The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, by H.P. Lovecraft ***3/8

I enjoyed reading this quite a bit, substantially more than I expected to. I had read something like 6-7 Lovecraft short stories before and enjoyed them, but not to any degree approaching how much I liked this one. While there were always good ideas, interesting plots, good atmosphere, I hadn't discovered something that really wowed me, until The Case of Charles Dexter Ward. The book works on a number of different levels and is extremely well-paced. There are a number of interesting characters, bizarre situations, and extremely memorable and vivid (and frightening) scenes. I like the way Lovecraft carries the reader along, the way he gives out new information, the way he slowly brings the whole of the tale into focus. Impressively, though, I don't feel the hand of the author in the process - it's simply the unfolding of the information as it's presented that creates the drama, excitement, and tension in the story. The book just gets better and better, and it sustains the tension from beginning to end without turning into a chase or anything stupid like that. It's simply about the revelation of information and the development of characters, steeped in fantastic ambience.

I'm also impressed by the readability of this tale, considering both that I had previously found some of Lovecraft's language a bit stilted (not in a good way), and also since he doesn't include dialogue. Lovecraft dials down the over-writing a bit, and just lets the story come through. But it's still his writing and his imagination and his unique sense of space and time.

I'm not easily frightened when reading, but this frightened me - the images are just that impressive. Highly recommended for someone looking to read Lovecraft for the first time (this has instantly made me a fan) or for any fans who haven't yet read this book.
(spring 2006)

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