The House of the Worm

by Gary Myers, Allan Servoss (Illustrator)

The House of the Worm is a collection of stories by Gary Myers. The book is a stylistic pastiche of H. P. Lovecraft and Lord Dunsany, and may be seen as an expansion of Lovecraft's Dream Cycle. While presented as a novel of the Cthulhu Mythos, it is, in fact, a collection of linked stories.

Contents:

Introduction
The House of the Worm
Yohk the Necromancer
Xiurhn
Passing of a Dreamer
The Return of Zhosph
The Three Enchantments
Hazuth-Kleg
The Loot of Golthoth
The Four Sealed Jars
The Maker of Gods

Genres: Horror, Cthulhu Mythos, Fantasy, Short Stories, Lovecraftian, Fiction

77 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 1975

About the author

Gary Myers fell under the shadow of H. P. Lovecraft at the tender age of sixteen and never completely left it. His first story was purchased by Lovecraft’s friend and publisher, August Derleth, in 1969. His first collection, The House of the Worm, was published by Derleth’s Arkham House in 1975. His other books include: The Country of the Worm, a cycle of dream fantasies in the manner of Lovecraft, Lord Dunsany and Clark Ashton Smith; Dark Wisdom, a cycle of Lovecraftian horrors in a more modern vein; Gray Magic, a novel-length episode in the magical career of Smith’s Hyperborean sorcerer, Eibon of Mhu Thulan; Myers’s Folly, a commentary on Myers’s own fiction-writing career; Offerings to Mlok, a cycle of horror plays in the fantastic manner of Lovecraft and Dunsany; and, with wife Jennifer McIlwee Myers, Lovecraft’s Syndrome, an informal Asperger’s appraisal of Lovecraft’s life. Gary lives in California with Jennifer and a large collection of fantasy books and movies.

Reviews

[Caleb.Lives · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Cthulhy Mythos"might be teeming with life these days, but stories based on Lovecraft's Dream Cycle are few and far between. This is slim old collection by Gary Myers collects his own visions from Dreamlands, and I dare say that tales collected therein are easily the finest non-Lovecraft Dreamlands tales. Collection might be slim, and stories themselves short, but every single one of them is oozing with quality and dark beauty. One potential "flaw" is that Myers's appears to be something of a Derleth fan, and that his stories are infused with Derleth's cosmology. But this is minor, and anyway this can only be a flow to those that insist on being offended by such things.

Must read for any fan Dream Circle, as well as for fans of Dunsany's fictions that influenced it.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding collection of macabre little tales based in Lovecrafts 'Dreamland'. Reminiscent of the prose poetry of Donald Wandrei, and of Clark Ashton Smith's more darkly comic moments, this book weaves a hallucinatory tapestry of weird cities, baleful sorcery, dark gods and ghoulish happenings. Highly recommended

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A phantasmagoric cocktail of Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, with a touch of Lord Dunsany. The tales are loosely connected, taking place in HPL's Dreamlands. Good for those looking to explore that realm further.

[Dustin Reade · Rating 5 out of 5]

dreamlike and haunting. self-referential. a black abyss of inky darkness. poetic. perfect. exactly what I was looking for.

[Mike Arrani · Rating 3 out of 5]

At the beginning of this book, the writing is outstanding. But as it progresses, I feel like it gradually becomes more uninspired. I was wondering if it was just me, so after finishing the book, I went back to the beginning and ... no, it's the book. The beginning is still amazing to me.

That being said, even when the writing is outstanding, the actual stories being told are kinda boring. I've read the whole book and don't remember a single story.

[Larry · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very quick read. Pastiche of Lovecraft's Dunsany-influenced works. Promising, but he needs to bring more originality. He quotes practically the whole paragraph about Azathoth from The Dream-Quest Of Unknown Kadath.

[Hanneke Van Keulen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The HP Lovecraftian universe got even more inspirational and fascinating with this book! I found it in a dusty corner of a NYC used bookstore and am thrilled to include in my horror collection! Highly recommend.

[Vanessa Gonzalez · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring.
I liked the gruesome deaths and karma.
I skimmed through most pages since it felt like it was talking about several things in one page so it was a bit hard and annoying to understand. The book illustrations looked cooler than the books stories.

[Eleanor With Cats · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the few (semi-)recent books that actually has a style that could have been written by C.L. Moore or Clark Ashton Smith. I am impressed.

[Gary Jaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection of Lovecraft Dreamland tales.

[Andre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Considering he was a teenager when some of this was written, Myers' prose is quite good but the stories themselves mostly amount to brief pastiches of Lovecraft's Dream Cycle.

[Mark McLaughlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

You will relish the dark, sardonic humor of this macabre volume!

[Gabriel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Happy birthday to me, glad to have a copy. Great book.