Our ongoing series reviewing audio adaptations of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror works. Note that these reviews may contain spoilers.
By John J. Joex
Rating (for all three volumes): 5 out of 5 Stars (Highest Rating)
I know I encountered H.P. Lovecraft, master of horror fiction, early on when I began to devour Science Fiction and Fantasy books on a regular basis, but I never really followed his work closely, just read the odd short story here and there. A couple of years back, though, when I first started listening to audio books to make my commute more bearable, I rediscovered him all over again with the Audio Realms series The Dark Worlds of H.P. Lovecraft. I stumbled upon the first volume in the series (they have done six total so far) in my local library of all places and that set me on an amazing, alluring journey into the bizarre and macabre.
My library has volumes one, two, and five which I quickly, feverishly poured through. Following are the stories contained on each:
Volume 1:
The Dunwich Horror – A novella in which a strange, demonic child named Wilbur Whateley is born near the backwoods New England town of Dunwich and begins to grow at a rapid rate. As he reaches adulthood in appearance (though in truth only ten years old) he begins to search for the accursed tome the Necronomicon for his own evil purposes which eventually leads to an unfathomable beast descending upon Dunwich bringing unspeakable horror to the town. This is one of Lovecraft’s absolute best stories and provides a good introduction to the Cthulu mythos and also introduces words and concepts that would later seep into our culture such as the Necronomicon and the town of Arkham.
The Call Of Cthulhu – In this short story, a man goes seeking the truth of a cult that worships a being known as Cthulhu which leads him on a descent into horrors unimaginable and ultimately madness. This is another great story in the Cthulhu mythos and along with The Dunwich Horror (and Wayne June’s spot-on narration, more on that below) makes this the quintessential Lovecraft audio book.
Volume 2:
The Shadow Over Innsmouth – This novella echoes The Dunwich Horror a bit as a man journeys to a decrepit New England coastal town and finds a horror from the depths that the townspeople have hidden from the rest of the world. Another great Cthulhu mythos story.
Dagon – In this short story, a sailor stranded at sea encounters a strange land that seems to appear from the depths and that seems to act as a portal for nightmarish creatures who seek to dominate the planet. Though not considered part of the Cthulhu mythos proper, this story was the first that introduced elements of that mythology, primarily the sea god Dagon.
Volume 5:
The Lurking Fear – In this short story, a man goes to Tempest Mountain to investigate the “lurking fear” he has heard rumors about. He and two other men enter the dilapidated Martense Mansion there, but only he survives, though he is driven to madness by what he finds.
The Thing on the Doorstep – In this wonderfully disturbing tale, a man tells the story of how he killed his best friend but claims that he is not a murderer because an evil being had taken control of the man’s body.
Haunter of the Dark – The only Cthulhu mythos story on this volume, this one involves the nefarious Shining Trapezohedron and a cult that uses it to summon up the Old Ones.
The selection of stories these three volumes offers gives a good sampling of H.P. Lovecraft’s work as well as a well as an essential introduction into the Cthulhu mythos that would work their way into many of his stories. In the seven works represented here, Lovecraft demonstrates his mastery of the horror tale whether on the smaller more personal scale with stories like The Thing on the Doorstep or on the grand, cosmic scale with the Cthulhu stories, seeping with dread and a universal horror that could overcome us at any moment. It is with Cthulhu mythos that Lovecraft crosses genres and injects elements of Science Fiction and Fantasy into his Horror tales, thus giving his work broad appeal.
But not only do these audio books offer an excellent collection of Lovecraft’s work, they are brought to life by a voice perfectly fit to this material. Wayne June is a voice talent who has narrated other audio books as well as worked in advertising and radio, but I believe that reading the works of Lovecraft is his one true calling in life. His monotone, droning voice meshes perfectly with these direful tales of dread and terror, lending itself audibly to the bleakness and chilling atmosphere that Lovecraft invokes with his words. June sounds much like a wizened old sage reciting past lore while intent on conveying the horror implicit in the tales. I don’t know if they could have found a better voice talent to bring these stories to life, but June’s voice take these from simple audio recordings to exceptional performances in the Horror genre.
As mentioned above, Audio Realms has produced six total volumes of Lovecraft’s works so far. I started with the three above because they were available in my local library, and I have since purchased volume three and plan on acquiring four and six as well. You can buy them through Amazon.com, or you can go directly to the Audio Realms website (and actually get them cheaper). There, they offer these as CD audio books for around $20 per volume, or as MP3 CDs or MP3 downloads for around $10. And they are definitely a bargain at that price and right now you can download the MP3 recording of The Statement of Randolph Carter for free to their Lovecraft adaptations. If you have never read the works of H.P. Lovecraft before, then here is the place to get started. And if you have, you will still want to check out these incomparable audio editions that bring to life the works of the master the way they were meant to be heard.
Read about sources for more Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror audio books at this link
