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Arkham Horror #23
Song of Carcosa: An Arkham Horror Novel
An occult thief takes on a sinister society threatening to tear the fabric of this world apart, in this daring noir-thriller from the bestselling world of Arkham Horror
Countess Alessandra Zorzi, reformed thief and acquirer of occult artifacts, faces her greatest challenge yet as she searches for an elusive artist in possession of the powerful Zanthu Tablet; the only thing that can stop the strange psychic malaise afflicting Alessandra’s assistant, Pepper.
The countess’s quest takes her to the crooked heart of Venice, where an eerie organization is planning a grand performance that will engulf the city in chaos. As Pepper slips into an inescapable alien world, Alessandra must defeat powerful forces to save her friend. One wrong move could bring the curtain down on them all.
Countess Alessandra Zorzi, reformed thief and acquirer of occult artifacts, faces her greatest challenge yet as she searches for an elusive artist in possession of the powerful Zanthu Tablet; the only thing that can stop the strange psychic malaise afflicting Alessandra’s assistant, Pepper.
The countess’s quest takes her to the crooked heart of Venice, where an eerie organization is planning a grand performance that will engulf the city in chaos. As Pepper slips into an inescapable alien world, Alessandra must defeat powerful forces to save her friend. One wrong move could bring the curtain down on them all.
352 pages, Paperback
Published March 5, 2024
6 people are currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
Joshua Reynolds
313 books339 followersJosh Reynolds’ work has previously appeared in such anthologies as Historical Lovecraft from Innsmouth Free Press and Horror for the Holidays from Miskatonic River Press, and his novel, Knight of the Blazing Sun, is currently available from Black Library. He can be found at: http://joshuamreynolds.wordpress.com
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
October 24, 2024
I started reading these because I love Arkham Horror and I was bored and they were available on my digital library, and I’m really shocked and delighted by how much I’m enjoying these tie-in novels. I’m having a good ass time with these! This one even has some good things to say about fascism, both explicitly and in terms of the fact that this book essentially says “if you want to fight eldritch horrors, you also have to be willing to punch a fascist”. I think it was basically mandatory to deal directly with the fascism thing if you want to set a plot in 1920s Italy, but I was genuinely impressed with how ready and willing this book was to directly address it.
Overall, the characters in this were very fun, the horror elements were really interesting—the King in Yellow and the concept of the cursed play are weirdly fascinating to me, I would for sure die in this book—and the climax is a good mix of action and emotional drama. And I loved Alessandra, I love a protagonist who’s willing to stone cold shoot a friend in order to avert the apocalypse and I’d read an entire series about how Alessandra abandoned her life of crime for a slightly more righteous life of crime.
The only thing I’ve marked this book down for is that I’m intensely torn about the character of Thorne. Not about their decisions—I fucking love their decisions, good and bad—but about their existence. On the one hand, I love seeing a nonbinary character in one of my favorite genres, especially since a lot of Lovecraft’s work is intensely misogynistic in addition to his numerous other sins. This book would give him a stroke, and that is a compliment. On the other hand, Thorne moves so seamlessly and easily through 1920s Venice, to a degree that felt somewhat out of joint with the fact that most of the other elements were pretty period-accurate. I kind of bridged the gap with the logic that secret societies dedicated to Outer Gods and how to stop them probably don’t care a lot about gender (or polyamory! Love the weird poly old man in this book!) but it did kind of eat at me.
❤️ Review by Gabe @polycraftory on Instagram, Tumblr, and Tiktok, where I do book reviews and crafts with my polycule. You can find me @ wordswritinstarlight on Storygraph, where I’m much more reliable about posting reviews. You can also find content warnings on my Storygraph review of this book.
Overall, the characters in this were very fun, the horror elements were really interesting—the King in Yellow and the concept of the cursed play are weirdly fascinating to me, I would for sure die in this book—and the climax is a good mix of action and emotional drama. And I loved Alessandra, I love a protagonist who’s willing to stone cold shoot a friend in order to avert the apocalypse and I’d read an entire series about how Alessandra abandoned her life of crime for a slightly more righteous life of crime.
The only thing I’ve marked this book down for is that I’m intensely torn about the character of Thorne. Not about their decisions—I fucking love their decisions, good and bad—but about their existence. On the one hand, I love seeing a nonbinary character in one of my favorite genres, especially since a lot of Lovecraft’s work is intensely misogynistic in addition to his numerous other sins. This book would give him a stroke, and that is a compliment. On the other hand, Thorne moves so seamlessly and easily through 1920s Venice, to a degree that felt somewhat out of joint with the fact that most of the other elements were pretty period-accurate. I kind of bridged the gap with the logic that secret societies dedicated to Outer Gods and how to stop them probably don’t care a lot about gender (or polyamory! Love the weird poly old man in this book!) but it did kind of eat at me.
❤️ Review by Gabe @polycraftory on Instagram, Tumblr, and Tiktok, where I do book reviews and crafts with my polycule. You can find me @ wordswritinstarlight on Storygraph, where I’m much more reliable about posting reviews. You can also find content warnings on my Storygraph review of this book.
September 1, 2025
I was hoping for a strong third outing from Reynolds after the first two Zorzi books. The first book was a decent introduction and the second book was a nice ramp up. This third book however, was rather stagnate.
It introduces political/sociopolitical elements that are distracting and quite frankly unnecessary. They really did nothing to serve the plot or add value to the story. Felt very much like the author or the IP holder pushing their political opinions to the reader. Very disappointing.
The story itself was largely uneventful with no strong action throughout and a lackluster climax/finale. Reynolds writing is serviceable but there’s a better story to be told here. ….Maybe the better story is on the back burner for another book. How unfortunate it would be to end the story of Zorzi here.
It introduces political/sociopolitical elements that are distracting and quite frankly unnecessary. They really did nothing to serve the plot or add value to the story. Felt very much like the author or the IP holder pushing their political opinions to the reader. Very disappointing.
The story itself was largely uneventful with no strong action throughout and a lackluster climax/finale. Reynolds writing is serviceable but there’s a better story to be told here. ….Maybe the better story is on the back burner for another book. How unfortunate it would be to end the story of Zorzi here.
November 28, 2024
I really enjoy the Arkham Horror universe of books. Occurring shortly after the conclusion of Shadows of Pnath, this one takes place in Venice with the Countess Alessandra Zorzi seeking to stop an occult group from ripping open the fabric of our reality to be replaced by the world of the Yellow King. There is some involvement with the Red Coterie with the return of Thorne.
Another great addition!
Another great addition!
June 22, 2025
The decadence of Venice after the First World War, combined with the nebulous nastiness that is Arkham Horror. Sounds like a match made in--well, Carcosa. Pepper and Alessandra have returned to the scene of Alessandra's childhood, hoping to find help in dealing with Pepper's nightmares. They find a city in the grip of nightmare itself. Help may be available, but at what price?
This book has more of Alessandra in it than Pepper, and we uncover some of her back story, and meet a few new characters, one of whom I was hoping would be devoured by something nasty, but alas! Perhaps in a fourth book, as there are certainly enough unresolved issues to support one.
This book has more of Alessandra in it than Pepper, and we uncover some of her back story, and meet a few new characters, one of whom I was hoping would be devoured by something nasty, but alas! Perhaps in a fourth book, as there are certainly enough unresolved issues to support one.
January 6, 2024
Arc Copy...Even though I haven't played (yet!) Arkham Horror yet...very much aware and delighted the narrative will deal with the "King in Yellow" expansion themes. Also good-exotic change pace to have the action moved to Venice from the usual Arkham setting of Massachusetts. Atmosphere felt...yes exotics 1930s Venice theater scene vibes mixed with something very sinister is going on and building!
February 12, 2025
As a fan of Arkham Horror TCG and currently playing through a Path to Carcosa campaign, this was a fun ride through through the eyes of many new characters. I enjoyed the varied perspectives and how they all fleshed out the story, culminating in a final act for the ages. Highly recommend for fans of Arkham Horror as well as those looking to dip their toes into the lore.
May 6, 2025
Good,enjoyable lovecraftian horror. I liked it better than the previous one, Wrath of N'Kai to be honest. Maybe it was because of the setting or the villain (I love the theme of Carcosa and the King in Yellow) that i enjoyed it so much. Worth checking out!
January 13, 2025
Really fun read, great characters
April 16, 2025
Lots to love here. Venice, beautiful masks, Jan, Pepper and quarantine islands.
Minus a full star for Thorne. Their brand of MCU/fanfic snark does not belong or elevate this setting.
Minus a full star for Thorne. Their brand of MCU/fanfic snark does not belong or elevate this setting.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews