February 1, 1993
In an introductory diatribe against the current vogue of splatterpunk, Lumley ( Blood Brothers ) aligns himself with the old school of horror, which aimed, he reminds us, to entertain as well as horrify. These 13 tales, all previously published in magazines and collections over the past 20 years, amply bear out his thesis. Some of the best are set in Lumley's native northern England. In the title piece, which won a British Fantasy Award in 1989, a village is gradually invaded by a mysterious fungus--an ingenious, skin-crawling villain. In ``The Viaduct,'' a more mundane--but no less terrifying--human adversary turns two boys' daredevil prank of climbing across a dangerous viaduct into a nightmare. Many of the stories bear the acknowledged influence of H. P. Lovecraft. ``The Man Who Photographed Beardsley,'' for example, recalls Lovecraft's ``Pickman's Model'' (as well as Poe's ``The Tell-Tale Heart''). Many of the stories, though generally the less effective ones, hinge on the discovery of ancient evil by overly inquisitive anthropologists, in the manner of Bram Stoker's The Jewel of the Seven Stars . In general, however, Lumley's well-crafted tales are satisfying entertainments.
June 1, 1993
YA- -A retrospective collection of Lumley's horror that's sure to appeal to his fans and aficionados of the genre. Several of the offerings are directly Lovecraft inspired, but Lumley may be at his best when he is drawing upon his own working-class English background. His voice, especially in the first-person narration of "Cyprus Shell," is as effective as Robert Bloch's at its best. Less convincing is the purple prose needed to really carry off the Lovecraftian stories; one senses that the mad ravings have been filtered through a level head. All in all, though, this is a most enjoyable romp in the grue.- Cathy Chauvette, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
January 1, 1993
Lumley ( Blood Brothers, LJ 7/92) tells us in his introduction to this baker's dozen of horror tales that he wants to take his readers back to "those Good Old Days of bump, bump, bump in the night." He succeeds admirably with large helpings of old-fashioned atmospheric terror in tales that recall H.P. Lovecraft and the Weird Tales authors. Among the best of the collection are "Born of the Winds," about a cult that worships a primeval wind god; "No Way Home," an eerie account of a lost motorist; and "The Viaduct," a rite-of-passage story that is wonderfully evocative. Fans of "splatterpunk" and gore will be disappointed, but most horror afficionados will enjoy Lumley's work. For genre collections.-- Eric W. Johnson, Teikyo Post Univ. Lib., Waterbury, Ct.
Copyright 1993 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.