The Wild Adventures of Cthulhu Vol 1 (Cthulhu Anthology #21) 3Stars

 

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: The Wild Adventures of Cthulhu Vol 1
Series: Cthulhu Anthology #21
Editor: Will Murray
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Cosmic Horror
Pages: 199
Words: 66K

Will Murray wrote Cthulhu short stories for various magazines and collections and they all had the overarching element of being connected by an organization that was trying to prevent the intrusion of the elder gods into our dimension. Each story was standalone, not necessarily dependent on previous stories OR future stories and if one story contradicted how our world ended, it didn’t matter, because what did matter was that the elder gods WOULD break through, period.

I had only read one of these stories before, so the novelty of them all was pretty good. My usual complaint occurred, which didn’t surprise me. One of the top men of the top secret organization (CEES? I can’t remember what ridiculous thing it was called. It made sense when reading but as soon as I stopped I simply forgot because it had no real world application) was a devout Christian and when the elder gods broke into our world and were eradicating humanity, said leader went insane, spouted some specific blasphemies about God and Jesus and then blew his head off with his service pistol. What concerned me about it was that it didn’t concern me.

I am thinking that I have gotten too used to such things, and that isn’t good. So I’ve got one more Cthulhu anthology on my ereader and once I’ve read that, I’m going to take a break from the cosmic horror for the rest of the year. Let my standards reset to what they should be. Repeated exposure to blasphemy is doing what it always does, it dulls and I refuse to accept that in my life.

★★★☆☆

Table of Contents

Introduction

To Clear the Earth

The Eldridge Collection

Rude Awakening

A Trillion Young

Static

The Sothis Radiant

Dark Redeemer

What Brings the Void

The Hour of Our Triumph

Black Fire

• All of My “Cthulhu Anthology” Reviews

The Lost and the Lurking (Silver John #3) 3Stars

 

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 by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: The Lost and the Lurking
Series: Silver John #3
Author: Manly Wade Wellman
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Folk Fantasy
Pages: 178
Words: 56K

Silver John is tasked by the gubbamint to investigate a town. Turns out the entire town is in thrall to a witch woman and she has BIG plans.

John does his usual self-effacing thing, calls on demonic powers (but supposedly benign) and ends up letting a black preacher save the souls of Wolver when the witch woman accidentally kills herself.

Yeah, this story was about evil devouring itself. John does very little, just a nudge here and there. Exactly as in the previous two novels.

The only difference here is that Wellman lets his politics peek through for just a couple of sentences. I was disappointed in him for doing so because he hadn’t done so before. It felt very whiny.

I gave this the same rating as the previous Silver John stories because it was a template and just like the previous ones. As long as you can deal with that aspect of these stories, then you’ve nothing to fear from diving into this series.

I usually like to include the covers for these, but I simply couldn’t find one that was even halfway decent. The big ones were just smaller versions stretched out and pixelated OR they were pictures of an old paperback with all the attendant damage an old book cover has. That’s actually what I’m using here but with it being smaller it isn’t so noticeable.

★★★☆☆

From the Publisher and Bookstooge

Country folk, especially backcountry folk, are like to be a mite suspicious of strangers. But a plain man with a civil manner and no highfalutin airs can count on a neighborly reception from simple, decent people, so when the natives of Wolver looked to be fixing to whale on Silver John, he reckoned maybe it wasn't the sleepy little hamlet it seemed. But then, if it was, he had no business there anyhow.

The man who picked the guitar with the silver strings had seen some doings in this mountain country, and had a reputation with some almighty powerful souls, not all of them flesh and blood. So when the government got curious about the goings-on in Wolver, it wasn't so strange that they should have asked Silver John to see what he could see, nor at all peculiar that the wanderer had shouldered his pack and his guitar and hiked up the trace of a road to take a gander.

Wolver had a desolated look, from the smoking trash piles outside the town to the tumbledown ruined church. The children in the grimy yards stared at him dully, while their elders ignored him or watched him with undisguised hostility. John had no quarrel with them, but it sure looked like they were set on picking one with him.

With Tiphaine the witchwoman in talks with foreign agents to bring down the United States, John must call on all his arcane knowledge to not only save the deceived people of Wolver and his own life, but the American Way of Life itself.

Giant Tortoise - MTG 4E

 

Hey look at that, the Foglio's can draw something that isn't all cartoony and jiggly! Color me surprised. I wouldn't have guessed that in a million years. Of course, back in the day I never paid attention to who the artists are anyway. That's changing as I'm doing these posts though.

Mr Zip Turns 40

 

It is time to once again celebrate that Authorial Recluse, Mr Zip. Mr Zip is turning 40 this month and that is something worth celebrating. Heck, he's older than my little sister for goodness sake!

This is as far into "The Jungle" as Mr Zip ever wants to explore. Give him concrete and pavement any day! Plus, all the accoutrements of civilization.

Point in case. You will NEVER find a Mr Mac's in the deepest darkest jungles of Africa or the Amazon. Mr Zip has never looked, but he's pretty sure it is the case. He's also never looked on the Moon OR Mars, but he's pretty sure there aren't any Mr Macs there either. Mr Zip is one smart monkey!

Besides, all Mr Zip has to do is traipse the couple of feet over to the oven and voila, there is a Deluxe Hamburger mac-n-cheese. It's almost like magic. And it tastes better than magic too, guaranteed!

Once he's stuffed himself and is about to enter a food coma, Mr Zip likes to go to his favorite haunt and just chill. Bookshelves are the place to be for Mr Zip and it's about all he's actually up for these days anyway. Mr Zip is feeling his age and wants some warm food, a comfortable place to sit and an uninterrupted snooze, preferably 2-3 days at a time.

Mr Zip wasn't always such a sedate, comfortable bachelor. Back in his hey-day, he was tearing up the carpets like you wouldn't believe. He also got hitched. Yes, you read that right, Mr Zip was married.

She was a blonde haired temptress from the Cabbage Patch clan. While both she and Mr Zip were just reaching their majority (they were both a couple of months old by that time), it was obvious that this Romance was Meant To Be. A lavish wedding was thrown by the entire First Grade class at school and unending bliss was just ahead, or so they thought. But forces beyond their control tore them apart and they were destined to never see each other again. After that, Mr Zip swore that his heart was a stone and he would never love another. It is a vow he has kept to this day.

Thankfully, Mr Zip has made friends over the years. Of course, when he first met Jimbo the Desperado, nobody was sure if it was going to be friendship or a bloodbath. It could have easily gone either way.

Thankfully, they bonded over their shared love of the book Grumpy Monkey. Now they're best buds as they occupy their own favorite niches on the bookshelves.

Of course, once Mr Zip wakes up from his 3day long nap, he needs a little pick-me-up. Thankfully, he's as fond of energy drinks as I am. Down the hatch! He hasn't exploded yet from that much caffeine.

Then it is time for some light reading. This decade it is the Complete Works of Shakespeare. Mr Zip ain't no rube from the turnip farm after all!

Mr Zip has enjoyed his time with you all, but now he says "Shove off". You heard the monkey!

[Journal] Inkblot: Old Leather Collection

 

I know the pictures make this look a good bit purple’ish, but in real life, it’s a much more dark blue. This was one of Paperblanks “Old Leather” collections, where they had various colors and tried to simulate that look of scuffed leather. If you look at the big picture versions, you’ll see all those “scuff” marks and recognize “old leather”. Of course, it’s not actually scuffed and it’s not old leather, but it sure does look like it. I had some old leather book marks once that had those same kind of scorings and beatings just from getting moved around and pressed. That’s what leather does after all, takes a beating and keeps on enduring. From the name you can tell they were trying to be clever. I’ll give them points for trying anyway.

The Old Leather Collection had several beautiful options, but sadly, Paperblanks only carried three that had the flap on the front, all the rest were open edged and were closed by an elastic band. That’s just not acceptable to me. It’s not aesthetically acceptable (as they would not match all the rest of my paperblank journals that DO have a flap closure) and it’s not privacy acceptable to me. Should my journal fall out of my bag in a public place, I know that flap will keep it closed and if someone picks it up, they won’t be able to see anything of what I wrote. It’s not so much that I’m concerned as I just value my privacy, even in such little things.

In one of the previous journal posts, Lashaan (from Roars and Echoes) asked if I would ever consider buying a boatload of just one style of journal and using that for years and years. I had never thought of things in that light and I had to sit back and give it a think. I wouldn’t want one of the Embellished Manuscripts, where they are highlighting an author and a particular work, because after 2-5 years I’d get tired of that. It would have to be a design oriented journal that I could just look at and enjoy. Or something plain that didn’t challenge me on an artistic level at all. A journal like this one is very close that ideal of plainness. But not quite. After two of these in a row, I’d go quietly insane and like Abdul Alhazred the Mad Arab, I’d probably end up writing the Bookstoogenomicom, that most evil, alluring and world ending book. And ain’t NOBODY got time for that any more.

Implacable (Lost Fleet: Outlands #3) 3.5Stars

 

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 by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: Implacable
Series: Lost Fleet: Outlands #3
Author: Jack Campbell
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Mil-SF
Pages: 284
Words: 107K

More aliens show up, insane Syndics show up, renegade Alliance ships show up and it is all up to Geary to balance things and make it work out.

Which he does.

There’s a lot of politic’ing going on. I enjoyed this story despite that. This catches me up on the Lost Fleet books, so I will let Campbell go off my radar for several years until he decides to write more. And if he doesn’t, then this was a decent place to end. I appreciate that he wrote things that way.

★★★✬☆

From Fandom.com

As far from explored space as any human has ever been, Geary and the Alliance fleet are on their own, protecting a diplomatic mission in territory belonging to an alien species with still-unknown motives. His already complex and dangerous mission is further imperilled by deadly challenges from other human factions seeking to harm or exploit the aliens. When another alien species whose technology is far more advanced than humanity’s arrives, the stakes are raised to the highest possible level. Only the most serious danger comes from an unexpected source. When presented with orders to carry out actions he believes not only are mistaken but would be contrary to the ideals of the Alliance, Geary has to finally decide whether he must invoke the power that his long-revered name holds, all the while knowing that this might endanger his entire fleet, tear apart the Alliance, and destroy everything he has fought for.

The Twice Dead King: Ruin (Warhammer 40K: Necrons) 3.5Stars

 

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 by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: The Twice Dead King: Ruin
Series: Warhammer 40K: Necrons
Author: Nate Crowley
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: SF
Pages: 306
Words: 108K

I am wicked glad I read The Infinite and the Divine before diving into this The Twice Dead King duology. While Crowley (the author) does a great job of using flashbacks to explain how the Necrontyr (the people) became the Necrons (immortal metal beings), already knowing the basics helped me process other parts of the story better. Also, being familiar with the Shards and how they affect Necrons explained a lot that wasn’t explained here.

What we get here is the first part of a duology that shows why the Necrons haven’t taken over the entire universe, even being as powerful as they are. It shows their degradation over the millions of years that they slept in their tombs, to awaken, or to awaken insane or to not awaken at all. Factor in that there can never be any more little baby Necrons, well, you have a race of beings that don’t want to die but were tricked into committing long term race suicide and are now going insane over the issue.

Literally insane. Like, eating humans to try to get flesh into their metal bodies, even though they have no mouths or digestive organs. The main character also has an episode, which I guess is common to Necrons, where his brain “remembers” being flesh and has what amounts to a killer panic attack because he can’t “breathe” even though he’s a robot.

How messed up is all of that? Very messed up, that’s how much. And it fits perfectly within the Warhammer 40K grimdark universe. You think you are getting immortality and the chance to rule the universe and BAM, you’re totally boned by some nasty other race. And even if you kill them all, they still bone you for millions of years because they were that nasty.

The Empire of Man makes an appearance and boy howdy, do they do a number on the Necrons. They are on a Crusade and are wiping out the Necrons one world at a time and Oltyx (the main Necron character) is trying to save his House (Necrons are divided up into factions based upon Family and it is as messy as anything humans ever experienced). Which is when he discovers his King has gone insane and is eating people and “stuff”. He manages to make it off his home planet with a small contingent of survivors by the book’s end, but I am not sure what the next book will entail. Without the ability to increase his forces, he is ultimately doomed, even if it takes another million years.

I was impressed with how well Crowley wrote this story. It was a good story (within the framework of the WH:40K universe I mean) and didn’t read like a game codex turned into a book in 3 days.

To close, I’d like to talk about that cover. Terminator looking machines with glow’y axes. How cool is that? It’s WICKED cool, that’s how cool it is! Definitely going to be a strong contender for cover love at the end of the month.

★★★✬☆

From the Publisher

Pride is everything for the dynastic kings of the Necron race, who have awakened after millennia to see their empires occupied by foul beasts and simple minds. For the Necron Lord Oltyx, the Ithakas dynasty was his by right, but the machinations of the court see him stripped of his position and exiled to a forgotten world.

Exiled to the miserable world of Sedh, the disgraced Necron Lord Oltyx is consumed with bitterness. Once heir to the throne of a dynasty, he now commands nothing but a dwindling garrison of warriors, in a never-ending struggle against Ork invaders. Oltyx can think of nothing but the prospect of vengeance against his betrayers, and the reclamation of his birthright. But the Orks are merely the harbingers of a truly unstoppable force. Unless Oltyx acts to save his dynasty, revenge will win him only ashes. And so he must return to the crownworld, and to the heart of the very court which cast him out. But what awaits there is a horror more profound than any invader, whose roots are tangled with the dark origins of the Necrons themselves.