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A review by oofym
At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Personally I enjoyed this story quite a bit, but I try to leave as non-biased reviews as I can so I'll leave a list of pros and cons below.
CONS:
1. Pacing - This is the biggest one, this book absolutely drags during the middle and that's a big problem when your story is only 120 pages long. It's the main reason I've rated this 3.5 and not any higher. Thankfully I really had fun with the first and last thirds of the book.
2. Repetitive descriptions - I don't care much about this, it's only a nitpick, but considering I dragged Faulkner for using the word profound a million times, I can drag Lovecraft for saying "Horrors", "Cylcopean" and "Unspeakable" a bunch too.
3. Lack of interesting characters - This is also one i don't mind too much, but some readers will. It's Lovecraft though, you're here for grotesque creatures, terrors beyond comprehension and spooky mysterious happenings. If you expected complex and engaging character studies you picked the wrong author.
PROS:
1. The Setting - This might not apply to some readers, but I just love anything set in the extreme cold, mountains, the edge of the world, abandoned cities, and this has all four. Lovecraft also describes that feeling of desolation and isolation very well.
2. The Mythos and Creatures - This story is jammed full of information about Lovecrafts universe and creatures, I found it super interesting, but again some readers won't care.
3. The description - I really really liked Lovecrafts prose in terms of describing scenery and what the characters were feeling upon discovering things. It easily sucked me in at certain segments.
NEUTRAL:
1. Academic/Archaic language - This one is a neutral point since it entirely depends on the readers vocabulary level and prior knowledge. There's alot of references in this to things from geology, archaeology, history, Edgar Allen poe, Russian painters and more. Not to mention the old school language that some might struggle with.
So TL;DR: Pick this up if you're already a fan of Lovecraft and want to learn more about the mythos. Don't pick this up if it's your first foray into Lovecraft and cosmic horror. Be prepared for a slow pace and outdated language. Good luck 👍
CONS:
1. Pacing - This is the biggest one, this book absolutely drags during the middle and that's a big problem when your story is only 120 pages long. It's the main reason I've rated this 3.5 and not any higher. Thankfully I really had fun with the first and last thirds of the book.
2. Repetitive descriptions - I don't care much about this, it's only a nitpick, but considering I dragged Faulkner for using the word profound a million times, I can drag Lovecraft for saying "Horrors", "Cylcopean" and "Unspeakable" a bunch too.
3. Lack of interesting characters - This is also one i don't mind too much, but some readers will. It's Lovecraft though, you're here for grotesque creatures, terrors beyond comprehension and spooky mysterious happenings. If you expected complex and engaging character studies you picked the wrong author.
PROS:
1. The Setting - This might not apply to some readers, but I just love anything set in the extreme cold, mountains, the edge of the world, abandoned cities, and this has all four. Lovecraft also describes that feeling of desolation and isolation very well.
2. The Mythos and Creatures - This story is jammed full of information about Lovecrafts universe and creatures, I found it super interesting, but again some readers won't care.
3. The description - I really really liked Lovecrafts prose in terms of describing scenery and what the characters were feeling upon discovering things. It easily sucked me in at certain segments.
NEUTRAL:
1. Academic/Archaic language - This one is a neutral point since it entirely depends on the readers vocabulary level and prior knowledge. There's alot of references in this to things from geology, archaeology, history, Edgar Allen poe, Russian painters and more. Not to mention the old school language that some might struggle with.
So TL;DR: Pick this up if you're already a fan of Lovecraft and want to learn more about the mythos. Don't pick this up if it's your first foray into Lovecraft and cosmic horror. Be prepared for a slow pace and outdated language. Good luck 👍