Earlier this month, I shared the spooky book that my husband and I are reading for October. We read At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft. I am completely new to Lovecraft, who wrote suspenseful and creepy stories in the early 1900s. Turns out, I really enjoy this era of spooky stories. It’s not like the horror we know now, which can be gory and ‘in your face.’ At the Mountains of Madness is very suspenseful, because the characters are literally exploring the unknown.
, who wrote suspenseful and creepy stories in the early 1900s. Turns out, I really enjoy this era of spooky stories. It’s not like the horror we know now, which can be gory and ‘in your face.’ At the Mountains of Madness is very suspenseful, because the characters are literally exploring the unknown.
The narrator is William Dyer, who is a geology professor at a university. He is traveling with researchers and scientists on an expedition to Antarctica. The beginning of the book takes place in present time, with William Dyer warning anyone who wants to explore Antarctica to stay away. He then flashes back to his own expedition and what they found there.
Without spoiling too much, the explorers discover an ominous, unknown mountain range, a cave, and fourteen ancient, unidentifiable ancient lifeforms. William Dyer and Danforth, a student of the university, had stayed near the coast while the team went to explore the mountains. The communication coming back from the team is creepy and unreal. They find lifeforms that are just completely explainable and their dogs start to go mad. When communication ceases, Dyer and Danforth make the difficult decision to take a small team to the mountains. When they arrive, it was obvious there had been a skirmish or a struggle of some sorts. I think the creepiest part of the story is that there isn’t a lot of action. You’re basically left to your own imagination to deduce what happened.
Dyer and Danforth decide to take the plan over the mountains to explore what is beyond. What they find is completely unbelievable, but it’s also very interesting. They assumed they would find more snowy landscape. Instead, they find an ancient civilization.
This story really isn’t for everyone, and I can understand that. If you want to read something creepy but you don’t want horror and you don’t mind a wordy story, then you would enjoy this. This was surprisingly sci-fi heavy, but as someone who doesn’t read a lot of science fiction it was still enjoyable.
Is this something you would read?
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Rebecca has been writing about style, beauty, and lifestyle topics since 2011. Thank you so much for reading this post! Feel free to leave any questions or comments below. I love hearing from you!
