The Watchers Out of TimeA Review by Christian Conkle I'm currently reading The Watchers Out of Time, ostensibly by H.P. Lovecraft, but buyers beware! The book is credited to Lovecraft and it is in the Lovecraft section at the bookstore, but most of the stories are written by August Derleth after Lovecraftian notes or unfinished stories. They are all pretty much sub-standard, are very derivative of other Lovecraft stories, and diverge from Lovecraft's writing style just subtly enough to be noticeable. Now I've never had a problem with Derleth or their collaborations, but the marketing of the book as pure Lovecraft under the Masters of Horror series by Carol and Graf books is, I think, misleading. Had the book been listed or the stories been individually credited as collaborations, I wouldn't have felt quite so cheated. The only references to Derleth's hand is in the copyright information on the other side of the title page. Otherwise, the stories are competent enough. They are not quite Lovecraft, more on par with his stories like Celephias or The Hound. Derleth's hand is evident throughout, however. I want to know how you feel about this or any other Lovecraft
collaborations (Zelia Bishop, Robert Bloch, etc.). Please E-Mail
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