The Rats in the Walls

A short story about an American who returned to his roots in England after a family tragedy. He learned of his family's past and set about restoring the ancient family manor.

As usual with Lovecraft's stories, the suspense starts building up early, with the flowery prose that I've come to enjoy reading out loud. The damper though is that this particular short story is more racially prejudiced than most, showing his racist side in the narrative itself.

The plot itself is pretty good and the buildup quite entrancing, but unfortunately the ending felt a bit rushed and rather unsatisfactory for me. The whole story just keeps implying what happened, but it never gives a clear implication, just vague hints here and there. Not enough of a closure to me.

The Rats in the Walls is a classic tale by Lovecraft, evoking several gothic elements to create the atmosphere of Horror. While most of the famous tales of Lovecraft is located in the US (Providence), this one is in England, in an old castle built on Celtic, Roman and Saxon remains. It's interesting to see how Lovecraft uses all the clichés in his favor, bringing something totally new.