H. P. Lovecraft - At the Mountains of Madness (1931) [Novel]
H. P. Lovecraft - At the Mountains of Madness (1931) [Novel]
At the Mountains of Madness is a novella written in February and March 1931 and originally serialized in the February, March, and April 1936 issues of Astounding Stories. - Link Here - It has been reproduced in numerous collections since Lovecraft's death. Lovecraft scholar S. T. Joshi describes the novella as representing the decisive "demythology" of the Cthulhu Mythos by reinterpreting Lovecraft's earlier supernatural stories in a science fiction paradigm.
Novel by H. P. Lovecraft
*The story is narrated in a first-person perspective by the geologist William Dyer, professor at Arkham's Miskatonic University. Dyer relates how he led a group of scholars from Miskatonic University on a scientific expedition to Antarctica, during which they discovered ancient ruins and a dangerous secret beyond a range of mountains higher than the Himalayas.
Only when the first survey group, isolated by a storm, begins to radio back of highly unusual finds in a cavern beneath the surface, do events begin to unravel. From then on, Dyer and his companion, the student Danforth, are on a downward spiral of discovery that attacks every notion of time, space, and life, until Danforth’s speech is reduced to disconnected fragments, recalled only in dreams*
Elder Thing - ink drawing on board Tom Ardans
EXTRA
Horror Short Animatic "At The Mountains of Madness" - Video on YT | Link Invidious
Review of the Manga - At the Mountains of Madness - by Tanabe Gou
Mountains of Madness illustrated edition from Free League
This is a great novel. I had read a couple of Lovecraft stories and a college roommate recommended this one to me because he said it actually terrified him in real life.
I haven't realized exactly that horror translating into real life yet from reading Lovecraft, although I did have that happen with House of leaves, which seemed lovecraftian while I was reading it.
So anyway, on the recommendation I read mountains of madness and at the moment of initial perception of whoever the main character was, I can't even remember his name or really much about the book except the description Lovecraft made of those mountains that whoever it was was staring at and how that affected him, that passage made the hair on the back of my neck stand up, even after several readings.
I kept going back to it just because of how tangible my reaction was to it.
Geez, I didn't realize it was a full novel, I remember reading it in one sitting and it being shorter than it appears to be now that I'm checking it again.
Anyway, it's great!
Indeed, one of my favorite as well 👍