The King in Yellow

A good horror book that gives an interesting picture of what people in the 1890s thought the 1920s would be like. I found it particularly interesting that they still foretold a war with Germany! It was also interesting to see “undesirable” laws keeping certain groups out of the United States. Keep in mind this was before the Holocaust cast such laws in a very dark light.

Regarding the stories themselves, it's interesting to see that written horror hasn't changed that much in over 100 years. It still much more covers the foreboding associated with the unknown, and not understanding death. The world Chambers writes in is still recognizable as mostly modern. Science has changed so much, but it's interesting to see the way Chambers treats science and it's potential misuse, as well as how he treats the Middle Ages. The Franco-Prussian War is relatively little known in the US today, so getting a fairly contemporary account is interesting. I'm not sure I like the end having love stories tacked on, or that they were interesting, but I guess that's how they wrote back then. Overall, an excellent book for those looking for some older horror, especially those wanting to see where HP Lovecraft got some of his inspiration.