too bashful to declare his passion, but one day while strolling along a shady lane by the old mill with Ermengarde, he had found courage to utter what which was within his heart.”
”But these tender passages, sacred though their fervor, did not pass unobserved by profane eyes; for crouched in the bushes and gritting his teeth was the dastardly Squire Hardman! When the lovers had finally strolled away he leapt out into the lane, viciously twirling his mustache and riding-crop, and kicking an unquestionably innocent cat who was also out strolling.
“”Curses!”” He cried—Hardman, not the cat—“”I am foiled in my plot to get the farm and the girl! But Jack Manly shall never succeed! I am a man of power—and we shall see!””
“One day as Squire Hardman sat in the front parlour of his expensive and palatial home, indulging in his favorite pastime of gnashing his teeth and swishing his riding-crop, a great thought came to him; and he cursed aloud at the statue of Satan on the onyx mantelpiece.
“”Fool that I am!”” He cried. “”Why did I ever waste all this trouble on the girl when I can get the farm by simply foreclosing! I never thought of that! I will let the girl go, take the farm, and be free to wed some fair city maid like the leading lady of that burlesque troupe which played last week at the Town Hall!””
“Algernon Reginald Jones was a polished man of the world from the great city, and in his sophisticated hands our poor little Ermengarde was as a mere child. One could almost believe that sixteen-year-old stuff. Algy was a fast worker, but never crude. He could have taught Hardman a thing or two about finesse in sheiking. Thus only a week after his advent to the Stubbs family circle, where he lurked like the vile serpent that he was, he had persuaded the heroine to elope! It was in the night That she went leaving a note for her parents, sniffing the familiar mash for the last time, and kissing the cat goodbye—touching stuff! On the train Algernon became sleepy and slumped down in his seat, allowing a paper to fall out of his pocket by accident. Ermengarde, taking advantage of her supposed position as a bride-elect, picked up the folded sheet and read its perfumed expanse—when Lo! She almost fainted! It was a love letter from another woman!”
There are many twists and turns, all very well known to readers, but given by Lovecraft a comedic spin.
I am very delighted to discover this little gem of a story!
I have copied the book blurb:
”Sweet Ermengarde or The Heart of a Country Girl is a short comedy ( 2,740 words ) by H. P. Lovecraft under the pseudonym "Percy Simple". It was probably written between 1919 and 1921 and is the only work of fiction by Lovecraft that cannot be dated with precision. The story is a parody of romantic melodrama, centering on Ethyl Ermengarde Stubbs and her relationships with various suitors.”
Quote:
”Ermengarde Stubbs was the beauteous blonde daughter of Hiram Stubbs, a poor but honest farmer-bootlegger of Horton, Vt. Her name was originally Ethyl Ermengarde, but her father persuaded her to drop the praenomen after the passage of the 18th Amendment, averring that it made him thirsty by reminding him of ethyl alcohol, C2H5OH. His own products contained mostly methyl or wood alcohol, CH3OH. Ermengarde confessed to sixteen summers, and branded as mendacious all reports to the effect that she was thirty. She had large black eyes, a prominent Roman nose, light hair which was never dark at the roots except when the local drug store was short on supplies, and a beautiful but inexpensive complexion.”
“But alas for the sinister designers of a villain—Squire Hardman was not the only suitor for the fair one. Close by the village dwelt another—the handsome Jack Manly, whose curly yellow hair had won the sweet Ermengarde’s affection when both were toddling youngsters at the village school. Jack had long been too bashful to declare his passion, but one day while strolling along a shady lane by the old mill with Ermengarde, he had found courage to utter what which was within his heart.”
”But these tender passages, sacred though their fervor, did not pass unobserved by profane eyes; for crouched in the bushes and gritting his teeth was the dastardly Squire Hardman! When the lovers had finally strolled away he leapt out into the lane, viciously twirling his mustache and riding-crop, and kicking an unquestionably innocent cat who was also out strolling.
“”Curses!”” He cried—Hardman, not the cat—“”I am foiled in my plot to get the farm and the girl! But Jack Manly shall never succeed! I am a man of power—and we shall see!””
“One day as Squire Hardman sat in the front parlour of his expensive and palatial home, indulging in his favorite pastime of gnashing his teeth and swishing his riding-crop, a great thought came to him; and he cursed aloud at the statue of Satan on the onyx mantelpiece.
“”Fool that I am!”” He cried. “”Why did I ever waste all this trouble on the girl when I can get the farm by simply foreclosing! I never thought of that! I will let the girl go, take the farm, and be free to wed some fair city maid like the leading lady of that burlesque troupe which played last week at the Town Hall!””
“Algernon Reginald Jones was a polished man of the world from the great city, and in his sophisticated hands our poor little Ermengarde was as a mere child. One could almost believe that sixteen-year-old stuff. Algy was a fast worker, but never crude. He could have taught Hardman a thing or two about finesse in sheiking. Thus only a week after his advent to the Stubbs family circle, where he lurked like the vile serpent that he was, he had persuaded the heroine to elope! It was in the night That she went leaving a note for her parents, sniffing the familiar mash for the last time, and kissing the cat goodbye—touching stuff! On the train Algernon became sleepy and slumped down in his seat, allowing a paper to fall out of his pocket by accident. Ermengarde, taking advantage of her supposed position as a bride-elect, picked up the folded sheet and read its perfumed expanse—when Lo! She almost fainted! It was a love letter from another woman!”
There are many twists and turns, all very well known to readers, but given by Lovecraft a comedic spin.
I am very delighted to discover this little gem of a story!
September 14, 2025
Once more a parody that didn't land. I appreciate H.P. Lovecraft for his cosmic horror stories, not for some romantic dilemma.
If you want to read something different from H.P. Lovecraft than his usual stuff then this piece of work will probably surprise you.
If you want to read something different from H.P. Lovecraft than his usual stuff then this piece of work will probably surprise you.
December 28, 2018
Anteriormente había leído en blogs que este cuento de Lovecraft era de un tono un poco "dulce" para lo que él escribe. Y sí, efectivamente, me di cuenta que además de ser "dulce" (contrario a lo que nos tiene acostumbrados este autor con sus relatos), llega a ser tan cliché, para lo que se veía en aquella época, en donde la joven rica quiere casarse con el joven al que tanto ama pero por culpa de su herencia al ser tan rica, varios hombres más la pretenden y al final termina siendo un embrollo.
Realmente no sé qué pretendía nuestro H.P. Lovecraft escribiendo este cuento, en sus escasas páginas sólo hay drama, drama y más drama. Por una parte qué bueno que me quité esa "espinita" de saber a qué iba este relato. Pero, por favor, Lovecraft es más que eso, mucho, mucho más que eso. Definitivamente no me agradó la idea pero al fin de cuentas ahí esta este relato. No quedo decepcionado por que es un relato nada más, pero la mitología que ha creado y su horror cósmico me hubiera gusta que interviniera en la pareja, en el relato, o algo, algo que le diera ese toque que tanto distingue a nuestro padre del Horror cósmico.
Realmente no sé qué pretendía nuestro H.P. Lovecraft escribiendo este cuento, en sus escasas páginas sólo hay drama, drama y más drama. Por una parte qué bueno que me quité esa "espinita" de saber a qué iba este relato. Pero, por favor, Lovecraft es más que eso, mucho, mucho más que eso. Definitivamente no me agradó la idea pero al fin de cuentas ahí esta este relato. No quedo decepcionado por que es un relato nada más, pero la mitología que ha creado y su horror cósmico me hubiera gusta que interviniera en la pareja, en el relato, o algo, algo que le diera ese toque que tanto distingue a nuestro padre del Horror cósmico.
January 17, 2019
An odd little parody of romantic melodrama with a rich, manipulative villain who is depicted as twirling his mustache in part two. The story contains a series of over-the-top twists. It's mildly amusing with names like "Mrs. Van Itty" and "Jack Manly" and it has dad jokes like "She ... weighed 115.47 lbs. on her father's copy scales - also off them". In a way, the whole story is kind of an extended dad joke.
May 5, 2017
This is a strange little dalliance. A sort of parody comedy, far removed from his normal nihilistic output, but one that does show old Lovecraft was a funny guy.
February 23, 2017
[ANALISIS EDITADO] Pues me he enterado que era una crítica a la estructura de las novelas románticas, y ya no me parece tan mal, supongo. Sigo sin recomendar la lectura, pero está interesante.
February 7, 2025
By god, its actually funny.
I'm genuinely surprised how many times I chuckled reading this. I'd have thought it would be too dated and indulgent like 'The Reminiscence of Dr. Samuel Johnson', but it somehow completely stands up as a parody of romantic melodrama - which maybe says more about the stagnation of genre tropes than his actual foresight. Squire Hardman, what a name. Jack Manly. erMeNgArDe Lolo extremely silly, but honestly shocked how pithy it is. It doesn't waste any time loitering for a laugh, and the way Lovecraft plays fast and loose with his structure, spelling, and grammar really feels like he's having fun. That ends up being exactly what the reader has. The absurd back and forth of fortune, the comical archetypes, and absurdity all read a bit like a Stoppard stageplay.
2.5 Beauteous Blondes out of 5
👱🏼♀️👱🏼♀️1/2⬛⬛⬛
I'm genuinely surprised how many times I chuckled reading this. I'd have thought it would be too dated and indulgent like 'The Reminiscence of Dr. Samuel Johnson', but it somehow completely stands up as a parody of romantic melodrama - which maybe says more about the stagnation of genre tropes than his actual foresight. Squire Hardman, what a name. Jack Manly. erMeNgArDe Lolo extremely silly, but honestly shocked how pithy it is. It doesn't waste any time loitering for a laugh, and the way Lovecraft plays fast and loose with his structure, spelling, and grammar really feels like he's having fun. That ends up being exactly what the reader has. The absurd back and forth of fortune, the comical archetypes, and absurdity all read a bit like a Stoppard stageplay.
2.5 Beauteous Blondes out of 5
👱🏼♀️👱🏼♀️1/2⬛⬛⬛
July 9, 2025
i thought i was reading a horror story then this came up but whatever it was a bit funny
January 7, 2024
Lol go gurl, we believe you're 16!
July 5, 2019
FROM WIKIPEDIA:
"Sweet Ermengarde" is a short comic story by American horror fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft under the pseudonym "Percy Simple". It was probably written between 1919 and 1921; Lovecraft scholars state it is "the only work of fiction by HPL that cannot be dated with precision." It was first published in the Arkham House collection Beyond the Wall of Sleep (1943).
The story is a parody of romantic melodrama, centering on Ethyl Ermengarde Stubbs and her relationships with villainous mortgage-holder 'Squire Hardman, would-be rescuer Jack Manly and fiance Algernon Reginald Jones. Daniel Harms calls it "a take-off on the Horatio Alger 'rags-to-riches' genre". An H. P. Lovecraft Encyclopedia suggests that a more precise target for Lovecraft's satire was writer Fred Jackson, whose novels often "have exactly the sort of implausibility of plot and sentimentality of action that is parodied in 'Sweet Ermengarde'."
"Sweet Ermengarde" is a short comic story by American horror fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft under the pseudonym "Percy Simple". It was probably written between 1919 and 1921; Lovecraft scholars state it is "the only work of fiction by HPL that cannot be dated with precision." It was first published in the Arkham House collection Beyond the Wall of Sleep (1943).
The story is a parody of romantic melodrama, centering on Ethyl Ermengarde Stubbs and her relationships with villainous mortgage-holder 'Squire Hardman, would-be rescuer Jack Manly and fiance Algernon Reginald Jones. Daniel Harms calls it "a take-off on the Horatio Alger 'rags-to-riches' genre". An H. P. Lovecraft Encyclopedia suggests that a more precise target for Lovecraft's satire was writer Fred Jackson, whose novels often "have exactly the sort of implausibility of plot and sentimentality of action that is parodied in 'Sweet Ermengarde'."
November 26, 2021
I never cease to be surprised how well Sweet Ermengarde holds up to this day. Even though the specific tropes that Lovecraft parodies are not so commonly used in the modern romance, it's relatively easy to guess what they were, or even tie them with more modern tropes (though the knowledge of the tropes from silent films or operettas still helps, since I doubt many read the specific kind of romances he's spoofing.) Some of the jokes outstay their welcome - how many times do we need reminding that Ermengarde's family are moonshiners? - but most of them are funny and easy to understand, and the characters are a delightful combination of cliches and subversions of cliches. Too bad that this story, like many others of Lovecraft, would be difficult to adapt, because so much of the humor is in the narration.
December 10, 2017
Дуже наїна історія недосвідченого Лавкрафта. Схоже, він вперше і востаннє спробував себе в ролі драматурга (якщо це можна назвати п'єсою). Ерменґард Стаббз, якій зо тридцять, прикидається шістнадцятирічною. Її руки добиваються двоє - підступний сквайр Гардмен і простак Джек Менлі. Гардмен погрожує відібрати у Стаббзів землю, якщо одруження не відбудеться. Але Ерменґард і Джек (наче) кохають одне одного, і обидва опиняються у місті, де сподіваються заробити гроші і врятувати землю від лихого сквайра.
October 6, 2017
Sweet Ermengarde or The Heart of a Country Girl is a short comedy ( 2,740 words ) H. P. Lovecraft under the pseudonym "Percy Simple". It was probably written between 1919 and 1921 and is the only work of fiction by Lovecraft that cannot be dated with precision. The story is a parody of romantic melodrama, centering on Ethyl Ermengarde Stubbs and her relationships with various suitors. Sometimes clever but often the story feels disjointed. Nice easy read.
June 18, 2019
Bueno, de lo que llevo leído del autor de Providence, este ha sido el peor cuento que he leído.
Algunos comentan que es una parodia, y puede que eso haga que no seamos muy severos, pero aún así no termina de cuajar.
Pueden pasar por alto este cuento y no se perderán de nada. Si acaso sólo lo recomendaría como una curiosidad.
Algunos comentan que es una parodia, y puede que eso haga que no seamos muy severos, pero aún así no termina de cuajar.
Pueden pasar por alto este cuento y no se perderán de nada. Si acaso sólo lo recomendaría como una curiosidad.
August 6, 2019
...What even is this story? Where did Lovecraft's horrifying tales go, replaced with...humor. This short story is filled with cliches (even a literal mustache twirling villain) and is meant to make fun of them. It is strange to imagine that the horror legend himself would create a strangely Shakespearean-type comedy mixed with a fairy tale. I was not expecting it, but it so perfect!
April 7, 2018
Don't read this if you want Lovecraft horror. This is not a cosmic horror story, but more like an episode of Dudley Do-Right. That being said, its hilariously cheesy, and an interesting outcast of Lovecraft's authorship.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 122 reviews