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Reanimatrix
An obsessed detective on the trail on a murdered young woman finds more than he bargained for in this tale of hard-boiled cosmic horror, an inventive mash-up of the pulp detective story and Lovecraftian terror.
Some say the war drove Robert Peaslee mad. Others suggest that given what happened to his father, madness was inevitable. He’s spent years trying to forget the monsters that haunt his dreams, but now has returned to witch-haunted Arkham to do the only job that he’s qualified for, handling the crimes other cops would prefer to never talk about. He’s the hero Arkham doesn’t even know it has.
Megan Halsey is dead, her body missing. She might have been one of the richest young women in Arkham, but all that money couldn’t make her happy. Word on the street is that her mother split a long time ago, and Megan had spent a lot of her money trying to find her.
Peaslee soon becomes obsessed with the murdered Megan. Retracing the steps of her own investigation, traveling from Arkham to Dunwich, and even to the outskirts of Innsmouth, he will learn more about Megan and Arkham than he should, and discover things about himself that he’d tried to bury.
It’s 1928, and in the Miskatonic River Valley, women give birth to monsters and gods walk the hills. Robert Peaslee will soon learn the hard way that some things are better left undead.
Some say the war drove Robert Peaslee mad. Others suggest that given what happened to his father, madness was inevitable. He’s spent years trying to forget the monsters that haunt his dreams, but now has returned to witch-haunted Arkham to do the only job that he’s qualified for, handling the crimes other cops would prefer to never talk about. He’s the hero Arkham doesn’t even know it has.
Megan Halsey is dead, her body missing. She might have been one of the richest young women in Arkham, but all that money couldn’t make her happy. Word on the street is that her mother split a long time ago, and Megan had spent a lot of her money trying to find her.
Peaslee soon becomes obsessed with the murdered Megan. Retracing the steps of her own investigation, traveling from Arkham to Dunwich, and even to the outskirts of Innsmouth, he will learn more about Megan and Arkham than he should, and discover things about himself that he’d tried to bury.
It’s 1928, and in the Miskatonic River Valley, women give birth to monsters and gods walk the hills. Robert Peaslee will soon learn the hard way that some things are better left undead.
364 pages, Paperback
First published October 18, 2016
6 people are currently reading
551 people want to read
About the author
Pete Rawlik
93 books52 followersPete Rawlik is a frequent contributor to the Lovecraft ezine and the New York Review of Science Fiction
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
October 15, 2016
3 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2016/10/14/...
Make no mistake, Lovecraft-inspired stories are a real hot thing right now and I am gobbling it all up. This year the types of Lovecraftian fiction I’ve already read have ranged from bloody gorefests to dark comedies, and there just seems to be a style for every persuasion. And if your tastes happen to run in the direction of weird fiction and pulp noir, then Reanimatrix is sure to make you very, very happy.
Unfolding through a series of diary entries and letters, this story follows the strange lives of two main characters, Robert Peaslee and Megan Halsey. It is the 1920s, and Robert was an officer in the Great War returning to his home town of Arkham to work on the police force, handling the sensitive cases that the other cops don’t want to touch. One fateful day he meets Megan, a young heiress with a troubled past, and immediately feels drawn to her. Years later, however, Robert is called to work a crime scene by the docks where a body of a woman has been discovered, and he is shocked and heartbroken to later learn that it is none other than Megan Halsey.
Before the investigation can move forward though, her body goes missing. Robert soon becomes consumed with the case of what happened to Megan, especially once he suspects that she might not really be dead. Determined to solve the case, Robert attempts to retrace Megan’s steps, going to places she visited and reading through her diary entries in the hopes of gleaning some clues, but what he finds is way more than he bargained for.
Written in a style reminiscent of the classic hardboiled detective pulp stories, Reanimatrix is a mystery narrative interspersed with tales of the occult and supernatural. This combined with the influence of Lovecraftian themes makes for an entertaining read, though admittedly I felt the pacing stumbled a little due to the book’s unique structure. Divided into multiple parts, the story alternates between Robert and Megan’s perspective and takes a while to get started, and the mystery behind Megan’s “death” does not even come into play until well into the novel. The prose is also very thick, almost like the author is channeling the works of the time, so coupled with the extended introduction I wouldn’t be surprised if some readers might find things rough going at first.
The epistolary format also feels disorganized at times, especially with the random journal entries that feel “inserted” and don’t necessarily have anything to do with the main story. In fact, afterwards I found out that some of them were actually short stories that have appeared in other anthologies. Personally, I had mixed feelings about this. In most cases, these sections added nothing to the overarching plot and I often had to fight the temptation to skim them so that we could get back on track. That said, hardcore Lovecraft fans might appreciate these little detours a lot more than I did, and to be fair, some of the chapters were genuinely interesting, especially when they delved into the gruesome, the macabre, and even the raunchy. This book definitely isn’t for the squeamish, not to mention the handful of over-the-top explicit sex scenes that are sure to raise a few eyebrows.
To be sure though, Reanimatrix is true to the pulp tradition, and as such, there’s a strong element of sensationalism at play here. For me, the pacing was a little inconsistent and the prose a bit hard on the eyes, but I loved the atmosphere and characterization of the two main leads. Robert and Megan’s twisted tale of love and un-death is guaranteed to be unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, and the nod to the scary works and worlds of H.P. Lovecraft is also a clever touch. Pete Rawlik does a fine job subverting the genre while also paying loving homage with this novel of weird science, occult horror, and monstrous trappings, and if that sounds like something you would enjoy, then you’re definitely in for a special treat.
Make no mistake, Lovecraft-inspired stories are a real hot thing right now and I am gobbling it all up. This year the types of Lovecraftian fiction I’ve already read have ranged from bloody gorefests to dark comedies, and there just seems to be a style for every persuasion. And if your tastes happen to run in the direction of weird fiction and pulp noir, then Reanimatrix is sure to make you very, very happy.
Unfolding through a series of diary entries and letters, this story follows the strange lives of two main characters, Robert Peaslee and Megan Halsey. It is the 1920s, and Robert was an officer in the Great War returning to his home town of Arkham to work on the police force, handling the sensitive cases that the other cops don’t want to touch. One fateful day he meets Megan, a young heiress with a troubled past, and immediately feels drawn to her. Years later, however, Robert is called to work a crime scene by the docks where a body of a woman has been discovered, and he is shocked and heartbroken to later learn that it is none other than Megan Halsey.
Before the investigation can move forward though, her body goes missing. Robert soon becomes consumed with the case of what happened to Megan, especially once he suspects that she might not really be dead. Determined to solve the case, Robert attempts to retrace Megan’s steps, going to places she visited and reading through her diary entries in the hopes of gleaning some clues, but what he finds is way more than he bargained for.
Written in a style reminiscent of the classic hardboiled detective pulp stories, Reanimatrix is a mystery narrative interspersed with tales of the occult and supernatural. This combined with the influence of Lovecraftian themes makes for an entertaining read, though admittedly I felt the pacing stumbled a little due to the book’s unique structure. Divided into multiple parts, the story alternates between Robert and Megan’s perspective and takes a while to get started, and the mystery behind Megan’s “death” does not even come into play until well into the novel. The prose is also very thick, almost like the author is channeling the works of the time, so coupled with the extended introduction I wouldn’t be surprised if some readers might find things rough going at first.
The epistolary format also feels disorganized at times, especially with the random journal entries that feel “inserted” and don’t necessarily have anything to do with the main story. In fact, afterwards I found out that some of them were actually short stories that have appeared in other anthologies. Personally, I had mixed feelings about this. In most cases, these sections added nothing to the overarching plot and I often had to fight the temptation to skim them so that we could get back on track. That said, hardcore Lovecraft fans might appreciate these little detours a lot more than I did, and to be fair, some of the chapters were genuinely interesting, especially when they delved into the gruesome, the macabre, and even the raunchy. This book definitely isn’t for the squeamish, not to mention the handful of over-the-top explicit sex scenes that are sure to raise a few eyebrows.
To be sure though, Reanimatrix is true to the pulp tradition, and as such, there’s a strong element of sensationalism at play here. For me, the pacing was a little inconsistent and the prose a bit hard on the eyes, but I loved the atmosphere and characterization of the two main leads. Robert and Megan’s twisted tale of love and un-death is guaranteed to be unlike anything you’ve ever seen before, and the nod to the scary works and worlds of H.P. Lovecraft is also a clever touch. Pete Rawlik does a fine job subverting the genre while also paying loving homage with this novel of weird science, occult horror, and monstrous trappings, and if that sounds like something you would enjoy, then you’re definitely in for a special treat.
January 10, 2023
While writing my own detective series, I find myself occasionally taking a break in order to read other noir/mystery/detective stories. It’s a sort of research, I suppose, though more in regard to tone and feel rather than content. Outside of expected dialogue and tropes, noir has an atmosphere about it. It’s the atmosphere which elevates the narrative, generally making a noir story greater than the sum of its parts.
And while I would like to say that Reanimatrix falls squarely into that category, I am unable to so. This is because, quite simply, there are so many parts. A ridiculous amount. And they are all so intricately woven together amidst existing happenings from connected tales that Reanimatrix would best be described as great BECAUSE of its parts.
This is the high-end Mongolian BBQ of books; a slew of options and selections that have been mixed-and-matched together, sautéed over ridiculously high heat, and then set before us to feast upon. And now that I have finished the novel, I find myself contentedly full.
For yes, this is ostensibly a noir detective story. There are conspiracies, a femme fatale (of a sort), violence, and a few other trademarks of the genre. But at its very core, Reanimatrix is a loving homage to many of H.P. Lovecraft’s most recognizable works.
And if it had just been those two things, I would have been perfectly content. But wait, there’s more! For aside from the NUMEROUS Lovecraft references, many other notable fictitious events, locations, and characters have found their way into these pages. Not in large doses, mind you, but sprinkled throughout to add flavor to the text. Dr. Moreau and Henry Jekyll, anyone? Check. The Dukes of Hazzard? Yup. Coming to America? Sho nuff. The Phantom of the Opera? You betcha. The slightest intimation of Tomb Raider? You know…kinda, yeah. All of these, and more that I either didn’t catch or have forgotten about, crop up at various intervals within the narrative.
Normally, this amalgamation of ideas wouldn’t really work, or would come across as conceited and/or desperate. But with Reanimatrix, these references or callbacks were included with reverence and love for the source material. And they truly do weave themselves nicely within the story being told.
As with all of my Goodreads reviews, I will attempt to keep spoilers to a minimum. I already kind of broke that rule a bit by mentioning the pop culture references above, but that’s about as far as I’m willing to go. Like any great work of creation, the less the reader knows about Reanimatrix the better. If it’s not mentioned in the book’s official synopsis, I will do my level best to avoid talking about it here.
A few things to know up front.
First, this book is dense. And I don’t necessarily mean large like a Wheel of Time book, though it’s by no means a skimpy tome. But no, there are a LOT of things that transpire from cover to cover. Reanimatrix covers a lot of ground, stitching together many Lovecraft (and associated) tales while adding additional characters and events. And much of it is interrelated, so the reader definitely needs to pay attention.
A skimmable book this is not.
Second, Reanimatrix is told in an epistolary format. Though it’s befitting of the type of story being told, some folks have a hard time reading books told in a correspondence type format. It does tend to take some of the immediacy out of the proceedings, but author Pete Rawlik manages to inject just enough tension and drama to where the epistolary format isn’t heavily noticeable.
Third, very few punches are pulled within this tome. The eldritch horrors of Lovecraft’s imagination have always been grotesque, but there’s a whole host of abominations described here. Gore and violence are plentiful. As are sexual situations, including a bi-sexuality across both main characters. I found it refreshing, but some folks may have issue with it. Haters gonna hate after all.
But as long as none of those things turn you away, then I think you’ll find much to enjoy with Reanimatrix. It’s got dashes of humor, heaps of adventure, liberal splashes of horror, and a whole host of various locales. In fact, it would make for a really awesome mini-series, so long as it was tackled by one of the major streaming studios.
Both main characters are enjoyable protagonists, offering two different perspectives of the story as whole (and sometimes offering varying perspectives of the same event). Robert Peaslee makes for an engaging investigator, and he fills the “world weary” archetype with ease. In his own words, he may not be the most thorough of crime solvers, or even the smartest, but he is doggedly persistent. A little fallibility in a character goes a long way, and I liked that Robert was certainly not perfect. The other main character will remain unspoiled in this review. Suffice to say they are a fantastic character.
Pete Rawlik’s writing is superb, albeit a little excessive. He goes to great lengths to describe locations, creatures, sensations, etc. And while appreciated, some of the prose can get a little tedious. But, as I stated, with the book being told in an epistolary format, it makes sense that the folks taking documentation of the events surrounding them would want to be as detailed as possible.
Also, the book itself is just a tad overlong. So much happens, and so many things are interconnected, that in addition to being satisfied upon finishing the book, I was also rather mentally exhausted. Reanimatrix isn’t a book one reads so much as a book one conquers.
But there are precious few other things to nitpick. I didn’t notice any grammatical or punctuation issues to speak of. The pacing, at times, was slow, but that was to be expected with so many pieces to put into place.
Familiarity with H.P. Lovecraft’s works is not truly necessary to get enjoyment out of Reanimatrix, but that enjoyment will certainly be enhanced by prior knowledge of some of these characters and events.
Anyone interested in the Lovecraftian mythos as a whole should certainly give Reanimatrix a spin. It’s also a damn fine supernatural noir-ish detective story. Come for the mystery but stay for the mind-bending horrors!
And while I would like to say that Reanimatrix falls squarely into that category, I am unable to so. This is because, quite simply, there are so many parts. A ridiculous amount. And they are all so intricately woven together amidst existing happenings from connected tales that Reanimatrix would best be described as great BECAUSE of its parts.
This is the high-end Mongolian BBQ of books; a slew of options and selections that have been mixed-and-matched together, sautéed over ridiculously high heat, and then set before us to feast upon. And now that I have finished the novel, I find myself contentedly full.
For yes, this is ostensibly a noir detective story. There are conspiracies, a femme fatale (of a sort), violence, and a few other trademarks of the genre. But at its very core, Reanimatrix is a loving homage to many of H.P. Lovecraft’s most recognizable works.
And if it had just been those two things, I would have been perfectly content. But wait, there’s more! For aside from the NUMEROUS Lovecraft references, many other notable fictitious events, locations, and characters have found their way into these pages. Not in large doses, mind you, but sprinkled throughout to add flavor to the text. Dr. Moreau and Henry Jekyll, anyone? Check. The Dukes of Hazzard? Yup. Coming to America? Sho nuff. The Phantom of the Opera? You betcha. The slightest intimation of Tomb Raider? You know…kinda, yeah. All of these, and more that I either didn’t catch or have forgotten about, crop up at various intervals within the narrative.
Normally, this amalgamation of ideas wouldn’t really work, or would come across as conceited and/or desperate. But with Reanimatrix, these references or callbacks were included with reverence and love for the source material. And they truly do weave themselves nicely within the story being told.
As with all of my Goodreads reviews, I will attempt to keep spoilers to a minimum. I already kind of broke that rule a bit by mentioning the pop culture references above, but that’s about as far as I’m willing to go. Like any great work of creation, the less the reader knows about Reanimatrix the better. If it’s not mentioned in the book’s official synopsis, I will do my level best to avoid talking about it here.
A few things to know up front.
First, this book is dense. And I don’t necessarily mean large like a Wheel of Time book, though it’s by no means a skimpy tome. But no, there are a LOT of things that transpire from cover to cover. Reanimatrix covers a lot of ground, stitching together many Lovecraft (and associated) tales while adding additional characters and events. And much of it is interrelated, so the reader definitely needs to pay attention.
A skimmable book this is not.
Second, Reanimatrix is told in an epistolary format. Though it’s befitting of the type of story being told, some folks have a hard time reading books told in a correspondence type format. It does tend to take some of the immediacy out of the proceedings, but author Pete Rawlik manages to inject just enough tension and drama to where the epistolary format isn’t heavily noticeable.
Third, very few punches are pulled within this tome. The eldritch horrors of Lovecraft’s imagination have always been grotesque, but there’s a whole host of abominations described here. Gore and violence are plentiful. As are sexual situations, including a bi-sexuality across both main characters. I found it refreshing, but some folks may have issue with it. Haters gonna hate after all.
But as long as none of those things turn you away, then I think you’ll find much to enjoy with Reanimatrix. It’s got dashes of humor, heaps of adventure, liberal splashes of horror, and a whole host of various locales. In fact, it would make for a really awesome mini-series, so long as it was tackled by one of the major streaming studios.
Both main characters are enjoyable protagonists, offering two different perspectives of the story as whole (and sometimes offering varying perspectives of the same event). Robert Peaslee makes for an engaging investigator, and he fills the “world weary” archetype with ease. In his own words, he may not be the most thorough of crime solvers, or even the smartest, but he is doggedly persistent. A little fallibility in a character goes a long way, and I liked that Robert was certainly not perfect. The other main character will remain unspoiled in this review. Suffice to say they are a fantastic character.
Pete Rawlik’s writing is superb, albeit a little excessive. He goes to great lengths to describe locations, creatures, sensations, etc. And while appreciated, some of the prose can get a little tedious. But, as I stated, with the book being told in an epistolary format, it makes sense that the folks taking documentation of the events surrounding them would want to be as detailed as possible.
Also, the book itself is just a tad overlong. So much happens, and so many things are interconnected, that in addition to being satisfied upon finishing the book, I was also rather mentally exhausted. Reanimatrix isn’t a book one reads so much as a book one conquers.
But there are precious few other things to nitpick. I didn’t notice any grammatical or punctuation issues to speak of. The pacing, at times, was slow, but that was to be expected with so many pieces to put into place.
Familiarity with H.P. Lovecraft’s works is not truly necessary to get enjoyment out of Reanimatrix, but that enjoyment will certainly be enhanced by prior knowledge of some of these characters and events.
Anyone interested in the Lovecraftian mythos as a whole should certainly give Reanimatrix a spin. It’s also a damn fine supernatural noir-ish detective story. Come for the mystery but stay for the mind-bending horrors!
April 8, 2017
3.5 stars.
July 21, 2016
Lovecraft and pulp detective fiction - both fun on their own, but infinitely better together. Reanimatrix is an enthralling read with just enough horror to send tingles down your spine. Don’t be put out if horror isn’t your genre - there isn’t a lot of gore. There are zombies of a sort, as the reanimated dead play a major role in this captivating pulp fantasy but the explanation for their existence/activities is well done.
The story is told in diary entries, alternating between the two leads, Robert Peaslee and Megan Halsey. Robert’s experiences with the living dead date back to WWI and the reanimated soldiers that changed the face of the war. He, like the other central characters comes from Arkham. After working as an agent after the war, he is now a police detective assigned the stranger cases. Megan Halsey met Robert once soon after the war. Years later, he is called upon to solve her murder, but is she really dead?
Reanimatrix is a story of mad science and the occult, strange beings, and reanimated dead with a distinct agenda. It is a mystery and a love story. One of the aspects of the novel I admired greatly was the skillful integration of characters from classic fiction including Dr. Jekyll, Professor Higgins, and many others. Many authors try to do this, but rarely have I seen it so successfully and meaningfully done. I also thought the integration of Lovecraftian lore to be well done.
Reanimatrix is a unique and thrilling mashup of Lovecraft and pulp detective fiction, perfect for fantasy lovers and adventurous mystery readers. I look forward to reading more titles by Pete Rawlick.
5/5
I received a copy of Reanimatrix from Nightshade Books in exchange for an honest review.
—Crittermom
The story is told in diary entries, alternating between the two leads, Robert Peaslee and Megan Halsey. Robert’s experiences with the living dead date back to WWI and the reanimated soldiers that changed the face of the war. He, like the other central characters comes from Arkham. After working as an agent after the war, he is now a police detective assigned the stranger cases. Megan Halsey met Robert once soon after the war. Years later, he is called upon to solve her murder, but is she really dead?
Reanimatrix is a story of mad science and the occult, strange beings, and reanimated dead with a distinct agenda. It is a mystery and a love story. One of the aspects of the novel I admired greatly was the skillful integration of characters from classic fiction including Dr. Jekyll, Professor Higgins, and many others. Many authors try to do this, but rarely have I seen it so successfully and meaningfully done. I also thought the integration of Lovecraftian lore to be well done.
Reanimatrix is a unique and thrilling mashup of Lovecraft and pulp detective fiction, perfect for fantasy lovers and adventurous mystery readers. I look forward to reading more titles by Pete Rawlick.
5/5
I received a copy of Reanimatrix from Nightshade Books in exchange for an honest review.
—Crittermom
August 1, 2016
Full review coming soon!
April 8, 2018
DNF
The cover looks like a pulp and kind of cool. I think I bought it on the strength of the art work. But the story is disjointed and confusing. It's all told from journal entries, and letters to other random people, and articles and stuff.
I couldn't finish it. I couldn't enjoy it. I couldn't care any less about this book. Shame, I wanted it to be fun like the artwork.
The cover looks like a pulp and kind of cool. I think I bought it on the strength of the art work. But the story is disjointed and confusing. It's all told from journal entries, and letters to other random people, and articles and stuff.
I couldn't finish it. I couldn't enjoy it. I couldn't care any less about this book. Shame, I wanted it to be fun like the artwork.
October 17, 2016
Previously Published at TheQwillery.com
Reanimatrix is a genre-blending thrill ride. Pete Rawlik mixed Lovecraft with pulp fiction detective mystery with romance. It's post World War I and the two main characters are Robert Peaslee and Megan Halsey. They both grew up in Arkham, Mass. Robert was in the war, where he saw his first signs of otherworldly power. After the war he spent time as an agent traveling Europe. It's here he hears about Megan's murder and decides to make his way back home to solve her murder, only to find true madness and evil.
Rawlik does a wonderful job of grabbing you and immersing you into his world. It's a true pleasure to read. For those of you familiar with Lovecraft, you'll be rewarded as well as other literary characters that pop in and out of the storyline. I won't ruin the surprise of who makes appearances, but I'm confident even I missed some of them. One major aspect of the story revolves around the reanimated dead. I have to say I really like the way Rawlik handles this as it felt like a truly fresh take.
Rawlik chose to write his story in the format of letters written by Robert and Megan, giving the reader immediate understanding of the two main characters and their inner workings. The only downfall is you can't completely trust the representation of other characters as they are filtered through the eyes of Robert and Megan.
My only real complaint is the writing style and narrative choice. It's a lot harder for me to get truly sucked into First Person Narratives and then the added choice of Letters to convey the story slows things down for me.
Reanimatrix is a unique take on genre blending that worked out better than I could have hoped for. Rawlik brought a fresh perspective on some familiar tropes. I can say you'll be glad you picked up this book. There is violence and minor adult themes. I'd recommend it to teens and adults. There are so many different genres covered in this book with other fun literary easter eggs, anyone that likes to read will find something to enjoy.
Reanimatrix is a genre-blending thrill ride. Pete Rawlik mixed Lovecraft with pulp fiction detective mystery with romance. It's post World War I and the two main characters are Robert Peaslee and Megan Halsey. They both grew up in Arkham, Mass. Robert was in the war, where he saw his first signs of otherworldly power. After the war he spent time as an agent traveling Europe. It's here he hears about Megan's murder and decides to make his way back home to solve her murder, only to find true madness and evil.
Rawlik does a wonderful job of grabbing you and immersing you into his world. It's a true pleasure to read. For those of you familiar with Lovecraft, you'll be rewarded as well as other literary characters that pop in and out of the storyline. I won't ruin the surprise of who makes appearances, but I'm confident even I missed some of them. One major aspect of the story revolves around the reanimated dead. I have to say I really like the way Rawlik handles this as it felt like a truly fresh take.
Rawlik chose to write his story in the format of letters written by Robert and Megan, giving the reader immediate understanding of the two main characters and their inner workings. The only downfall is you can't completely trust the representation of other characters as they are filtered through the eyes of Robert and Megan.
My only real complaint is the writing style and narrative choice. It's a lot harder for me to get truly sucked into First Person Narratives and then the added choice of Letters to convey the story slows things down for me.
Reanimatrix is a unique take on genre blending that worked out better than I could have hoped for. Rawlik brought a fresh perspective on some familiar tropes. I can say you'll be glad you picked up this book. There is violence and minor adult themes. I'd recommend it to teens and adults. There are so many different genres covered in this book with other fun literary easter eggs, anyone that likes to read will find something to enjoy.
October 27, 2017
Reanimatrix is the third in a series of books written by Peter Rawlik that focuses on a world that Peter has built out of H.P. Lovecraft’s works focused around the story Herbert West: Reanimator. In the previous stories in Rawlik’s world, he’s introduced his own reanimators and several other characters, but weaves them into the Lovecraft mythos flawlessly so that you can see exactly where these characters are even when you’re just reading Lovecraft’s stories. He fills the gaps, so to say, and he’s very good at it.
Reanimatrix follows a protagonist who has seen some weird stuff, a la Lovecraft, and after being indoctrinated into the world view that this weird stuff is kind of everywhere, he becomes a local specialist in Arkham. He’s the guy on the police force that the police send to the weird crimes.
After meeting a woman, Megan Halsey-Griffith, briefly before his police career, the protagonist, Robert Peasley, falls in love with her from afar. Alas, this romance isn’t to be, as the next time that Robert sees Megan, she’s dead and entangled in a fisherman’s net.
When her body disappears, and the case seemingly gets closed, Robert becomes obsessed. He buys her house, reads her diaries, goes off the deep end essentially.
Then things get really weird. Her diaries map out her interesting history, her lineage tied back to the actions of Herbert West and events that took place in the first book by Rawlik as well as in Lovecraft’s tale.
The Bad:
It has a very slow pacing. The most interesting scene in the beginning focuses around a botched version of the Reanimator Formula in France that has people reliving their last moments. This scene did well to introduce the concept but also made me wonder if following that serum and it’s use (maybe in criminal investigations) might have been a stronger narrative. That is the only really exciting bit at the beginning, and after that it becomes incredibly over-descriptive in every possible scene, slowing the pace even further. I’ll be honest in that I picked up this book about a year ago, stopped reading it only a quarter of the way through, and only recently decided to finish it last week.
The pacing does pick up, although the description of every little thing never stops, and this book really picks up pace when Robert finds Megan’s body. Then it gets weird… There’s lineage stuff in this book, and sex is a big part of how lineage comes about, obviously, but instead of explaining that people have sex, the story disembarks “Weird Murder Mystery” and suddenly jumps the track to “Esoteric Eroticism” but for only two scenes in the whole book. These scenes weren’t necessary for the plot and only came across as the author looking to exercise his skill set. Somewhere along the lines, it feels like he wanted to know if he could write weird sex scenes (weird like Lovecraft with fish people and zombies, not weird like “eww sex.” Sex scenes have their place, even weird ones), and so he did and then he put them into a story that’s weird pacing hadn’t revolved around weird sex scenes. It would have made sense if he continued to pepper them through the story, but he has only two and then an exposition on how one of the main characters will be trained in the arts of sex but then never touches on it again. I guess my concern is: What was the point?
The Good:
The things that I liked about this book were plenty, and weighed heavily in it’s favor. Rawlik does what I’ve done with some of my stories (looking at you Dr. Doran) and weaves a tale that tries to incorporate multiple stories from the Mythos. We have the Reanimator, obviously, but also the Dunwich Horror, The Witch House, Thing on the Doorstep, Shadow Over Innsmouth, Whisperers in Darkness, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, and more. Every chapter touches on a different aspect of the mythos and flawlessly weaves it into the narrative.
Also, I joked earlier about Robert’s obsession with Megan, but that wasn’t really a problem. His obsession is obvious, as he’s seen weird things and he’s gotten a crush. His obsession with the weird sets him out on a mission to either save, protect, or solve the mystery that is Megan Halsey-Griffith. Taking us down the Rabbit-hole this way makes Robert seem not weird, but enlightened.
I really liked the portrayal of Herbert West throughout this story as well. He’s creepy, but not just Lovecraft-creepy, as I feel this version definitely embodies Jeffrey Combs.
I mentioned the clever weaving of Lovecraftian mythos into this story, but Rawlik also involves several other stories from that time. I had to google the obvious mentions, but there’s one that references Ms. Halsey-Griffith visiting a cousin who just so happens to be from a movie out of the 30’s regarding reanimation, and yet another that I can’t recall at the writing of this review. Rawlik has a gift for stitching together narratives in a way that makes it seem natural.
I did like this book, a lot. The slow pacing, weird sex scenes, and descriptive nature of the story don’t detract from the strength of the addictive plot that pulls you in and makes you want to solve Peasley’s case with him.
I give this story 4 out of 5, but hope that future installments go back to the Weird Company side of Rawlik’s writing.
Reanimatrix follows a protagonist who has seen some weird stuff, a la Lovecraft, and after being indoctrinated into the world view that this weird stuff is kind of everywhere, he becomes a local specialist in Arkham. He’s the guy on the police force that the police send to the weird crimes.
After meeting a woman, Megan Halsey-Griffith, briefly before his police career, the protagonist, Robert Peasley, falls in love with her from afar. Alas, this romance isn’t to be, as the next time that Robert sees Megan, she’s dead and entangled in a fisherman’s net.
When her body disappears, and the case seemingly gets closed, Robert becomes obsessed. He buys her house, reads her diaries, goes off the deep end essentially.
Then things get really weird. Her diaries map out her interesting history, her lineage tied back to the actions of Herbert West and events that took place in the first book by Rawlik as well as in Lovecraft’s tale.
The Bad:
It has a very slow pacing. The most interesting scene in the beginning focuses around a botched version of the Reanimator Formula in France that has people reliving their last moments. This scene did well to introduce the concept but also made me wonder if following that serum and it’s use (maybe in criminal investigations) might have been a stronger narrative. That is the only really exciting bit at the beginning, and after that it becomes incredibly over-descriptive in every possible scene, slowing the pace even further. I’ll be honest in that I picked up this book about a year ago, stopped reading it only a quarter of the way through, and only recently decided to finish it last week.
The pacing does pick up, although the description of every little thing never stops, and this book really picks up pace when Robert finds Megan’s body. Then it gets weird… There’s lineage stuff in this book, and sex is a big part of how lineage comes about, obviously, but instead of explaining that people have sex, the story disembarks “Weird Murder Mystery” and suddenly jumps the track to “Esoteric Eroticism” but for only two scenes in the whole book. These scenes weren’t necessary for the plot and only came across as the author looking to exercise his skill set. Somewhere along the lines, it feels like he wanted to know if he could write weird sex scenes (weird like Lovecraft with fish people and zombies, not weird like “eww sex.” Sex scenes have their place, even weird ones), and so he did and then he put them into a story that’s weird pacing hadn’t revolved around weird sex scenes. It would have made sense if he continued to pepper them through the story, but he has only two and then an exposition on how one of the main characters will be trained in the arts of sex but then never touches on it again. I guess my concern is: What was the point?
The Good:
The things that I liked about this book were plenty, and weighed heavily in it’s favor. Rawlik does what I’ve done with some of my stories (looking at you Dr. Doran) and weaves a tale that tries to incorporate multiple stories from the Mythos. We have the Reanimator, obviously, but also the Dunwich Horror, The Witch House, Thing on the Doorstep, Shadow Over Innsmouth, Whisperers in Darkness, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, and more. Every chapter touches on a different aspect of the mythos and flawlessly weaves it into the narrative.
Also, I joked earlier about Robert’s obsession with Megan, but that wasn’t really a problem. His obsession is obvious, as he’s seen weird things and he’s gotten a crush. His obsession with the weird sets him out on a mission to either save, protect, or solve the mystery that is Megan Halsey-Griffith. Taking us down the Rabbit-hole this way makes Robert seem not weird, but enlightened.
I really liked the portrayal of Herbert West throughout this story as well. He’s creepy, but not just Lovecraft-creepy, as I feel this version definitely embodies Jeffrey Combs.
I mentioned the clever weaving of Lovecraftian mythos into this story, but Rawlik also involves several other stories from that time. I had to google the obvious mentions, but there’s one that references Ms. Halsey-Griffith visiting a cousin who just so happens to be from a movie out of the 30’s regarding reanimation, and yet another that I can’t recall at the writing of this review. Rawlik has a gift for stitching together narratives in a way that makes it seem natural.
I did like this book, a lot. The slow pacing, weird sex scenes, and descriptive nature of the story don’t detract from the strength of the addictive plot that pulls you in and makes you want to solve Peasley’s case with him.
I give this story 4 out of 5, but hope that future installments go back to the Weird Company side of Rawlik’s writing.
August 17, 2023
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 3.0 of 5
The 1920's and Robert Peaslee has returned from the War to end all wars to his hometown of Arkham. He lands a job on the local police force investigating cases that the rest of the department doesn't want to handle. Arkham, it turns out, is full of hauntings and something dark and supernatural.
One day Robert is called to a crime scene where he discovers the body of Megan Halsey - a young heiress he's met before. He'd been inexplicably drawn to her at the time, despite her troubled past. Now he becomes completely invested in solving the mystery of her death. He begins to live her life - going places she visited, meeting people she met with. Her diary becomes a well he falls deeply into.
But before he even gets started Megan's body is missing. Is she dead? Is it even possible that she could be alive? What Peaslee discovers is much more than he could ever have anticipated.
I started reading this book twice before but only got a few chapters in before giving up on it. Not because it's 'bad' but because the writing, the language is quite dense and it takes a good deal of concentration to read. This is in large part because author Pete Rawlik has done a very good job of imitating the style of H. P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft is not an easy-to-read author.
The book is told mostly through diary and journal entries and letters. This is not an uncommon device of course, but for my reading it took away from the 'hard-boiled' detective aspect - which is partly how this book is billed. For the horror aspect, however, it works well.
Rawlik builds the story nicely, which is not always easy to do with letters and diary entries. Horror is hard to sustain, but this doesn't start out with horror, but rather builds (quite nicely) to something unexpected (unless you're familiar with Lovecraft, in which case you know where this will go).
One of the problems with the use of diaries and letters to tell the story, though is that I didn't get enough sense of 'voice.' I didn't always feel like I was really reading Megan's words, or Robert's words. This always felt one step removed or too much of the author, imitating Lovecraft, instead of the characters.
Looking for a good book? Reanimatrix by Pete Rawlik is a very good imitation of the writing style of H. P. Lovecraft, but the dense language and slowly building story makes this a challenging read.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
The 1920's and Robert Peaslee has returned from the War to end all wars to his hometown of Arkham. He lands a job on the local police force investigating cases that the rest of the department doesn't want to handle. Arkham, it turns out, is full of hauntings and something dark and supernatural.
One day Robert is called to a crime scene where he discovers the body of Megan Halsey - a young heiress he's met before. He'd been inexplicably drawn to her at the time, despite her troubled past. Now he becomes completely invested in solving the mystery of her death. He begins to live her life - going places she visited, meeting people she met with. Her diary becomes a well he falls deeply into.
But before he even gets started Megan's body is missing. Is she dead? Is it even possible that she could be alive? What Peaslee discovers is much more than he could ever have anticipated.
I started reading this book twice before but only got a few chapters in before giving up on it. Not because it's 'bad' but because the writing, the language is quite dense and it takes a good deal of concentration to read. This is in large part because author Pete Rawlik has done a very good job of imitating the style of H. P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft is not an easy-to-read author.
The book is told mostly through diary and journal entries and letters. This is not an uncommon device of course, but for my reading it took away from the 'hard-boiled' detective aspect - which is partly how this book is billed. For the horror aspect, however, it works well.
Rawlik builds the story nicely, which is not always easy to do with letters and diary entries. Horror is hard to sustain, but this doesn't start out with horror, but rather builds (quite nicely) to something unexpected (unless you're familiar with Lovecraft, in which case you know where this will go).
One of the problems with the use of diaries and letters to tell the story, though is that I didn't get enough sense of 'voice.' I didn't always feel like I was really reading Megan's words, or Robert's words. This always felt one step removed or too much of the author, imitating Lovecraft, instead of the characters.
Looking for a good book? Reanimatrix by Pete Rawlik is a very good imitation of the writing style of H. P. Lovecraft, but the dense language and slowly building story makes this a challenging read.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
July 30, 2017
Entertaining approach to the standard Cthulhu mythos investigation story.
Lots of familiar characters worked into the storyline with ties to most of the major stories of H.P. Lovecraft.
I was amused to see at one point a number of familiar names worked into the story such as Pulver.
Much of the action within the book reminds me of various situations that arise within the Call of Cthulhu role playing game from Chaosium.
If you are a fan of the investigation/detective approach to the mythos, you will most certainly enjoy this book.
I should note that there are references in the book to adult themes of a sexually explicit nature. If you are even remotely puritanical by nature you are guaranteed to be offended.
There are also scenes involving the gruesome deaths of animals as part of the storyline.
Lots of familiar characters worked into the storyline with ties to most of the major stories of H.P. Lovecraft.
I was amused to see at one point a number of familiar names worked into the story such as Pulver.
Much of the action within the book reminds me of various situations that arise within the Call of Cthulhu role playing game from Chaosium.
If you are a fan of the investigation/detective approach to the mythos, you will most certainly enjoy this book.
I should note that there are references in the book to adult themes of a sexually explicit nature. If you are even remotely puritanical by nature you are guaranteed to be offended.
There are also scenes involving the gruesome deaths of animals as part of the storyline.
March 29, 2018
Overall, this was a pretty entertaining mix of Lovecraftian horror and pulp detective mystery. Rawlik managed to *perfectly* capture the aesthetics of Lovecraft's style, free of any of the baggage that the original stories contain. The opening was a bit rough - the story meanders a lot and it takes nearly the first third of the book to find its groove - but once it finds the story becomes a lot of fun.
The one real downside I would say the story has is that it's so full of obvious Easter eggs (references to not only all of Lovecraft's work, but other Victorian/gothic horror as well) that they become distractions from the work, rather than bonuses. In that regard it felt at times like a Lovecraftian version of Ready Player One.
The one real downside I would say the story has is that it's so full of obvious Easter eggs (references to not only all of Lovecraft's work, but other Victorian/gothic horror as well) that they become distractions from the work, rather than bonuses. In that regard it felt at times like a Lovecraftian version of Ready Player One.
August 18, 2019
When this book sticks to Lovecraftian pastiche, it is terrific. The author has a great handle on pulp writing. However, it leans too heavily into the Wold Newton aspect for my taste. That might not even have bothered me that much, but some of the references are decidedly ridiculous (Dirty Dancing, Dukes of Hazard, Murder She Wrote are all winked at, made me roll my eyes, and took me out of the story). If he had stuck to simply doing what he does so well (bringing together the disparate stories and events of HPL's Yog-Sothothery), this would have been a Five Star read.
I don't remember his first book, Reanimators, having this quirk. I haven't read The Weird Company yet, but I will give it a try.
I don't remember his first book, Reanimators, having this quirk. I haven't read The Weird Company yet, but I will give it a try.
May 21, 2018
I think I need to re-read it, but while I appreciated the references to seemingly hard boiled detective such as Charlie Chan, Philo Vance or Nick Charles, some HG Welles stories, and the fact that he got Herbert West's hair color right (blond, no offense to Jeffrey Combs), I found the way the stories were (not) linked to be awkward and confusing. It seemed like there were effectively were at least 3 different stories that weren't really concluded in any real fashion, which is frustrating because the plots were interesting were written well for as far as they went.
October 17, 2025
Pretty cool hard boiled noir cosmic horror that is set in the world of HP Lovecraft. Sometimes it reads like a collection of short stories, and sometimes a serialised story... gives the book a nice variety and lore. There are plot points that I find hard to follow, maybe because I read the book over a period of time.
The letters and notes format works surprisingly well in changing character perspectives, once one suspends the disbelief that no one writes letters/reports/notes in that amount of detail (although there is an in universe explanation for it).
The letters and notes format works surprisingly well in changing character perspectives, once one suspends the disbelief that no one writes letters/reports/notes in that amount of detail (although there is an in universe explanation for it).
November 30, 2017
The first half of the book felt like a collection of short stories, although with the same protagonist, and left me wanting more depth. This part, to me, was almost enough for me to lose interest.
The second half felt completely different, some stories where still more or less standalone but there was a clear meta story as well. Had the entire book been like this I would not have hesitated to rate it a 4.
The second half felt completely different, some stories where still more or less standalone but there was a clear meta story as well. Had the entire book been like this I would not have hesitated to rate it a 4.
April 15, 2018
So much fun to read!
While this book uses some of the same stories from his book Reanimators, I think this is the stronger narrative. It really is a fun retelling and reweaving of several Lovecraft tales. I love how Rawlik creates a New England nightmare from so many desparate parts, much like the experiments performed by the reanimators in the stories themselves. I had a good time reading this book
While this book uses some of the same stories from his book Reanimators, I think this is the stronger narrative. It really is a fun retelling and reweaving of several Lovecraft tales. I love how Rawlik creates a New England nightmare from so many desparate parts, much like the experiments performed by the reanimators in the stories themselves. I had a good time reading this book
May 17, 2018
Pete Rawlik's Reanimatrix is an interesting romp through Lovecraftian Horror. The novel is a single story, although told from different views a la Dracula, circling around both the Reanimator and The Dunwich Horror. Unfortunately, Pete Rawlik is not Lovecraft and lacks a small amount of the oppressive description which has made Lovecraft a favorite of the genre. Having said that, it is still a fun time and worth the read.
June 25, 2017
Extraordinarily imaginative re-deployment of a cavalcade of heroes and villains from modern literary fantasy distinguished by graphic sexuality and violence.
December 28, 2017
Pretty good book... lots of mystery and horror... fun read...
December 27, 2017
Nothing deep, nothing that hasn't been done before, but an excellent and thoroughly enjoyable hommage to Lovecraft, with a lot of hints and references to his stories, locations and characters.
June 20, 2022
It isn't a bad read, but feels at times very fragmented, like the different parts have nothing or very little to do with everything else going on in the book.
February 21, 2017
"Reanimatrix," by Pete Rawlik, is an interesting and deeply post-modern take on the Cthulhu Mythos of H.P. Lovecraft. Only someone who is a true fan of Lovecraft's work could craft a tale (told in a series of letters and diary/journal entries--a.k.a. the "epistolary" form of novel, which is not often used these days) like "Reanimatrix."
There were times when I wanted to give this book far less than the four stars I ended up giving it--and there were times I wanted to give it five stars and tell all my gaming/sci-fi friends about it. So I settled on four stars and that I might tell a few of my friends about it.
Having different narrators writing these various journal entries and reports--all of which contribute in some way (some more, some less) to the overarching narrative--makes for uneven quality as the tale winds slowly amongst the established events of the Mythos.
One of my problems is that I just didn't like the main character, Robert Peaslee, that much until much later in the book. He starts off as a soldier in Europe in WWI and has several jobs keeping the peace (by keeping a lid on Mythos events) for the rest of the book. So I'd say the first third of the book is a bit of a slog.
The most (okay, second most) interesting thing Rawlik does throughout "Reanimatrix" is make as many literary and pop culture allusions as is (in)humanly possible and still try to have an authentic narrative. Everything from Dashiell Hammett to the Dukes of Hazzard is referenced in some way.
If you've read my other reviews, I doubt you'll be shocked that my favorite section of the book was the sexual (sometimes explicitly sexual) memoir of Megan Halsey's mother. Megan is the female protagonist/love interest for the latter half of the novel. Her family's connection to the Mythos is strong and when she delves into her family's buried secrets, what she finds is both horrid and titillating.
The main villain of the novel (well, kinda-sorta) is Herbert West, Reanimator. He doesn't appear too often, but his science is behind many of the evil deeds and creatures in the novel. You can guess how West's involvement is related to the title of the novel.
This is definitely a book for Lovecraft fans, though many purists might take umbrage at the way the author tells his tales of dark doings and vile monsters. All in all, I'd say I enjoyed the book quite a bit (some parts more than others) and would recommend it to any curious Lovecraft (or Lovercraft gamer) enthusiast.
There were times when I wanted to give this book far less than the four stars I ended up giving it--and there were times I wanted to give it five stars and tell all my gaming/sci-fi friends about it. So I settled on four stars and that I might tell a few of my friends about it.
Having different narrators writing these various journal entries and reports--all of which contribute in some way (some more, some less) to the overarching narrative--makes for uneven quality as the tale winds slowly amongst the established events of the Mythos.
One of my problems is that I just didn't like the main character, Robert Peaslee, that much until much later in the book. He starts off as a soldier in Europe in WWI and has several jobs keeping the peace (by keeping a lid on Mythos events) for the rest of the book. So I'd say the first third of the book is a bit of a slog.
The most (okay, second most) interesting thing Rawlik does throughout "Reanimatrix" is make as many literary and pop culture allusions as is (in)humanly possible and still try to have an authentic narrative. Everything from Dashiell Hammett to the Dukes of Hazzard is referenced in some way.
If you've read my other reviews, I doubt you'll be shocked that my favorite section of the book was the sexual (sometimes explicitly sexual) memoir of Megan Halsey's mother. Megan is the female protagonist/love interest for the latter half of the novel. Her family's connection to the Mythos is strong and when she delves into her family's buried secrets, what she finds is both horrid and titillating.
The main villain of the novel (well, kinda-sorta) is Herbert West, Reanimator. He doesn't appear too often, but his science is behind many of the evil deeds and creatures in the novel. You can guess how West's involvement is related to the title of the novel.
This is definitely a book for Lovecraft fans, though many purists might take umbrage at the way the author tells his tales of dark doings and vile monsters. All in all, I'd say I enjoyed the book quite a bit (some parts more than others) and would recommend it to any curious Lovecraft (or Lovercraft gamer) enthusiast.
Want to read
July 10, 2016* e-Arc provided by Edelweiss *
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