The Burrower

I don't know why,but this book was not as good as it could have been.I liked the Letter reading ,to a point.We are supposed to be terrified of the Burrowers,but they don't seem that scarey.I liked it.Great narrator.

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3 people found this helpful

My take on Mr Lumley's writings..

For sixty years, I have enjoyed books that were almost exclusively science fiction...hundreds of books and some few more than once. Ten, or so, years ago, I happened to purchase two of Brian's books and found them to be delightfully compelling.
I would say that few of that other not dissimilar genre have been as fun and detailed as these. I would love to thank him for the fun and interesting reads that he has provided!
The narration was beyond anything in my experience! Amazing!
I am currently rereading two other of his books and would very much enjoy hearing more of Mr Vance. Thank you for the opportunity to express my appreciation.
W Petersen

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12 people found this helpful

worth more thanone go!

folks I run the Call of Cthulhu role-playing game. this makes me a keeper of Arcane lore. This particular book it's nearly encyclopedic for Source material for ever so many things. I love one lie more than Lovecraft. He's a much better Rider LOL Daddy just put together some really cool stories. you don't know anything about Titus Crow have no idea about the clock have no idea what a chthonian is and no idea what the Cthulhu Mythos might be about, that's perfectly okay. It's that great a story and it makes these things mysteriously easy to grasp. Don't be shy don't be afraid... I take that last part back yes be afraid LOL otherwise what's the point?

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2 people found this helpful

Lovecraft done right.

All the fun of Lovecraft and his mythos with none of the racism or classism.

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1 person found this helpful

Awesome Idea, Slightly Disappointing Execution

First of all, Simon Vance! I could listen to that guy read the phone book. So good.

Now, Brian Lumley. He has amazingly cool ideas in the vein of modern, weird horror, and this book is no exception. In execution, he sometimes relies to much on telling rather than showing - robbing the reader of the chilling experience in favor of a kind of intellectual recap. Sadly, this book is no different. I enjoyed the book though. And to be fair, it is no more lacking in direct-experience than Lovecraft himself!

I don't want to share any plot details for fear of spoiling too much. But the basics are that you have an occult investigator/secret agent in your protagonist, Titus Crow, who uncovers a plot 'hatched' (you'll get that pun later) by Chtonians, an ancient and evil subterranean race.

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8 people found this helpful

A short collection that makes a tale

As always Brian Lumley draws the reader into a world of mystery, danger, secret societies and intrigue. With characters both lifted from and created a new fitting directly into Lovecraft's Cthonian world, Titus Crow and Henri Marigny are interesting characters the reader comes to empthaize and cheer for.

That however is the end of the praise. The tale itself isn't so much a story of their exploits but diary pages of what they sit and discuss. The action is limited to a few short scenes where peril to the characters seems absent.

A good read, fun, but far too short and lacking in plot and details.

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Not as much of a story as you would think

Any additional comments?

I am a huge H.P. Lovecraft fan. As a good fan I thought I would give Brian Lumley's work a try. Over all it was very week story. I got the feeling that I was listening to a massive explanation and review of the Lovecraft mythology rather than a story. There is very little character development between the two key characters in the book. Over all I was very disappointed with the story.

If you are looking for a good review of the Lovecraft mythology then this is the book for you. If you are looking for a serious story that builds on the mythology of Lovecraft while being a stand alone story, this may not be the book for you.

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3 people found this helpful

Magnificent

This reading earned at least three of its stars sheerly for Simon Vance's magnificent rendering of a monologue by a slowly dissolving gelatinous humanoid shape with a transplanted brain in it. Extra stars are earned by the story, the thoroughly enjoyable spin on the Cthulhu mythos, the wild imagination at work, and the crisp writing. I very much look forward to other books in this series.

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1 person found this helpful

Eh

I remember this book being so much better than this. Something about how Lumley is trying to explain away the unknowable and mysterious just doesn't sit with me very well. The blasé treatment of a player of the mythos lessens the whole of the story. I liked the book when I was 13, but now 27 years later with more experience it had lost its bite.

Simon Vance was as amazing as ever. When something is boring they describe it as being akin to "watching flies f*ck*. Well I'd enjoy listening to Vance describe the act.

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Fun trip through Lovecraft's universe

I'll start by saying that the performance really worked for me. I read a lot reviews before I make an audible purchases. Often, the narrator performance can be a coinflip; some enjoy it while others do not. Vance worked for me. I enjoyed how Lumley stitched together myths, reports, and real-time events in the same fashion of some of Lovecraft's classics. If you enjoy a Lovecraft-like cosmic horror yarn with more modern language, give this one a try.

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