The Book of Ghouls

Books of Cthulhu #8

by David Hambling, C.T. Phipps, Matthew Davenport

Ghouls have a special place in the works of H.P. Lovecraft, as the monstrous eaters of the dead are the only creatures from traditional folklore to stalk through his Mythos. Lovecraft’s universe was science fictional rather than fantastic, and his nightmare creations were alien rather than supernatural. While his ghouls were inspired by a fascination with the Arabian Nights, they have an added dimension of they were once human.

In The Book of Ghouls, five Neo-Mythos writers known for cosmic horror explore Lovecraftian ghouls’ sinister, cannibalistic relationship with C.T. Phipps (Cthulhu Armageddon), Matthew Davenport (The Adventures of Andrew Doran), David Hambling (the Harry Stubbs series), Eric Malikyte (Mind’s Horizon), and Philip Hemplow (Sarcophagus, Exoteric).

In this volume you will meet with ghouls everywhere from the steamy jungles of the Vietnam war to the refined air of Arkham’s high society, from a bizarre festival on a remote Scottish island to small town America, and from 1920s South London to the mystical Dreamlands. The Book of Ghouls is the latest in the acclaimed Books of Cthulhu series inviting you to face the terrifying creatures that lurk just beyond the edge of human understanding.

Genres: Horror

301 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 9, 2024

Reviews

[Henry Lopez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology focuses on ghouls and is fairly good, for the most part. Like all anthologies, there are some hits and misses, but the hits were excellent.

David Hambling's new Hary Stubs adventure is a 5-star story, as are the two tales by a new (to me) writer, Philip Hemplow. His two stories were excellent, both in his skill as a writer and the story itself, which were brilliant.

David Hambling has another tale set in the modern era, which was also a great, fun read. 4 stars, without any hesitation.

The other stories were serviceable but did not draw me in like the other four.

[Abdul Alhazred · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the least Lovecraftian of his monsters, still makes a good focus for a horror anthology but is perhaps a bit more conventional than the rest in the series. For me, the lovecraftian ethos falls apart the more the monster is understood and the higher the powers scale (at which point it starts to sound like a CoC adventure), a couple stories in particular (1) Ethical Consumption and (4) Andrew Doran and the Genesis of the Ghouls suffer from this.

On the other end of the scale, successfully using the murky nature of the threat and the ignorance of humanity, (2) Prisoner 191 worked well with its "war in the sandbox" setting and already evil torture programs hitting a snag, (6) The Black Echo using the claustrophobic Vietnam tunnel setting to great success. A bit less visceral but still intriguing is (3) Rare Meat where Harry Stubbs (recurring character for Hambling) investigates an ongoing case of ghoulification. Delicacy has a similar premise and plays it in an almost Tell-Tale Heart fashion.

Alternatives: The strongest Lovecraft anthology over all (for me) remains Lovecraft's Monsters and its theme echoes this more monster focused anthology.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

well done

This was another great volume in the series. I especially like the recurring roles of characters from earlier books. Another two days of reading enjoyment