Adding a new feature of my blog, 'From the Starry Wisdom Library' aka where I talk about my favorite things in the world, books. So get your reading glasses and get into your favorite chair, and lets look at a book.

Cthulhu rises, the Deep Ones come ashore, the Whatleys finally let the Old Ones back into our world. So what happens next? This has been a question for the Mythos fandom for years, and a number of authors have taken a stab at it. Latest, from Dark Regions Press, is 'Return of the Old Ones'. 19 stories in 3 sections, pre-apocalypse, as the tentacles hit, and life after the world as we know it ends.

First though, some disclaimers. One, Brian M. Sammons, the editor of the collection sent me an eARC in exchange for a fair review. Second, I'm not the biggest fan of post-apocalypse fiction, Cthulhu or no Cthulhu. I find the afterward of the end of the world to be kind of depressing, and I read Mythos as escapist fiction. (and yes, I know what kind of nut I sound like saying that).

But when I read the ToC, I knew I'd enjoy this collection. Favorites like Jeffrey Thomas, Tim Curran, and William Meikle, among many others. Honestly, even the authors that aren't my 'favorites' are still ones I cheerfully will read in any collection. And you get all kinds of stories, from apartments full of cultists, and why conspiracy theorists might lead us to the apocalypse, to zombies from beyond space-time and DARPA vs Deep ones, to finally we go true post Cthulhu Singularity, with colonies hiding underground, or in the swamps, or even a truly bizarre story that is equal bits 'Star Trek', trans-humanistic, and bizarro. No matter how you view the Mythos, there will be stories you love, and others you enjoy. I did find this to be a collection I read in sections, as some of the stories were dark in a way that Mythos doesn't generally hit for me.

Currently Dark Regions Press is doing an Indiegogo for this as well as two other collections, 'You, Human' which is dark scifi, and 'The Children of Gla'aki', a tribute to Ramsey Campbell. They will be released in retail format after the Indiegogo is complete, and the backers have gotten their goodies. I've backed a number of their crowdfundings in the past, and I've always enjoyed what I received. So if you like your Mythos dark, and your human meat-snacks on the run, I'd recommend 'Return of the Old Ones'.

Oh, and while I don't recommend judging a book by it's cover, but check out the cover...