"The Kiss of Bugg-Shash"

by Brian Lumley
originally published Cthulhu 3: Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos, Spectre Press, 1978

Ray Nuttall and Bart Alan, the protagonists of "Demoniacal", run off to find an occultist to help them get rid of The Black One, which they accidentally conjured up in the earlier story.  They get stuck with Thomas Millwright, and apparently third-rate expert with a questionable rep (mercifully, Titus Crow and Henri Laurent DeDoormat are still MIA since Crow's house got blown away, so we are at least spared Crow's insufferable presence).

Millwright educates da boyz that The Black One is Bugg-Shash, another Great Old One and, needless to say, bad news all around.  And he won't leaver until he gets someone to slobber slime all over and thus kill, an attack known as his "kiss".

Millwright spends some time researching in The Usual Books and then the three flit back to Ray's flat to do an exorcism.  Which apparently works.  But, while leaving, Millwright warns them that the banishment is only "unto death", but fails to explain what that might mean....

Ray and Bart return to their normal lives, until one night, Bart shows up with the news that Millwright has been killed in an accident.  What was that thing about "unto death"?  They soon find out as Millwright, now a zombie under control of Bugg-Shash, shows up, and 
Buggsy finally gets his kiss.

For whatever reason, Lumley's was hugely inspired by Sutton's "Demoniacal" and felt compelled to write this sequel.  "Demoniacal" was an okay story and so is this one, and the ending has an amusing E.C. comics feel to it (which is really Lumley's strong point anyway).  Nothing special here but nothing awful either.

"The Statement of One John Gibson"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Crypt of Cthulhu No. 19, Candlemas, 1984

One John Gibson is a dork who lives with his parents, sort of.  His mother's in an insane asylum and his father passes away of "some creeping organic malfunction" whatever that is.  OJG's pops has been an occult researcher, but warned his young'un away from such things, instead forcing him into religious studies and encouraging him to become a priest.   He has kind of a weird history - born on Walpurgis Night, tormented by dreams of being trapped in dark places, of being under some kind of controlling spell, opf waking hallucinations in which there's a tentacle sticking of of his jammies where his arm oughta be.  Just to make life more interesting, the family lawyer calls to inform OJG has inherited the family money and property, but promptly crashes his car on the family front porch - nonetheless, the brave solicitor manages to crawl from the burning wreckage and croak out "glub - glub - the bureau … destroy it" before he kicks over.

Having been warned to destroy the bureau, or something in it, OJG heads straight for the bureau, where he finds papers and a medallion depicting an alien city and various GOOs. Although he does not know their meaning, he feels a sense of recognition upon seeing these figures, as though he should know them.

He also finds a passel of OLD BOOKS (cue Cthulhu Mythos Booklist) (this bunch includes the Ghorl Nigral!) annnnnnnnnnnnd, in an amusing touch, copies of HPL's Selected Letters, back issues of Weird Tales, and a copy of The Horror in the Museum for good measure!

His researches with these reveal some interesting things, including his relation to Alonzo Typer, he of "The Diary of Alonzo Typer", one of Lovecraft's more regrettable paid revisions (which is saying quite a lot!), done for a client named William Lumley (noooooooo relation according to ol' Brian).  It seems "The Diary" may not have been entirely fictional.  He also comes across a letter from his great uncle to pops, in which great-uncle (who, it seems, is the one who retrieved the amulet - from Yian-Ho) warning him to stay away from dark occult forces … then concluding that he'll probably delve into them anyway - "So be it - I would not keep a man from his destiny" signs off unc, rather uselessly.

Apparently, mom and pops headed out to the haunted house in Attica, NY, where Alonzo Typer met his doom, and encountered something there, under the house.  And did something with it, or tried to.  But exactly what is unclear.  But it appears it may have done something to the missus...

OJG heads off to nut-house where his mom lives, and confronts her with the facts of his parentage, before (apparently) murdering her by pouring poison down her throat till it comes out her nostrils, and leaves pools of black slime around the room somehow.  Nonetheless, OJG himself is nowhere to be found.

Except for its appealing sordidness, this is a less-than-great Lumley tale.  The sub-Derleth/Lovecraft tone of the writing strongly suggests that this was an early, rejected tale that Lum had lying around and kindly gave to this zine.  In any case it's rambling, confused, and frankly pretty silly.  Pass.

"Spaghetti"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Weirdbook, 21 Autumn, 1985

Our narrator has struck up a friendship, of sorts, with one Andrew Carter.  He doesn't entirely trust Carter (seems shady), and Carter seems to be scared of an old house that he's in the process of inheriting.

It seems that seven years ago, Andrew came to visit his old Uncle Arthur, a "queer old stick" who lived in a musty house full of old books and oddities.  It seems, too, he was alleged to have a fortune in gold stashed away in his place somewhere.  Oh, and he ate spaghetti all the time.

Anyway, Uncle up and disappeared seven years ago.  But Carter's been searching the house for the gold ever since.  He also has some obstacles, cause the house doesn't legally become his for two more weeks.  AND it's going to be demolished to make room for new construction.  He wants our narrator to help him tear the place up in search of gold, in exchange for which, he'll give him a cut.

Oh, and he still keeps finding strands of spaghetti around the place.  

So they go about tearing up the place, without a lot of luck.  The narrator does find a medallion with an octopoid figure on it, and a copy of the Dohl Chants, and tries figuring some of it out.  Particularly the part that appears to be a spell he thinks will help him locate the gold (which he intends to cheat Carter out of, natch). 

PS he too keeps finding strands of spaghetti around the house.

Long story short - narrator tries the spell with interesting results.  Unc's body turns up in a cisten in the attic, where Carter presumably dumped him. The strands of spaghetti were strips of his undead flesh (gross!!)  Unc comes back to life, EC-style. Narrator runs for it.

Ah, the Lum is at it again.  This little bon-bon is nothing special, but Lum's at his best when he's going for the gross and his tongue is planted in his cheek.  There's plenty of atmosphere and, while the "spaghetti" bit makes zero sense, there's a nice M.R. James-meets-EC comics feel to the conclusion.  It's light years beyond his early Mythos embarassments.

"The Sister City"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos, Arkham House 1969

Paul Krug - war orphan, independently wealthy - and hairless with webbed fingers and toes.  No wonder he has no friends!  So he goes travelling, indulging his fascination with archaeology, and goes in search of the lost and mythical cities of Sarnath and Ib.

He finds the remains of the lost city of Lh-Yib, in the Yorkshire moors.  He realizes that he is some kind of reincarnation of the god-thing Bokrug, worshiped by the creatures of Ib. 

This early Lumley story has a fair amount of atmosphere, but is ultimately all sizzle and no steak.  

"The Sorcerer's Dream"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Whispers 13/14, 1979

The sorcerer Teh Atht dreams of Cthulhu.  He knows that Cthulhu is now aware of him.

Yeah, okay....

"Elysia"

by Brian Lumley
Originally published 1989

DeMarigny and Moreen have returned to Borea after three years.  Their quest for Elysia has been a bust, but DM's managed to earn himself a nickname ("The Searcher") throughout the universe for his fruitless quest.

Meanwhile, in Elysia, the Elder Gods summon Crow to a meeting.  Apparently bored with watching DM look around for them aimlessly, they want to use him for something, and want Crow's help.  Why Crow would be hesitant, given that he's been willing to let DM bop hopelessly around the universe for three years, but what the hell... meanwhile, the Elders dispatch four messengers to do something unclear.  Oh, and did I mention that The Stars Are Right?

Armandra contacts the winds, hoping to help DM find his way (why didn't she try this before???).  She becomes aware of a gaseous, sentient entity named "Ssssssss" floating around the universe, calling to the Elder Gods.  Maybe it knows directions?  DM and Moreen fly off to meet with it.

Crow sends a holographic image of his wonderful self into the Time Clock to meet with DM.  First he explains he's strapped for time, then rambles into a long and pointless bit of theorizing about Great Thoughts.  And he manages to say hi to Moreen.  He suggests that DM:
          Try looking in the Dreamlands for directions
          Talk to Ssssssss
          Look for Exior K'mool, a sorceror of Theem'dra (in the Primal Lands).  But, oops, Crow doesn't know how to find him. 

Then he mercifully leaves.

DM and Moreen find Ssssss beyond the "Red Medusa" nebula, where he/she/it is being eaten by Hounds of Tindalos (they can eat gas?).  DM drives them off.   

DM heads off to Ulthar and a meeting with Atal.  During dinner, a bird arrives with a message - David Hero and Eldin the Wanderer are being held prisoner by Gudge the Pirate,

a non-human gloop-monster in a cloak, who has David and Eldin tied to crosses over a volcanic pit. 

DM rushes off to meet with Zura of Zura (yes I said "Zura of Zura") and Lath the Termite Queen to help him rescue David and Eldin.  They arrive just in time to drive off Nyarlathotep.  The pirates are wiped out, and DM, David, Eldin and Moreen go to visit a tree.  The tree points them to The Curator, a robotic museum guide, who directs them to Exior K'mool.  Off they go, just in time to rescue Exior from Nyarlathotep, who has taken the form of a slime monster.

Exior, having informed DM that he is actually his ancestor, hooks him up with Ardatha Ell.  They lead him to Andromeda, where a Child of Azathoth lies waiting.  The Child detonates, and the blast sends DM to Elysia.

Showdown time! All the Cthulhu baddies have been following DM all along, hoping he would lead them to Elysia. Crow faces off with Tentacle-Face, then detonates another Child of Azathoth which he just happened to have around.   The Cthulhu baddies are banished from the universe (or some such) for a billion years.  The Elder Gods will make a new Elysia on a distant star, and everyone will live happily ever after (for a billion years, at least!)

Well, it's over at least.

Look, what can I say about a story as goofy as this?  It's coherent, but never involving.  At times it's flat-out comical.  Mostly, there's a sense of "let's-wrap-this-up" going on.  One gets the sense that Lumley was tired of the game - he'd already moved on to the Necroscope books years earlier - and just wanted to put paid to it.  No surprise that he's said he has no plans to revisit these characters.

"The Mirror of Nitocris"

by Brian Lumley
originally published The Caller of the Black, 1972

Henri Laurent de-Marigny - occutlist, collector, and doormat, has found himself an odd, ancient mirror.  He acquires it at an auction of the possessions of explorer Bannister Brown-Farley's estate.  Along with a diary explaining its nature.

DeMarigny sits up all night reading Brown-Farley's diary, in which BBF explains how he bought the mirror, how he plied the old arab who sold it to him with brandy and opium to tell its story, and its relation to the legend of Nitocris, an Egyptian queen prone to cruel revenge, and of the mirror's alleged tendency to release horrible things out of its depths at midnight!

And, sure enough, at midnight, a gloopy thing comes crawling out of the mirror.  DeMarigny drives it off with silver bullets.  And then faints - the big pussy!

An amusing, Weird Tales-ish little vignette. 

"The Taint"

by Brian Lumley
originally published Weird Shadows Over Innsmouth, 2005

James Jamieson, former American physician, has come to a remote seaside community to retire.  He makes a few friends, including the snobby Tremains, and the strange, spacy Jilly White and her withdrawn daughter, Anne.  And then there's Geoff, the "village idiot", a hulking, fish-like teen boy who says little, frightens the locals, and apparently herds fish for his guardian.  And Anne's strange fondness for him.

As James hangs around, and gets to know people, much is revealed.  About Jilly's dreams of undersea cities.  About Geoff's ichtoid afflictions.  About Anne and Geoff's shared parentage.  And connections to Innsmouth.  And finally the revelation of Dr. Jamieson's true nature, of Anne's, and of what the Deep Ones have been up to since the raids of 1928...

This is a well-above-average Lumley piece; quite well-written and thought out, and it shows how greatly Lumley has matured, compared to, say, his 70's-era stuff.  The payoff isn't quite what I'd hoped for, but the buildup is solid.  One of his best.

 

"The Return of the Deep Ones"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Fantasy Book March-June-September 1984

John Vollister is a respected marine biologist, independently wealthy, living in an English coastal village.  One day he received a gift in the mail from a man named Marsh in America - a conch shell of a kind he has never seen before.  He begins to dream of storms, ones that aren't actually happening.

Soon after, he gets a call from a man named Semple who has information on the conch.  And he meets a hot American chick named Sarah on the beach.

Semple turns out to be an occultist and a bit of a creep.  He links the conch shell to certain occult titles (guess which ones!?!?), of which he has copies back at the club on the coast where he's staying.

John visits the club for lunch, where he is put off by the "fishy" appearance of the members, including Sarah's aged dad.  They are building models of mythical cities, such as R'lyeh and Y'ha'nthlei.  He has a seafood lunch that causes him to pass out.

He finds himself back at home, with Sarah taking care of him.  Sarah proceeds to take care of him in other ways as well.

John makes his way back one night to retrieve his conch shell, when he encounters what he later learns is a shoggoth watchdog!  He finds himself in a subterranean tank, held prisoner by the odd club-dwellers, who begin a series of medical treatments to turn him "deep".

Soon, another prisoner shows up in the next tank.  He turns out to be Jeremy Belton, a journalist, and proceeds to relate Lumley's previously-published tale, "Haggopian".  He is eventually murdered.

Finally, John escapes.  He manages to make it back into the town, but local friends and the police are in cahoots with the Deep Ones.  He, too, is becoming more "deep".  He barricades himself in his house.  The club lays siege, attempting to capture him.  He writes this story and hides it under the boards of the house.  He is taken.  Unbeknownst to him, the manuscript is found as well.

This is an above-average Lumley story, but far from his best.  There's some nice build-up and paranoid action at the end, but the long middle-section with John as a prisoner drags, and its embarassing that as late as `84 Lumley is still padding his stories with older works.  

A cut above his worst, a cut or two below his best.

 

"In The Moons Of Borea"

by Brian Lumley
originally published, Jove, 1979

Three years after the events of Spawn of the Winds, Hank Silberhutte is the warlord of The Plateau.  He's leading expeditions into further reaches of Borea, looking for new lands to conquer.  DeMarigny, on the run in his flying clock, chased by the Hounds of Tindalos, pops in.  Hank's team sees the clock, and Hank recognizes it. 

DeMarigny lands by a small lake to rest, but is attacked, first by lizard/leech things, then by the Wolf Tribe, who take him prisoner.  Hank rescues him, but the Wolf Tribe runs off with the clock.  DeMarigny and Hank go after it, with the help of DM's flying cloak.  Then Hank is taken prisoner.  Then DeMarigny rescues him (yeesh!).  But the Wolf Tribe still has the clock.

Meanwhile, Armandra is reading Hank's mind and feeling possessive when Ithaqua makes a play for her.  But Tracy drives him off with a star-stone.

While DeMarigny recovers in the tunnels, Ithaqua makes off with the clock, depositing it on one of Borea's two moons.  But which one?  DeMarigny and Hank leave on a expedition in search of the clock, borne by Armandra's air elementals to the moon Numinos.  There they immediately encounter a tribe of Viking/Gaels (you heard me), the clan of Thonjolf the Red.  Thonjolf is absent, but Annahilde, the witch-woman, takes charge.  She explains that an enemy tribe, allied to Ithaqua, is coming to attack the clan.  It turns out that Annahilde is descended from earthlings, and has a niece, Moreen, who is special, and favored of Ithaqua, who intends to take her as a bride.  She has secreted Moreen on "The Isle of Mountains".  She tells DeMarigny and Hank that they must go and get her.  And prophesies that DM will fall in love with her on sight.  Meanwhile, Hank rumbles with Harold, Thonjolf's drunken bully son.  

With Annahilde's gifts of "warming powder" (allowing them to survive cold climates) and "dreaming powder" (which causes hallucinations), Hank and DeMarigny set off.  The Isle of Mountains turns out to be shaped like a star-stone!  Their longships are attacked by the traitorous Harold, but his ship is attacked by giant bats.  The bats turn out to be friendly, and lead DeMarigny and Hank to the Isle, using the flying cloak.  There they find another friendly tribe.  After some hospitality, DeMarigny is taken to Moreen.  He falls in love with her on sight.

The cavern tribe and the giant bats fight the invading Harold and other enemies, while DeMarigny learns the clock is on the other moon, Dromos, in the hands of the "Ice Priests" of  Ithaqua.  Armandra sends her air elementals to turn the tide of the battle, and carry Hank, DeMarigny and Moreen to Dromos.

Dromos is covered in ice.  The Ice Priests are survivors from prehistoric Theemdra (see Lumley's "Primal Lands" stories).  Tall, thin, white and hairless, they live deep in caverns under the surface of Dromos.  They are master illusionists, but DeMarigny, Hank and Moreen overcome their illusions and rescue the clock.  With Hank back on Borea, DeMarigny and Moreen set off in search of Elysia.

Well ... christ what do I say?  We're now five books into the series and it just keeps getting worse.  Okay, Borea does have some virtues.  It's better than The Transition of Titus Crow.  It is at least coherent.  It's a fast read.  

The fact remains though, that nothing comes off.  Hank Silberhutte is an uninteresting hunk of manly manliness.  DeMarigny is still an uninteresting doormat.  Armandra an emotionally unbalanced diva.  Moreen is sweet as sugar candy and she talks to the animals(!).  Ithaqua sits around, looking big and cloudy with his "carmine" eyes (of which we are repeatedly reminded) and laughing evilly, but otherwise never doing a damn thing.  And the tribal cultures are just a series of straw men, set up to be knocked over.  The whole novel is one big shrug.  Lumley was running out of steam on this series, and it's no surprise he didn't return to it for 10 years.

"The Clock of Dreams"

by Brian Lumley
originally published Jove Books 1978

DeMarigny is summoned in dreams to Kthanid, the anti-Cthulhu (who de Marigny knows he can trust because of his gentle eyes), and shown a vision of Titus Crow and Tiania in chains.  He is told he must go to Earth's dreamworld to save them - if he can (Kthanid is prone to insulting de Marigny the same way Crow was).  To help him, Kthanid gives him a data dump of all things Dreamlands related (not without a "are you sure you can handle it - of course, Crow could but you're a peabrain" lecture).  De Marigny's extended mini-tour of the Dreamlands is actually pretty evocative.

De Marigny finds himself in the Dreamlands, sans clock, after accidentally giving the too-literally-minded clock the wrong orders (maybe he is a doofus after all).  He meets with Atal in Ulthar, and is sent toward Dyath-Leen, an accursed place, with a potion that will wake (and therefore potentially save) a dreamer.  He is told to seek out Grant Enderby in town.

Enderby tells him how men from Leng took over the city of Dyath-Leen, driving its inhabitants away, and how he, Enderby, ended their curse with some magic taught him by Atal.

Now, however, the Leng-men are back.  They've taken over the city and driven out most of the good folks.

DeMarigny flies to Dyath-leen (using his flying cloak), and finds Crow and Tiania tied up on a pedestal beneath the giant ruby the Leng-men use to control/bedevil the inhabitants.  He rescues them and flies them off to some nearby mountains.  A giant night-gaunt grabs Tiania and flies off with her.  Crow takes DeMarigny's flying cloak, leaving him to walk back to Ulthar (thanks!).  Along the way he's siezed by Leng-men and tied to their pedestal in Dyath-leen, to be sacrificed to Nyarlathotep.  DeMarigny tricks the not-very-bright Leng men into dosing him with the potion, and he awakes safely back on Earth.

Crow, meanwhile, is stranded in the desert because, when DeMarigny is tossed back into the waking world - his cloak goes with him!

So, while Crow hoofs it through the desert and into some vast, desert-floored caves, DeMarigny figures he's gotta hop in the clock and get back to the Dreamlands, pronto.  How best to do this?  Get drunk on brandy of course!!

Meanwhile, Crow fights it out with a trio of monsters.  Of couse, he wins.  DeMarigny and the clock reappear in Dyath-leen, where the Leng men try to set the clock on fire.  DeMarigny, drunk and pissed off, using the clocks energy beams to blow up lots of stuff, in the process freeing the Fly-by-the-Light, a monster imprisoned in the Leng-men's giant ruby.  He kills that, too.

Crow finds Tiania and others held prisoner by a giant being called The Keeper.  After a pointless discussion with it, Crow fights it.  DeMarigny flies in with the clock and wastes The Keeper, too.

They fly back to Ulthar to drop off Tiania, then off to Ilek-vad where they hook up with Randolph Carter, who's raising an army to fight the Leng-men.  Then off for a parley with King Kuranes in Serranian.  Then another confab with Atal.  Then its off to The Enchanted Wood where the Leng-men attempt to unleash an army of nightmare creatures.  Crow cuts them down using the clock's energy beam (of course, Crow uses it).  Nyarlathotep shows up, puts a spell on Crow, calling him forth in thrall.  Kthanid shows up, and, using the distraction, DeMarighy swoops in and grabs the bewitched Crow.  Kthanid attacks Nyarlathotep with beams from his eyes, causing Nyarlathotep to disappear and, in his place, Yog-Sothoth - who gives way to Ithaqua, who gives way to ... aww fuck about a dozen of the usual Great Old Ones until finally it's Cthulhu, who gets blown away. Everyone goes home happy.

This is a little more than a modestly amusing sword-and-sorcery tale, set in the Dreamlands.  DeMarigny remains a doormat, and Crow remains insufferable.  As a read, it's painless and short.  I actually remember liking it a lot when I was 14...

"Aunt Hester"

by Brian Lumley

originally published The Satyr's Head and Other Tales of Horror, 1975

It seems Aunt Hester, the eccentric aunt of the narrator - spiritualist? psychic?  witch? - has some rare abilities - particularly the ability to switch bodies with others.  Such as her brother.  And her nephew...

A fairly forgettable tale, apparently influenced by The Thing on the Doorstep.

"Lord of the Worms"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Weirdbook 17, 1983

It's 1946.  Titus Crow, having just mustered out of the military, where he served as a specialist in codes and ciphers, finds himself some part-time employment cataloging the library of the ill-reputed Julian Carstairs, a Crowley-like black magician who (of course) lives in a creepy old house.

Not only that, he serves creepy food.  Including some very strong wine which seems to affect Crow in odd ways.

Then there's Carstairs' disconcerting habit of entering Crow's room at night, toadie servant in tow, and making post-hypnotic suggestions to enslave his will.

Oh, and maggots keep showing up in the library.  Hm.

Well, of course the ever-resourceful Crow calls upon some allies to examine the wine and eventually puts two-and-two together (long after the reader has) that Carstairs is up to some dark magic intending to switch bodies with Crow, thus prolonging his life.

It all comes to a head with the big ritual, where it turns out Crow isn't as controlled, nor such a perfect subject, occult-ly, as Carstairs had thought.  Crow turns the tables on him, revealing that Carstairs is actually a skin suit inhabited by armies of worms and maggots, which, tables turned, devour their failed host as Crow flees.

This very pulpy tale is one of the last, and best, Crow stories.  In large part that's because this isn't Crow the insufferable know-it-all we encounter in most Crow tales.  No, this Crow is young and mortal.  To be sure there's a fair amount of silliness, but its all pulled off with a good Weird Tales flair that makes it, ultimately, a good read.

"Big `C'"

by Brian Lumley
Originally published Lovecraft's Legacy, 1990

The discovery of a second moon in orbit around earth, Luna II, in 2013 leads to a manned expedition, its star - Benjamin "Smiler" Williams.  Who happens to have terminal cancer.

Williams returns, changed.  He still has cancer. But he's not dying of it.  And then "Big C", as Williams calls his illness, decides to exit his body (we are mercifully given only a brief description of this).  And, as a sentient being, it (a) takes over the space installation where Williams is housed (b) gets its tentacles on a bunch of nukes and (c) claims a big chunk of Florida as its own.

Peter, Williams' old friend, is sent to visit Williams and (surreptitiously) detonate a nuclear device to kill "Big C".  It turns out Williams is long dead, merely animated by "Big C" who has drained his memories and such.  "Big C" has also infected Peter (the reason he was sent on the suicide mission).  And he's taking over everything.

Lumley claims this is a sequel of sorts to "The Colour Out Of Space", though I myself can't see it.  Conceptually, it does sort of recall the original Quatermass, though.

In any case, this is decent Lumley tale that's almost amusing in its nastiness.  He really seems to have been having a good time with its grimness and grue.  

"Dagon's Bell"

by Brian Lumley
Originally published Weirdbook 23/24, 1988

David Parker marries June Anderson and moves to a remote farm in Yorkshire.  The farm is the subject of strange rumors and history.  Odd American expatriate inhabitants - from Innsmouth!  And haunted by a phenomenon called "Dagon's Bell" - an eerie tolling heard in the night, seeming to come from under the sea.

David begins to find evidence of a temple on the farm grounds.  His wife becomes ill due to "miasma", a sinister, nasty fog that fills the region.  The bell is heard.

David and his friend William Trafford find underground tunnels leading to an ancient temple to Dagon.  They are attacked by Deep Ones.  David is killed sealing off the temple.

A disappointment, mainly because the first half is highly effective in a classic ghost story fashion.  Lumley had matured enormously as a writer by the time this one came about.  If the story hadn't petered out so in the last third, this would be a real winner.

"The House of Cthulhu"

by Brian Lumley

published Whispers #1, 1973

...once upon a time-eth, in a land that was older than old back before anything older than that ever existed, there was a fellow named-eth Zar-thule who was badder than bad, as in really bad, as in he was a pirate and prone to such nasty nasties as sacking and burning whole cities, torturing and killing people, and voting for Republicans.  Anyway, this Zar-thule, who was as always on the lookout for loot, did learn-eth of a forbidden island called "Arlyeh", whereupon he would find-eth the house of the black god Cthulhu, and many treasures.  

And so he and his cruel crew and his dragon ship made-eth their way to the forbidden island of Arlyeh, and there found-eth the priest Hath-Vehm, keeper of the gate of the House of Cthulhu, who was very old-eth but totally uncooperative, refusing to say the magic words that would open the gate, even under torture.

But Zar-thule would not relent on his torture of the old priest, even when one of his crewmen gotteth his arms turned into something so icky that he did burn them off himself.  But finally, realizing that the plot must goeth somewhere, the old priest relented and said the magic words.  But even as the gates-eth of the House of Cthulhu didst open, he didst say other magic words, which would cause the island to sink, taking Cthulhu and everyone else with it, so Zar-thule didst cut off his head.  

And then Zar-thule and his crew were attacked by gloopy tentacles from within the House of Cthulhu, and Zar-thule didst realize that the House of Cthulhu held, not treasure, but ol' octopus-face himself-eth, and thus did flee the island even as it sank.  And he did drift for many days, until his ship came unto a peaceful people who, even though they realized he was-eth a rat bastard, didst stick him in a pit and feed and care for him until finally a mushroom-shaped parasitic growth did take over his whole body and he died.  The end-eth.

The House of Cthulhu is a tale writ by Lumley not in imitation of Lovecraft but in definite imitation of Clark Ashton Smith.  It its most assuredly Klarkash-ton-ian in tone, and I have to confess Lumley pulls off the Smith style pretty effectively.  I should note that it also basically duplicates the plot of Smith's "Tale of Satampra Zeiros" down to the T.

Is it any good?  Well, as I say, it's an effective pastiche.  I suspect Lumley was basically playing with the Smith style for his own amusement more than anything else.  Judged on that, it's amusing.  But seekers of "cosmic horror" will have to seek elsewhere...

"Recognition"

by Brian Lumley

originally published Weirdbook 1981

Lord David Marriot has gathered a group of psychics and scientist to rid his recently acquired property, "a large, ungainly, mongrel architecture of dim and doubtful origins", of its ghosts.  Or whatever.  Two mediums are to define the entity, and a priest is to exorcise it.

It seems the house has an unsavory rep, including the finding of some pagan worship, involving a spider-like god, and some connection to the De La Poers, of ""Rats in the Walls" fame.

A seance is held, which ends with medium Jason Lavery shouting "Atlach-Nacha" and being tossed about the room.  This leads to Lanford, the priest, bailing.  As does Lavery.  Meaning the only one left is Turnbull, the other medium.  He demands to be left alone in the house while he attempts to do his psychic thing.

This turns out to be a bad plan.  In the morning, Turnbull is found dead, covered in strange wounds.  On his sketchpad is a drawing of, presumably, the house's supernatural occupant - a spidery monster.

Very pulpy but fun tale from The Lum.

"Spawn of the Winds"

by Brian Lumley
Originally published Jove, 1978

Hank Silberhutte, a big ol' Texan working for the Wilmarth Foundation, is a telepath with a hard-on for Ithaqua.   Juanita Alvarez is his "receiver", to whom he telepathically communicates this story.

With a pilot, fellow Foundation-ites Paul White and Jimmy Franklin, and, unbeknownst to them, Hank's sister Tracy stowing away, Hank is off to Edmonton to set up an anti-Ithaqua project, when the big windy dude intercepts them.  They find themselves on Borea, on an endless plain of snow with a pyramid in the distance where Ithaqua sits.

The downed plane is surrounded by an army of eskimos, indians, giant hounds and etc.  Their leader, Boris Zchakow, high priest of Ithaqua, demands they hand over Tracy.  He is burned by a star-stone for his rudeness, and battle ensues.  The cavalry arrives in the form of another army of indians/eskimos, with polar bears.  These are The People of the Plateau.  Their leader is Northan, the warlord.  They are joined by their demi-goddess, Armandra, the Woman of the Winds.  She is a half-human daughter of Ithaqua, and doesn't like daddy one bit!

She's also a hot piece of cosmic ass, and Hank notices.  Northan notices Hank noticing, and jumps in his shit.  Hank responds by knocking Northan on his warlord tush. 

Hank and crew are taken to the People's caverns (One side effect is that Paul, Jimmy, Hank and The Pilot are now less susceptible to cold, thanks to contact with Ithaqua.  Tracy, who was helpfully wearing a star-stone, isn't effected.).  There Hank learns that Armandra actually has to pick a mate soon.  Northan, it seems, has appointed himself to the position.

Meanwhile, Ithaqua kills Zchakow, cuz.  

In the caverns, Hank and Crew are introduced to Charlie Tacomah, a war vet and Native American, one of many missing persons who've ended up on Borea.  Hank makes out with Armandra who's gorgeous but has ugly feet.  She warns him that Ithaqua wants her for a mate, and that Northan is an asshole (duh!).

A month goes by.  Hank trains as a warrior and they learn of a "forbidden" tunnel.  Whitey, psychically-sensitive, is afraid to go down there. He begins to suspect he won't live much longer.

A ceremony is held in which Armandra will choose a mate.  Hank challenges Northan, beats him in a hand-axe battle, but spares his life.  Northan runs off and joins the neighboring Wolf Tribe.  They try to take Tracy but Charlie and Jimmy stop them.

In the forbidden tunnel, Tracy finds a bazillion star-stones.  

A massive attack by Ithaqua's loyalists.  Narthan is killed.  Whitey is killed.  Armandra and Ithaqua slug it out.  Then Hank attaches a star-stone to a spear and rams it into Ithaqua's eye.  Off goes Ithaqua to an Elder Eye Surgeon.  

Hank sends a telepathic warning to Juanita, but she is killed in a freak storm - doubtless the work of You-Know-Who.

This is something a follow-up to the Titus Crow books, giving us more of the Wilmarth Foundation (oh joy!).  And it's certainly an improvement on The Transition of Titus Crow, being as it at least is a coherent story.

On the other hand, it isn't a particularly compelling one, being mostly a series of pulpy cliches.  There's plenty of Howard-y action but no cosmic horror, that's for sure.  If anything, it mostly strongly resembles an Edgar Rice Burroughs action-er, with manly Hank proving himself the superior in fighting, thinking, leading and, of course, screwing, than any members of the primitive alien culture he finds himself in.  Armandra is nuts, and Ithaqua is little more than a cackling villain-oid.  An amusing but unsatisfying read.

"Beneath the Moors"

by Brian Lumley

Originally published Arkham House, 1974

Prof. Ewart Masters is recovering from a near-fatal car accident, which has left him with a form of brain damage which causes him to black out and suffer memory losses.  Ordered to take it extra-easy while he recuperates, he decides to spend his time in quiet study of archaeology, particularly obscure lost civilizations.

Traveling to the north-east coast of England, where he moves in with a nephew, Masters pursues his hobby.

Of particular interest is a recently-unearthed figurine of a reptile-man, found in the Yorkshire moors, of unknown origin, and looking as if it were carved yesterday and not 12,000 years ago as is believed.  Masters becomes determined to learn more.

After having a blackout while doing some digging of his own on the moors, Masters learns that an identical figurine is in evidence at the local police station.  The police helpfully hand him the paperwork related to the unsolved case, which just happens to be a copy of Lumley's earlier-published tale, "The Sister City".

Prof. Masters follows the leads from the manuscript, and finds himself in the subterranean ruins of Ib, where Bokrug plays host.  Eventually he finds the spawning grounds of the Ib-ians.  And clumsily kills some of their young.  He is thrown into a pit full of bones, where he is stalked by a shoggoth.  A sudden underground explosions hurls him to the surface.  He is cared for by his nephew, but during the night the Ib-ians come, torch the house, and take him away.

This is one of Lumley's first novels, presumably composed around the same time as The Burrowers Beneath.  Unfortunately, it isn't anywhere near as good as Burrowers.

In some ways, its fatal flaw is the mirror opposite of Burrowers' downfall.  Where the former is brimming with ideas and potential - more than its short length can actually hold, Moors is a short story painfully padded to novel length.  And it isn't much of a story, anyway.  Although the idea of sequel-ing "The Doom That Came To Sarnath" is actually kind of clever, far too much of the book is taken up with Masters time spent exploring the underworld of Ib.  There's nothing here, imagination-wise, that a large number of pulp horror and sci-fi authors haven't done more imaginatively.  Only the grim ending gave me any kind of pleasant surprise.  All in all, a highly forgettable work.

"De Marigny's Clock"

by Brian Lumley

originally published The Caller of the Black, Arkham House 1971

Ho hum - another boring night at Blowne House.  Titus Crow is awakened by some burglars, who figure he must have some valuable shit there.  Eventually they find the weird clock and demand that he open it.  Crow explains that he doesn't know how, and would in fact be elated if they could figure it out.  They do.  And some horrible beasties snatch them back into the clock, killing two birds with one stone, so to speak.

This is, I suspect, the first published reference to the magical Time Clock which will figure prominently in Lumley's later, painful Titus Crow sextet.  As a story this is nothing more than an amusing sketch, though I can't help but think of all the pain we'd have been spared if the burglars had just shot Crow.