Those hoping to be spine-tinglingly unsettled by a Lovecraftian homage will instead find plots inspired by the events of his stories – passable enough but missing the otherworldly weirdness Lovecraft is known for. I also felt an overwhelming sense of surface while reading this novel Ruff kind of skates over the top of both his source material and the racism his characters confront without fully reckoning with them. In emulation of the short stories on which Lovecraft’s reputation is built, the novel is structured as a series of interconnected short stories, episodes that technically could stand alone (with the exception of the finale). Indeed, there’s a lot about Lovecraft Country that seems pre-destined for television. This struggle for the definition of what horror is and where it is located is what animates Lovecraft Country, and it’s easy to see what attracted writer Misha Green and producer Jordan Peele to the project of turning it into a television series. Atticus never needed to crack open “The Shadow Over Innsmouth” to know what true evil looks like or real terror feels like all he had to do was be a Black person existing in any one of the racist small towns he passes through while searching for his father.

These more traditional tropes and elements are juxtaposed with the horror of living as a Black person in Jim Crow America. Montrose’s journey embroils not just Atticus but also their extended family and friends in a series of supernaturally horrific encounters, all orchestrated by or involving this secret organization. Atticus’s father, Montrose, was hoping to uncover his late wife’s family origins, but he discovers more than he bargained for – a secret organization of white men who practice “natural philosophy” (or as we might call it, magic). Ruff’s novel confronts the Lovecraftian tradition by placing a Black science fiction fan center stage: Atticus Turner, a 22-year-old Korean War veteran, just returned home to Chicago to find that his father has set off with a strange white man. Lovecraft, adapting his work while also grappling with the legacy of his virulent racism.ĭespite Lovecraft’s abhorrent views, he and his work have been hugely influential in science fiction, meaning that Black fans of the genre have had to endure decades of white people singing his praises while conveniently ignoring (or, even worse, embracing) the author’s racism. Both novel and show are influenced by the work of science fiction/horror writer H.P. Lovecraft Country is one of HBO’s most highly anticipated new releases, based on Matt Ruff’s 2016 novel of the same name.

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