Book cover of The Shadow over Innsmouth

Book description

During the winter of 1927-28 officials of the Federal government made a strange and secret investigation of certain conditions in the ancient Massachusetts seaport of Innsmouth. The public first learned of it in February, when a vast series of raids and arrests occurred, followed by the deliberate burning and dynamiting-under…

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Why read it?

2 authors picked The Shadow over Innsmouth as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

No writer creates a compelling sense of dread better than H.P. Lovecraft. His stories instantly immerse you in whatever world he’s conjuring, and I think his writing reached its peak in this book.

His narrator descends into a creepy world of “others” whom he senses want to harm him (in his personal life, Lovecraft was notoriously disdainful of “others”). I was willingly dragged along with Lovecraft’s desperate narrator as he raced through town, hotel rooms, and ultimately into a terrifying gathering of the townspeople.

Nearly a century after its publication, I consider it to be one of the most timeless…

Planning a trip to the seaside? Taking in some sunshine and salt air? You could do worse than bringing along a copy of The Shadow Over Innsmouth!

A tale of a rundown city on the Massachusetts coast, filled with slimy monsters, ancient horrors, and a pervasive sense of unease. The smell of decay practically wafts off the page. The twist at the end still holds up.

I think Shadow was the second Lovecraft story I ever read, and remains one of my all-time favorites. Again, this one’s a short story, but look for it in a collection of Lovecraft’s other…

If you love The Shadow over Innsmouth...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

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