anti_formalist12's review against another edition
3.0
I really like the ending to this one. Really different from the other Howard books that I've read.
jimmypat's review against another edition
4.0
With its goofy setup (PI inherits bookstore run by a descendant of H.P. Lovecraft) this book should not have been as good as it was. I had a blast reading this book- lots of fun, breakneck pace, and lots of twists (pun intended). I’m looking forward to reading the sequel.
biblio_lore's review against another edition
3.0
I want to be fair and completely clear when I say that Jonathan L. Howard is an excellent writer and he does horror just as well as fantasy. I knew this from his excellent (though somewhat polarizing) third book in the Cabal series and given that was my favorite book in that series, I know that he does Lovecraft well. The reason that I give this one a lower rating than all that is that it was the characters that I just wasn't really that in love with. Carter is easy enough to like for the most part but I felt like I was a bit less invested in him than I should be. Lovecraft, I found, was far more interesting and I think I would have liked this better if she were in the book more or if she was the main focus. I found her to be someone whose work and personality were a lot more compelling than the cop turned PI and she is worth reading this for but Carter I'm kind of more on the fence about. None of this should sway you away from the book but I would be disingenuous to say it was my favorite offering from Howard. He's still one of my favorite authors, however, and this story, while not my personal taste, is still good.
alexandramabon's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
mad_about_books's review against another edition
5.0
The story is, at times, quite bizarre, and the language has a cloying intimacy. I am particularly attuned to descriptions of drowning because my adult son died this way. I often wonder what it had been like for him. After reading Jonathan Howard's account, I had to put the book aside. The affect his writing had upon my very psyche was profound.
H. P. Lovecraft occupies a rarified stratum in the literary world. His writing engendered a mythos latched onto by any number of writers from those who wrote contemporaneously to those writing now, in the twenty-first century. Readers unfamiliar with his stories will see the name Lovecraft and immediately think porn, or the name Linda Lovelace will spring to mind. Anyone who is a serious reader of genre fiction will respond to such suggestions in the negative, and, usually with, at the very least, a touch of scorn.
At first blush, CARTER & LOVECRAFT is police detective turned PI dime novel the likes of which have been around for decades. However, it doesn't take long to realize that this is no John D. McDonald or Mickey Spillane pulp.
I hate spoilers, and saying more about the actual story would, of necessity, be riddled with them. If you want to know who the eponymous Carter and Lovecraft are, you need to pick up a copy and read about them for yourself. I will say that CARTER & LOVECRAFT was a totally satisfying read, no cliffhanger… a complete novel in every way. That is a refreshing change in a literary world where it seems that far too many books are part of a series. Yet, there is just enough wiggle room here to trigger a sequel or two. Should that ever happen, I will happily read such further adventures.
H. P. Lovecraft occupies a rarified stratum in the literary world. His writing engendered a mythos latched onto by any number of writers from those who wrote contemporaneously to those writing now, in the twenty-first century. Readers unfamiliar with his stories will see the name Lovecraft and immediately think porn, or the name Linda Lovelace will spring to mind. Anyone who is a serious reader of genre fiction will respond to such suggestions in the negative, and, usually with, at the very least, a touch of scorn.
At first blush, CARTER & LOVECRAFT is police detective turned PI dime novel the likes of which have been around for decades. However, it doesn't take long to realize that this is no John D. McDonald or Mickey Spillane pulp.
I hate spoilers, and saying more about the actual story would, of necessity, be riddled with them. If you want to know who the eponymous Carter and Lovecraft are, you need to pick up a copy and read about them for yourself. I will say that CARTER & LOVECRAFT was a totally satisfying read, no cliffhanger… a complete novel in every way. That is a refreshing change in a literary world where it seems that far too many books are part of a series. Yet, there is just enough wiggle room here to trigger a sequel or two. Should that ever happen, I will happily read such further adventures.
susieq17's review against another edition
3.0
If you know Lovecraft’s writings, you will enjoy this book. Good characters, well-written.
wordsmithlynn's review against another edition
4.0
Fabulous. Carter & Lovecraft is a wonderful homage to the weird tales of H.P. Lovecraft and a brilliant updating of those tales for a modern audience.
The story opens with a very grim series of child killings that made me think I wouldn't be able to stick it out. It's a rare book involving child torture or rape of any kind that I don't wind up throwing across the room. But my devotion to H.P. Lovecraft is so ridiculous, I bent my own rule just to see where author Jonathan Howard was going with this. And I'm glad I did.
The initial serial killer story sets up Carter's decision to leave the NYC police and become a private investigator and drops hints about what's to come, but the phenomenon he encounters after that first chapter are more of the traditionally Lovecraftian type - disturbing, hallucinogenic in quality, but not grisly CSI-type stuff. So if the first two chapters gives you pause, as they did me, try to stick it out. The rest of the book is a clever, creepy thrill ride, but not at all graphic.
One quibble: Howard clearly wants to reclaim Lovecraft's tales from those who feel Lovecraft's racism means we should stop reading his works. So it was disappointing to see Howard engage in some very contemporary stereotyping of his own, when he has one character explain the behavior of the story's Big Bad by making reference to "the mild kind of autism . . . Asperger's."
Howard may not agree with the character personally, but there's no attempt to correct that character's view, so it really rankled. Yes, that's one line in a whole book. But it's a big deal if you or someone you love has Asperger's. It's really no different from all those who are offended by Lovecraft's perceived racism. Fear of people with Asperger's may be a popular attitude these days, but it's no better or different than Lovecraft's own fear of inferior races. For me, that one line cost this book a five-star rating.
The story opens with a very grim series of child killings that made me think I wouldn't be able to stick it out. It's a rare book involving child torture or rape of any kind that I don't wind up throwing across the room. But my devotion to H.P. Lovecraft is so ridiculous, I bent my own rule just to see where author Jonathan Howard was going with this. And I'm glad I did.
The initial serial killer story sets up Carter's decision to leave the NYC police and become a private investigator and drops hints about what's to come, but the phenomenon he encounters after that first chapter are more of the traditionally Lovecraftian type - disturbing, hallucinogenic in quality, but not grisly CSI-type stuff. So if the first two chapters gives you pause, as they did me, try to stick it out. The rest of the book is a clever, creepy thrill ride, but not at all graphic.
One quibble: Howard clearly wants to reclaim Lovecraft's tales from those who feel Lovecraft's racism means we should stop reading his works. So it was disappointing to see Howard engage in some very contemporary stereotyping of his own, when he has one character explain the behavior of the story's Big Bad by making reference to "the mild kind of autism . . . Asperger's."
Howard may not agree with the character personally, but there's no attempt to correct that character's view, so it really rankled. Yes, that's one line in a whole book. But it's a big deal if you or someone you love has Asperger's. It's really no different from all those who are offended by Lovecraft's perceived racism. Fear of people with Asperger's may be a popular attitude these days, but it's no better or different than Lovecraft's own fear of inferior races. For me, that one line cost this book a five-star rating.
misscazz1224's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
eklsolo's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5