My Goodreads review: The Ballad of Black Tom

[ankh_hpl]

The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This horror novella is essentially an answer to H.P. Lovecraft's "The Horror at Red Hook," with a black protagonist and some serious revision of the events in that story. Unlike Lovecraft's early tale, this is full-on cosmic horror rather than supernatural horror. Many of Lovecraft's signature concepts (the Sleeping King / Cthulhu, the Outside) replace the vaguely described rituals of the original. LaValle also addresses the racism of both the era and the tone of THaRH, though he makes the Irish police officer Malone a somewhat sympathetic victim.

Unlike many cosmic horror tales, inside & outside of the Lovecraftian Mythos, this one offers a real sense of a cultist's (or top henchman's?) motivations. Why would anyone be willing to help the Sleeping King wake up & reclaim his kingdom? Black Tom explains, in articulate detail. And it's chilling.

One tip for readers: I found that rereading THaRH really made this story "pop" for me. It's readily available in the public domain, though not one of Lovecraft's best.








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