The Other: Encounters With The Cthulhu Mythos Book One (The Other: The Nyarlathotep Cycle 1) by Troy Young

The Other: Encounters With The Cthulhu Mythos Book One (The Other: The Nyarlathotep Cycle 1) Reviews

• 
  Teresa

  I’ve waited to write a review because I loved this book. Even with some sloppy dialogue and some in need of editing paragraphs the story was great and unique.
  
  I loved it right up to the 95% mark and then, I hated it.
  
  I hated the ending, I hated the sudden cut off of the stories of the three main characters, I hated the stupidity of it. A great story that the author had no clue how to tie up so he invented shit like “it was all a dream” TV series do.
  
  So from 5 stars to 2 If you love it, just close the book at 95% and pretend it just continues in the next one.
• 
  Charlene Mattson

  It took a bit for me to get into it, but overall, I quite enjoyed it!
  
  And to those who hate the ending, uh, read the original Lovecraft. It very, very rarely ends even ok for the heroes. They usually end up in far worse shape than they began(assuming they dont just end up dead. Or wishing they were dead...)
  
  Some rough dialog here and there, but not a deal breaker.
  
  Looking forward to reading the second one in the future
• 
  Scott Murray

  Of Al the collected and connected works of the mythos I enjoyed this one so much! This is right up there with Ruthanna Emrys!
• 
  Jenn Iannaconi

  Totally digging Mythos from the Canadian perspective. The last two chapters were perfect.
• 
  Stephen Lowe

  This book was great! Each chapter in this book is essentially a short story on its own but circulates through characters you’re introduced to in the first and second story, so I quite like that. There is a thread to the story that continues through them all and helps create continuity.
  
  I love that the stories take place in various places in Canada, which brings the Cthulhu Cycle closer to home than it usually does. My forays into Lovecraftian fiction often take me to places in the United States and in the UK. Troy Young’s anthological novel takes you to many places in Canada, a strange number to which I have personal connections. AND I love that! This novel reminds me in a way of Charles de Lint’s novel, “Jack the Giant Killer” which is set in Ottawa, and you can actually travel to various places in the city and know what’s happened in which locals. Troy Young’s book evokes that same kind of realism and presence.
  
  I love that there’s a department in the government that is investigating The Other - the presence of Cthulhu Cycle deities, creatures, and threats in Canada and I want more! I’ve already bought The Other: Encounters with the Cthulhu Mythos - Book Two, so I will start the first story of that novel tonight. I also downloaded The House at the Edge of Time and Space, and The Shade of Pierre Girault, two stories which will eventually be in The Other: Book 3.
  
  I very much recommend this collection of stories and would recommend it to anyone who likes Lovecraftian fiction, but especially if you want to Lovecraft set in Canada.
• 
  Charlie Anne Tovey

  I really enjoyed all of the stories, kept me interested all the way through the book.
• 
  Melinda Botterbusch

  Interesting take on Cthulu
  
  Enjoyed reading this. The weaving of the tale sparked constant interest. It gripped me from the beginning! Definitely recommend reading.
• 
  Thaisa Meyka

  Sabe quando você se depara com um livro que nunca viu antes, se interessa pela capa, resolve lê-lo e acaba tendo uma grata surpresa? Foi exatamente este o caso com "The Other": bati o olho no e-book disponível no Kindle Unlimited, entendi que tinha algo de horror cósmico, e resolvi ler!
  Em Gallou Cove, uma pequena cidade costeira do Canadá, o policial Joe Mills e a bióloga marinha Adele Kramer são chamados para investigar uma nova espécie que apareceu na praia. Mas esse não é qualquer animal marinho, já que os investigadores começam a ter pesadelos completamente perturbadores após o seu primeiro contato com o bicho, sem contar que o espécime aparece distorcido em fotografias e causa tontura e mal-estar aos que estão ao seu redor.
  Durante a progressão da história, conheceremos pessoas que, em algum momento, presenciaram algum acontecimento sobrenatural envolvendo seres extra-dimensionais. E uma divisão secreta do governo decide contratá-los para continuar explorando essas entidades que podem destruir a Terra...
  Enquanto lia, adorei não apenas a forma como Troy Young resolveu contar essa história, de maneira fluida e instigante, mas também como ele usou seu conhecimento sobre Lovecraft para desenvolver o enredo: capítulo após capítulo, é possível acompanhar os personagens encontrando vários tipos de monstros lovecraftianos, como Dagon, Nyarlathotep, Shoggoths e, é claro, o próprio Cthulhu.
  No geral, eu tive uma ótima experiência com esse primeiro livro de uma trilogia (tirando uma ou outra decisão feita pelo autor), pois além de gostar dos protagonistas, me diverti demais vendo como os mitos de Cthulhu são explorados aqui, já que é possível encontrar muitas referências interessantes trabalhadas de forma a seguir os contos originais, misturando sci-fi e terror, mas também percebendo como Young é capaz de apresentar um enredo totalmente novo!
  É verdade que li esse livro sem saber absolutamente nada sobre ele... E também é verdade que mal posso esperar para ler os próximos volumes dessa trilogia cujo início eu tanto gostei!
  
  Mais resenhas no instagram literário @livre_em_livros e no canal do Youtube "Livre em Livros"!
• 
  David

  Lovecraft minus the love, and the craft...
  
  Take the Cthulhu mythos, the vast cosmic horrors, the malignant entities haunting your nightmares and the oppressive weight of an uncaring, incomprehensible universe that threatens to break the mind of anyone who attempts to face it head on. Take all that and fit it into the mold of a late afternoon action adventure TV series and this is very much the essence of what's on offer here.
  
  Now I don't want to diminish it on that basis alone. No doubt there's something in that idea, even if it depends on walking a very fine line maintaining the horror and the lighter tone in equal measure. Despite some good intentions here, I just don't think it comes together in a satisfying way by the time we get to the end of this collection.
  
  Its a nice idea in theory, a collection of separate but interconnected tales touching on various aspects of Lovecraftian lore. Problem is it all feels a touch too underdeveloped and rushed to the point of conclusion. The main characters feel a bit too broadly drawn, the dialogue is uninspired and the plotting feels like it's going through the motions with very little sense of building to the finale.
  
  Rarely is anything novel introduced into these proceedings. Its tried and true material to be sure but without any flair to it. No new twist or take is to be found here sadly and it's a shame as I say as I feel there's definite potential to the idea. Its Lovecraft minus much of what made those stories remarkable. You get the creatures but without the superbly conveyed sense of place, atmosphere and unspeakable dread.
  
  There's the core of a sound concept here, but I fear it was a fair few drafts away from hitting the sweet spot. What's left is a bare bones pitch for a cross between X-Files, Warehouse 13 and Fringe without it being as enjoyable as any one of them. A solid pass from me I'm afraid.
• 
  SUSAN

  It's hard for me to turn down the chance to read anything involving Cthulhu, so I was pretty intrigued with this book. Is it weird to say that these stories make for cozy cosmic horror reads? Hopefully that doesn't come across as offensive, but that is exactly how I feel. I wanted to curl up and read this while eating clam chowder and watching a rain storm on a blustery coastline.
  
  We're introduced to some people who become investigators so either paired up or singly, they encounter differing experiences. It does make you wonder if this could be turned into a tv series but it would be hard to do it justice, as Lovecraft fans can get persnickety about things. So for the diehard fans, they might feel that these stories are a diet version of Cthulhu mythos, but I would TOTALLY recommend this series for some one who is curious about the Mythos but might not be quite ready to dive into full on Lovecraft?
  
  I absolutely appreciate this work, I think there are a variety of Mythos fans out there and this series should find an appropriate and welcoming audience.
• 
  Mark J Kettlewell

  Enjoyable and inventive.
  
  I read a lot of mythos tales, some good, some bad and some just tangential. This is one of the better ones. It keeps an up to date feel without sacrificing too much the mythos’ ‘pulp’ origins and character. The stories improved over the course of the book as they seemed a little stilted in dialogue at the outset. Toward the end they became polished and I could sense the author’s voice coming through. Nice to have a tale set in Canada for once. I have some minor irks. There are occasional typos but I have persevered with stories that had many. My main issue was the misspelling of ‘Tekeli-li’ in one tale written as ‘Telkeli- li’. Minor and forgivable except to this pedantic Mythos fan. But don’t let my niggles put you off. This is a great read with many inventive stories.
• 
  Rich

  Answer the Call... If you dare!
  
  I've been a Cthulhu fan for most of my life. I've read Lovecraft, Derleth, Lumley, King and many other takes on the Mythos. The Other is a refreshing take on the Mythos in modern times. One of my biggest issues is the original stuff is such a dry read. That's not a problem here. The stories are crisp, fast paced and eerie as the original stuff! I can't wait to read the next book to find out what happens next!
• 
  Chris21

  I got my copy yesterday and finished this afternoon. I really loved this book.
  
  Each individual story added parts and slowly grows the world whilst being a fun mini adventure. It’s written almost exactly like a fun Sci Fi tv show.
  
  Great book to read in the sun that will still have you wondering at night if there really is something weird out in the world.
• 
  Nick

  I enjoyed these stories quite a bit.
  
  There could have been another round of editing to clean up some of the dialogue, but this was still a good dive into the Mythos.
  
  The ending didn't offend me as much as others, but I can see why people didn't like it. It was a bit sudden. Could have been built up to a bit more.
• 
  Mary

  Creepy Cthulhu story
  
  This was an interesting, hard to put down tale based on the Cthulhu mythos. I have read a lot of Lovecraft, and thought this book was a great way to introduce modern readers to his stories.
• 
  Charles Corbitt jr

  Fascinating read
  
  Keeps you on the edge of. Your seat a horror masterpiece
  Each chapter leaves you looking forward to the next a real thriller..
• 
  SpookyBoogie

  Poorly written. Flat characters making nonsense decisions based on things they can't possible know.