Customer Reviews

Caller of the Black

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One of the great things that August Derleth did when he continued to publish books with Arkham House was to bring to the macabre-reading public new books by new writers, and some of these were new books in the tradition of the Cthulhu Mythos. Brian Lumley was one of Derleth's discoveries, and this first book remains the finest of those published by AH. The cover illustration is exceptionally fine, and some of these stories have, to my knowledge, not yet been reprinted in the many collections of Lumley's work from Tor Books.
The contents are:
"A THING About Cars"
"The Cypress Shell"
"Billy's Oak"
"The Writer in the Garrett"
"The Caller of the Black"
"The Mirror of Nitocris"
"The Night Sea-Maid Went Down"
"The Thing from the Blasted Heath"
"An Item of Supporting Evidence"
"Dylath-Leen"
"De Marigny's Clock"
"Ambler's Inspiration"
"In the Vaults Beneath"
"The Pearl"

This is the book in which Lumley introduced Titus Crow, and it is in this book that Crow shines brightest. (Alas, I find the transition of Crow into a kind of super hero in the latter novels extremely disappointing and dull.) Although Lumley is oft accused of being more like Derleth in his approach to the Cthulhu Mythos than authentically Lovecraftian, this book is the work of a man who loved HPL and was extremely familiar with Lovecraft's fiction. The hints and threads linked to Lovecraft's tales are many. "The Thing from the Blasted Heath," for example, is a semi-sequel to Lovecraft's "The Colour out of Space," whereas "In the Vaults Beneath" owes its inspiration to "At the Mountains of Madness" and "The Shadow out of Time." "De Marigny's Clock" introduces a character inspired by HPL's collaboration with E. Hoffmann Price, "Through the Gates of the Silver Key," and uses the deliciously strange clock that was featured in HPL's original tale. I was especially fond of "The Writer in the Garrett" when first I read it -- it is a delightfully weird tale that reminds one, obliquely, of HPL's "The Music of Erich Zann" in its superb atmosphere and sense of place. All in all, this is a great book of weird fiction from a young man who would become a huge success in latter life. I still consider this his finest collection of weird fiction, perhaps even better than the magnificent HAGGOPIAN AND OTHER STORIES (Subterranean Press 2008).

I read this book long ago.

It is extremely hard to find and the stories in it are choice, particularly the title piece and "A Thing About Cars."

There's a picture on the back of the hardbound edition of Mr. Lumley and Mr. Lovecraft which is quite good.

I have been a fan of Master Lumley since I moved to PA 15 years ago...while taking the train to work on night I completely missed my stop since I was reading the most engaging book about Vampires I have ever read. And when I finally got my hands on THE CALLER OF THE BLACK...I knew where the source of this literary greatness came from - Master Lumley, from his first book, to his latest...takes you on a journey that no one else comes close to...even King and Rice could learn from him...he's just that dang good...but search/seek out this book and find out for yourself why in 15 years time, I have purchased every single book Master Lumley has ever released....even ones that didn't get released in the USA!