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Lovecraft Country

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Lovecraft Country

By: Matt Ruff
Narrated by: Kevin Kenerly
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About this listen

Chicago, 1954. When his father, Montrose, goes missing, 22-year-old army veteran Atticus Turner embarks on a road trip to New England to find him, accompanied by his uncle George - publisher of The Safe Negro Travel Guide - and his childhood friend Letitia. On their journey to the manor of Mr. Braithwhite - heir to the estate that owned one of Atticus’ ancestors - they encounter both mundane terrors of white America and malevolent spirits that seem straight out of the weird tales George devours.

At the manor, Atticus discovers his father in chains, held prisoner by a secret cabal named the Order of the Ancient Dawn - led by Samuel Braithwhite and his son Caleb - which has gathered to orchestrate a ritual that shockingly centres on Atticus. And his one hope of salvation may be the seed of his - and the whole Turner clan’s - destruction.

An imaginative blend of magic, power, hope, and freedom that stretches across time, touching diverse members of two Black families, Matt Ruff's Lovecraft Country is a devastating kaleidoscopic portrait of racism - the terrifying spectre that continues to haunt us today.

2017, World Fantasy Awards Best Novel, Short-listed

©Matt Ruff 2017 (P)2018 Macmillan Digital Audio African American Crime Fiction Fantasy Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Horror Magical Realism Science Fiction World Literature Scary Paranormal Exciting

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Critic reviews

Smartly subversive pulp horror . . . The book is beautifully structured . . . This must be one of the kindest works in the horror genre I have read. Although the stories have genuine moments of horripilation, what shines through is solidarity, conscience and not backing down in the face of wickedness. (Stuart Kelly)
Another "only Matt Ruff could do it" production. Lovecraft Country takes the unlikeliest of premises and spins it into a funny, fast, exciting, and affecting read (Neal Stephenson, author of Snow Crash and Cryptonomicon)
A brilliantly conceived story brilliantly executed (Christopher Moore, author of Lamb and A Dirty Job)
Lovecraft Country doesn't just race along, it tears, demanding that you keep turning its pages without interruption (Cory Doctorow, author of Little Brother)
Wonderful from page one . . . Matt Ruff is one of the gentlest, wildest writers of fantastic fiction. (John Crowley, author of Little, Big)
All stars
Most relevant  
Great stories, an interesting play-off between the horror of racism and, you know, Lovecraft stuff. Purposefully pulpy, so don't expect high-brow literature. But very entertaining and enjoyable.

The narrator is great. I almost didn't buy this book because of the reviewers suggesting the 'robotic' narrator, who made it difficult to understand who was speaking. Nonsense, he's great and these people need their ears checked.

Good, purposefully 'pulpy' horror stories.

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Thoroughly enjoyed this. Both the stories and story telling was great. My only criticism would be that since most heroes are of African descent, they would probably do better with using a narrator who doesn't have to act the voices as much. Having said that the narrator did a great job anyway but it almost feels like "blackface".

Great collection of stories

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As a fan of Lovecraft, I wasn’t sure how I would feel about this book which came highly recommended. Glad I went with it! Evocative and clever, never shying away from the realities of the experiences of the main protagonists and giving the reader food for thought as well as some great Lovecraftian horrors.

Many tales sublimely crafted

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I actually enjoyed the historical meandering and the harsh realities faced by African Americans during that period. loved the supernatural elements of the story.

Different in many ways to the TV show.

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Sci-fi adventure sit in the deep south, a truly wonderful book I wish there was a sequel.

Awesome, a wonderful book

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stumbled across the book after watching the TV series and blown away. The series is good but the book is so much better and more in depth! Hopefully this introduces people to write cosmic horror stories in a new perspective

Amazing, Gripping, Couldnt put it down

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Basically a collection of short stories with an overall story arc, this is a book I didn’t really want to end. Each story fleshes out the universe the author has created using lovecraftian tropes as backdrop. It’s also a stark reminder of the systemic racism that African Americans suffered in 50s America.

I don’t understand the hatred for the narration as it sounded ok to me.

A fantastic book.

Wonderful

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Wonderful book, it's a ride from start to finish! I wish it didn't end. I hope there's going to be a sequel or something I want to know more about these interesting people's lives. Fictional but oh so real, truly grounded Sci fi brilliance

Sooo goood

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Brilliant book, I bought it on hearing about the TV series, so glad I listened to this first as I could not stand the direction the TV series went, but this is brilliant, chilling in more ways than one, gripping and exciting and all wrapped up brilliantly

Excellent book

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Listened to this over two days. very well written tale - the story just flows, mixing the brutal racism faced together with supernatural horror.

It took a while to get used to the narrator's style and it was confusing at times when there were a number of male characters talking as there was little differentiation used by the narrator so unless it was said 'George said- X' then i found it difficult to determine which character was talking.

definitely recommend this to anyone who likes a cracking tale

Great story

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