Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff

NOW A HBO SERIES FROM J.J. ABRAHMS, MISHA GREEN AND JORDAN PEELE (DIRECTOR OF GET OUT) Chicago, 1954. When his father Montrose goes missing, 22-year-old Army veteran Atticus Turner embarks on a road trip to New England to find him, accompanied by his Uncle George-publisher of The Safe Negro Travel Guide-and his childhood friend Letitia. On their journey to the manor of Mr. Braithwhite-heir to the estate that owned one of Atticus's ancestors-they encounter both mundane terrors of white America and malevolent spirits that seem straight out of the weird tales George devours. At the manor, Atticus discovers his father in chains, held prisoner by a secret cabal named the Order of the Ancient Dawn-led by Samuel Braithwhite and his son Caleb-which has gathered to orchestrate a ritual that shockingly centers on Atticus. And his one hope of salvation may be the seed of his-and the whole Turner clan's-destruction. A chimerical blend of magic, power, hope, and freedom that stretches across time, touching diverse members of two black families, Lovecraft Country is a devastating kaleidoscopic portrait of racism-the terrifying specter that continues to haunt us today.

A collection of interrelated short stories with a Lovecraftian feel. Not my genre, but an OK book. Overall the stories had just a little hint of the weird and very little of the horror. Not all have the same quality.

I liked the first and last one the most. I did not like the end though. First, it was a happy ending. Lovecraft stories shouldn't have a happy ending. They should convey hopelessness and despair when you realized you're faced with forces beyond your comprehension and despite of all your efforts, the best thing you can do is go mad in order to cope with them.

The second thing was the fate of Braithwhite. It was appropriate but undeserving I think. Undeserving because despite his manipulative demeanor, he was the only white person that treated the black characters as human beings. Not only that, he highly favored them, giving them protection, money and even putting his services as wizard available in order to improve their lives. Appropriate because the main characters were simple, God fearing, poor, country folk. They resented Mr. Braithwhite because he was white, rich and dealing with 'satanic forces'. More importantly, they couldn't see that he was doing his best to keep them safe, and it was other people that wanted to see them harmed. He had no choice but to force himself into their lives.

So much fun. It feels like reading a television show. Each chapter moves the main story along, but they each have their own distinct set of influences.

It's a fascinating story made better by where it's set and the main characters. It's a little slow to start, but check it out. The ride is worth it.

This was definitely a new subgenre for me—a mixture of supernatural, horror, and historical fiction. It was a very enjoyable Halloween-esque read. I haven't read any Lovecraftian fiction before, so I'm sure that some of the allusions were lost on me.

This is not particularly Lovecraftian and it is also not a novel. It is an interesting anthology series with interconnected characters. I was very thrown by the format and title, but it was a good, if slightly uneven read nonetheless.