Shadows over Innsmouth

I've never read Lovecraft before, but I've been meaning to for quite some time, based on his reputation as a father of modern supernatural horror, and my passing experience of the Cthulu role playing game. I listened to an audio version story of [b:The Dunwich Horror|3539006|The Dunwich Horror|H.P. Lovecraft|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1341631429s/3539006.jpg|15005007]The Dunwich Horror several weeks ago, though (Which I enjoyed), so I was quite looking forward to reading this anthology, which I felt would be a good introduction to the mythos, and the author's work.

The first story in this anthology is the original Lovecraft story, The Shadow over Innsmouth. It was good, but I have to say, I enjoyed The Dunwich Horror more, and even within this collection, it wasn't my favourite.

There are seventeen stories here, including The Shadow over Innsmouth. Like most anthologies, some were amazingly good, some were good or just "okay", and some were downright silly. They all have something to do with Innsmouth, and extend Lovecraft's original story in their own way. Some of them are actually SET in Innsmouth, while others are set in faraway lands whose history or people somehow relate back to that town.

What I liked about the collection as a whole was that there was no contradiction in any of the stories, and they were set in such a way that they flowed very nicely into each other. I now feel that I know a fair amount about the town, Dagon, and the Deep Ones, and I think I'll be exploring the whole mythos further!

I found the original story by H.P. Lovecraft a bit difficult to read, particularly those sections where Zadok was talking, because the accent came through thickly in the writing. I think that's a little over-done, and that there's a reason why many modern writing courses teach not to go overboard with regional inflections when writing dialogue! Also, the language is general is a little archaic and I'm not used to it any more. Still, I can appreciate Lovecraft's genius, and the world he has created, and I am most definitely not put off - I'll be reading more, as I said.

If you're looking for an introduction into Lovecraftian horror, I think that this anthology will serve your purposes well. You'll come out with an appreciation for the rich tapestry that was started by the man, and carried on very respectfully by many other authors after his death.