'Loathsomeness waits and dreams in the deep, and decay spreads over the tottering cities of men. A time will come - but I must not and cannot think!' H. P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) was a reclusive scribbler of horror stories for the American pulp magazines that specialized in Gothic and science fiction in the interwar years. He often published in Weird Tales and has since become the key figure in the slippery genre of 'weird fiction'. Lovecraft developed an extraordinary vision of feeble men driven to the edge of sanity by glimpses of malign beings that have survived from human prehistory or by malevolent extra-terrestrial visitations. The ornate language of his stories builds towards grotesque moments of revelation, quite unlike any other writer. This new selection brings together nine of his classic tales, focusing on the 'Cthulhu Mythos', a cycle of stories that develops the mythology of the Old Ones, the monstrous creatures who predate human life on earth. It includes the Introduction from Lovecraft's critical essay, 'Supernatural Horror in Literature', in which he gave his own important definition of 'weird fiction'. In a fascinating contextual introduction, Roger Luckhurst gives Lovecraft the attention he deserves as a writer who used pulp fiction to explore a remarkable philosophy that shockingly dethrones the mastery of man.

"This collection of chilling horror stories from the maestro of suspense contains nearly 20 of Edgar Allan Poe's best known stories"--Amazon.com

Curl up with this collection of classic scary stories from the masters of the genre. With dozens of stories of the macabre, fantastic, and supernatural, Classic Horror Tales is sure to keep readers on the edges of their seats. This collection of works by classic writers spans more than a century—from 19th-century trailblazers such as John William Polidori, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Washington Irving to 20th-century masters like Saki, Edith Wharton, and Franz Kafka. The fear of the unknown is a driving force in literature, and the horror genre surpasses all others in bringing this idea to the forefront of the reader's consciousness. A wide range of cultures and classes of society are represented in this volume, reminding us that dark forces lurk all around us—for even in broad daylight, a shadow exists somewhere.

An inspired selection of ghost stories chosen for their literary style, psychological complexity, and enduring power to electrify both the imagination and the senses. Includes H. P. Lovecraft's essay, "On the Supernatural in Poetry."

Collects twenty-nine classic nineteenth-century horror tales from American, Irish, British, and European authors, with author information and explanatory notes.

A superb collection of some of the greatest tales of the genre; many are classics while others are lesser-known gems unearthed from the vintage era of the supernatural.

In Providence, Rhode Island, a dangerous inmate disappears from a hospital for the insane. At Miskatonic University, a professor slumps into a five-year reverie. In a mysterious and vivid dreamworld, a melancholy man seeks the home of the gods. And in the frozen wasteland of Antarctica, polar explorers unearth secrets that reveal a past almost beyond comprehension--and a future too terrible to imagine. Graphic novelist I.N.J. Culbard gives terrifying form to four classic tales by H.P. Lovecraft: "The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath," "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward," "At The Mountains of Madness," and "The Shadow Out of Time." Expertly adapted and beautifully drawn, Culbard's lean and thrilling adaptations breathe new life into four stories that helped to reinvent the horror genre.