Showing posts with label John Houlihan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John Houlihan. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 03, 2024

Mon Dieu Cthulhu! (Cthulhu Anthology #19) 2.5Stars

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress, Blogspot, & Librarything by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: Mon Dieu Cthulhu!
Series: Cthulhu Anthology #19
Editor: John Houlihan
Rating: 2.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Cosmic Horror?
Pages: 184
Words: 72K


I was really wavering about giving this 3stars instead of 2.5, but when I considered that there was at least another novella featuring the main character Dubois and I had zero desire to read it, that sealed the deal.

There was nothing particularly “wrong” with this book. It just didn’t appeal to me. The main character wasn’t appealing, the tinge of madness, while hinted at, didn’t really appear and I just never felt a shiver of “will he go stark raving mad and kill everyone around him?” like I should in a properly told Cthulhu story. It probably didn’t help that these were longer novellas too.

Live and learn I guess.

★★✬☆☆


From the Publisher & Bookstooge.blog

The Crystal Void 

The year is 1810 and as Napoleon’s marshals chase Wellington’s expeditionary force to the lines of Torres Verdras, the dashing if rather dim French Hussar Gaston Dubois is astonished to encounter the love of his life. But the fragrant Odette is soon abducted by the Marquis Da Foz, a ruthless and sadistic Portuguese noblemen.

Joined by a mysterious British Major, the hot blooded Hussar is soon in deadly pursuit, but what strange horrors lurk within the shadows of Da Foz’s ancient Moorish fortress? Can the heroic duo foil Da Foz’s dark machinations, rescue the delightful Odette and ultimately prevent the opening of the dreaded Crystal Void?

Yes, yes and yes.

Feast of the Dead 

Dashing French Lieutenant, Gaston Dubois, is reassigned to the 13th Imperial Death’s Head Hussars and charged with leading a detachment of these “thieves on horseback” into the Spanish interior, in search of intelligence, supplies and plunder.

Forced to take refuge in the Monasterio de St Cloud, Dubois encounters the unworldly Doctor Malfeas and the beautiful nurse, Mademoiselle Brockenhurst. Yet this former house of the holy holds many outré secrets and Dubois faces fresh battles on all fronts, including the mystery which lies at the heart of the Monasterio itself, an ancient and terrible enigma which threatens both the lives and souls of all who encounter it.

Alone, deep behind enemy lines and beset on all sides, can Dubois survive his first real command and prevent the horrible unravelling of the feast of the dead?

Yes he can, yes he does and he kills the big daddy ghul to boot.