The Call of the Old Ones: An Annotated Cthulhu Mythos Collection

Written by Howard Phillips Lovecraft, Ambrose Bierce, Robert E. Howard and 4 more

Narrated by Ian Gordon

Including works by members of the original Lovecraft Circle: Robert Bloch, Robert E. Howard, Frank Belknap Long, and Clark Ashton Smith.

In the depths of human imagination lies a realm in which ancient gods stir in their slumbers, where forbidden knowledge teeters on the edge of consciousness, and where cosmic horror threatens to cast its suffocating veil over reality. This is the world of the Cthulhu Mythos, the creation of one of the most enigmatic and influential writers of the 20th century, H. P. Lovecraft.

Opening with an introduction to the Great Old One himself in The Call of Cthulhu, we’ll explore the works of those who contributed their own tales to the mythos, expanding and enriching it with their unique perspectives and distinctive voices.

We'll encounter unimaginable entities such as Azathoth and Hastur—those uncanny beings whose mere existence defies comprehension. And we'll meet the intrepid human beings who dared to seek out forbidden knowledge, often to their peril, coming up against the boundaries of human understanding and the terrifying implications of cosmic insignificance.

Prepare to be drawn into a world where reality is but a fragile mask—where the unknown lurks just beneath the surface. Steel yourself for a voyage that examines the unfathomable, the unimaginable, the inescapable. What became of those who answered The Call of the Old Ones?

• Language: English
• Publisher: HorrorBabble
• Release date: Sep 9, 2023
• ISBN: 9798868655142

Howard Phillips Lovecraft

H. P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) was an American author of science fiction and horror stories. Born in Providence, Rhode Island to a wealthy family, he suffered the loss of his father at a young age. Raised with his mother’s family, he was doted upon throughout his youth and found a paternal figure in his grandfather Whipple, who encouraged his literary interests. He began writing stories and poems inspired by the classics and by Whipple’s spirited retellings of Gothic tales of terror. In 1902, he began publishing a periodical on astronomy, a source of intellectual fascination for the young Lovecraft. Over the next several years, he would suffer from a series of illnesses that made it nearly impossible to attend school. Exacerbated by the decline of his family’s financial stability, this decade would prove formative to Lovecraft’s worldview and writing style, both of which depict humanity as cosmologically insignificant. Supported by his mother Susie in his attempts to study organic chemistry, Lovecraft eventually devoted himself to writing poems and stories for such pulp and weird-fiction magazines as Argosy, where he gained a cult following of readers. Early stories of note include “The Alchemist” (1916), “The Tomb” (1917), and “Beyond the Wall of Sleep” (1919). “The Call of Cthulu,” originally published in pulp magazine Weird Tales in 1928, is considered by many scholars and fellow writers to be his finest, most complex work of fiction. Inspired by the works of Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Machen, Algernon Blackwood, and Lord Dunsany, Lovecraft became one of the century’s leading horror writers whose influence remains essential to the genre.