There have always been dangers lurking in the shadows of Arkham, in the space just beyond normal awareness. Things with teeth and an impossibly deep hunger. People grasping so desperately for power that they would feed their neighbors to the ravenous darkness just for a taste of it. But few are willing to simply sit and wait for their doom and for every hungry darkness there will be someone ready to light a match.

Coming from a non-player of the Arkham Horror table top game, how does The Devourer Below do as an introduction for the game’s ghoul focused expansion of the same name? The obvious answer is that I have no clue because I am not an Arkham Horror player, but it does feel like a couple of important characters are introduced. Lita Chantler certainly showed up enough to indicate that she is important to the expansion, and I feel like Professor Warren should be important if only because his story was the last of the eight that I read. If it becomes a question of if I enjoyed the anthology or not though, that becomes a much easier answer. Yes, yes I did, The Devourer Below is solidly fun and a lot of the authors are ones I either am already a fan of or ones that I want to revisit when I get the chance.

I do have one thing I feel like could have been tightened up with The Devourer Below, it feels like there was a ton of focus on ghoul cults and cultists but not a lot of time given to the ghouls themselves. Humans were very much the drivers of most of these stories. Which makes it funny that “Labyrinth” probably had the most focus on ghouls themselves, if not also a cult made of them. But the presentation of the ghouls feels like it shifts from them being fully off stage, Umôrdhoth being the supernatural thing involved via its human worshipers, to Bob the ghoul that “All My Friends are Monsters” protagonist Ruth finds herself hanging out with who is basically just a guy, to the ones from “Running the Midnight Whiskey” that seem to just about be clever animals. So it winds up feeling a bit scattered as to the characterization of these terrifying corpse eating monstrosities and I wish there had been more of them across the anthology.

Ultimately though, I really liked the stories in The Devourer Below on the balance. Yes, there was one that I really did not enjoy, but the rest were at worst basically fine and most of them were really good. I had fun with this anthology, it was a lot of fun for me to go through and talk about all of these stories. So, yeah, four out of five. It is a solidly enjoyable read with a lot of really good writers involved and my only complaint is that I wish there was more to do with the ghouls themselves.

'The Devourer Below' is the first Arkham anthology from Aconyte, with each story held together by the shared tales of one particular Great Old One, who hasn't previously experienced a lot of attention in books or movies. As the stories unfolded, I learned more about this particular unpleasant fellow, and how his fearsome reach draws many into his own unique and hungry darkness.

We have sneaky occultists, of course, but also bootleggers, historians, regular people caught up in something far beyond their experience, and so much more. For anyone wishing to play the Arkham Horror roleplaying games, there's heaps of inspiration for characters here!

Particular standouts for me were Josh Reynolds' 'The Hounds Below', which combined the very real horrors of The Great War with deeper human fears of madness, starvation... and what those may mean when combined together. Also 'The Darkling Woods' by Cath Lauria was its own kind of fairytale. I've never seen a Lovecraftian story with children as the protagonists, but does this mean they're able to deal with dark fairytale dangers more effectively than the adults around them?

I’m a huge fan of Aconyte Books and the many board games and role-playing games that they are adapting into novels and anthologies, and I’ve been deeply impressed by the way in which they have slowly but surely expanded the range of properties to develop while still consistently retaining the high quality of prose, covers and authors shown in their earliest releases despite now having published dozens of titles. Of all of their product lines, I’ve most enjoyed their relaunching of the venerable Arkham Horror setting – the cover art has been absolutely stunning, the choice of authors inspired, and the stories themselves anything but cliched and boring. So I was delighted to see that an Arkham Horror anthology was due to be released entitled The Devourer Below, collecting together eight stories by a variety of authors – both those like Josh Reynolds who have previously written Arkham Horror titles, and those new to the corrupted, sea salt-tinged Jazz Age corruption of the New England town. I was particularly excited to see Thomas Parrott had a story in the Table of Contents – Parrott is a talented up-and-coming author able to write fantastic stories across a variety of genres, and I was curious to see what spin he would put on Arkham and its inhabitants. Taken together with that cover art by John Coulthart – simultaneously lavish and unsettling – it was a package I couldn’t wait to devour – or perhaps get devoured in turn!

The collection opens with Running the Night Whiskey by Evan Dicken, an author I was familiar with from reading his superb Warhammer: Age of Sigmar novella The Red Hours, one of the finest novellas to be recently published by Black Library. Leo De Luca is an independent producer of moonshine in Arkham, and was doing just swell until local hoodlum Johnny V paid off local law enforcement to smash up his stills and seize his goods. Now owing a large amount of money to the gangster, a scuffle with his enforcers one night leads Leo to a fortunate encounter with an old friend from his days in the trenches over in France. The friend – Donny – gives Leo an offer that seems too good to be true – accompany him across the Canadian border to meet with a strange man brewing a potent new moonshine known as ‘night whiskey’ and smuggle it back into Arkham. A single trip would see Leo clear his debts and then some, so despite his concerns he agrees to join Donny on the trip. A strange Model T trailing the two men, a flooded town supposedly full of witches who kidnapped children, and the strange behaviour of the man selling the night whiskey all serve to put Leo on edge; and once they’ve picked up their illicit cargo, there’s a thrilling, edge-of-your-seat car chase between Leo’s supercharged car and his new opponents, crashing through fields and tearing along country roads. Evading pursuit is just the beginning, however, as Leo soon discovers that the night whiskey attracts a completely new – and disturbingly inhuman – kind of attention than he’s used to getting. Fast-paced and cinematic, with punchy prose and a chilling atmosphere as the true nature of the night whiskey is slowly revealed, Dicken provides a great start to the collection. It’s followed by Shadows Dawning by Georgina Kamsika, an author I wasn’t familiar with prior to starting the collection. Litany Chantler didn’t have the best relationship with her husband, a local butcher, but there were rare moments of happiness: cut short by his brutal murder. Now she works her way through the darkness of Arkham, following a chain of people, places and clues to hunt her husband’s murderers. Why doesn’t she call the police? Because his killers aren’t normal men – they’re cultists and ghouls, inhuman beings who gutted her husband for refusing to hand over his meat for their rituals. It’s an intriguing angle on the Arkham Horror setting, and Kamsika does a fantastic job of developing the concept: Lita isn’t a noirish detective or moonshine-runner with a fast car. She’s just an ordinary citizen of Arkham caught up in occult machinations, and trying to get revenge as best she can in a world where you can only trust yourself, and the authorities are either indifferent, or members of the cult themselves. Kamsika gives us an atmospheric, thought-provoking and original take on the Arkham Horror setting; it’s one of the best stories in the entire collection, and one I’d be keen to see expanded upon.

Josh Reynolds is not only one of my favourite authors generally, in my opinion he’s also one of the best authors writing for Aconyte Books right now, able to deftly turn his hand to whichever property he’s writing about. His recent novel Wrath of N’Kai demonstrated his innate understanding of Arkham Horror as a setting and how to get the most out of it, and his story in this collection, The Hounds Below, is no different. Holsten is an amateur writer attempting to interview Phillip Drew, a man accused of cannibalism and a host of other horrific crimes, and now residing in Arkham Sanatorium. Begrudgingly granted an interview with Drew by the inmate’s clinicians, Holsten meets the strange man, who lurks naked in a deliberately darkened cell to avoid hurting eyes now sensitive to even the smallest amount of light, and hears the story behind his condition and subsequent incarceration. But it soon becomes clear as the narrative progresses that both inmate and interviewer have secrets that are not immediately apparent, and what starts as a simple interview soon escalates into something far more sinister – and with potentially fatal consequences. Drawing on one of Lovecraft’s most well-known stories to create some interesting parallels, and linking into the overarching narrative of the machinations of the mysterious Cult of Umôrdhoth as it spreads throughout Arkham, Reynolds deftly weaves a compelling and atmospheric story with a delightfully disquieting ending.

Labyrinth is the first of Thomas Parrot’s duology of stories in the collection, and concerns Joe Diamond, one of the city’s many private eyes; he receives an anonymous package with photographs and copies of police files. A stranger to Arkham, intensely paranoid, recently killed by something that made him rot from the heart outwards. A young woman harassed by strange whispers and shadowy figures. The strange tattoo linking them both together. Unable to sit back and let someone head towards a seemingly certain death, Diamond begins investigating the strange tattoo and the forces behind it. But what does it have to do with ancient mythology – and the strange story of Prince Theseus and the Cretian Labyrinth? And of the strange cult infesting the island? This is one of the few stories that seems to actually bring Arkham itself- its architecture, its atmosphere, its unique character – into the reader’s head, portraying it in a manner I’ve not quite seen before; but then from my experience of his previous works, Parrot is a master of atmosphere and bringing settings to life. Exactly the same can be applied to ancient Crete when the story travels back in time – it’s another well-protected location, infested with some genuinely unsettling enemies and imbued with a dark atmosphere. Taken together with the clever retelling of a certain mythological tale, and you have a stand-out tale in an already stand-out collection.

Moving into the latter half of the collection, All My Friends Are Monsters

by Davide Mana is an unusual story, in which Ruth, a mortuary worker, finds forbidden love in the murky depths of a speakeasy, only to be blackmailed by Umôrdhoth cultists into letting them take corpses from the mortuary in exchange for their silence about her ‘immoral’ activities. Mana gives us an artful study of a normal resident of Arkham once again caught up in the insanity bubbling away just underneath the city’s surface, and the mental and physical damage that exposure to that insanity does to them. Ruth becomes more and more detached from her life, watching hideous ghouls take away abandoned corpses from the mortuary, and trying to balance an illicit relationship with the woman she loves. There are some unsettling allusions that Mana draws between these different groups and their need to stay under society’s radar, and it’s a thoughtful and thought-provoking piece of writing that greatly enhances the collection.

The Darkling Woods by Cath Lauria takes the intriguing idea to focus on Wendy and James, a pair of street-smart urchins making a living on the grim, shadowy streets of Arkham through thievery and other illicit activities, just trying to stay alive and ahead of the law – and other, far more dangerous groups. Wendy generally understands which people to rob and which to avoid, but on the run from a vicious gang leader, she and James arrive at a boarding house run by Mrs Duncan. Seemingly friendly at first, as the hours go by the landlady becomes more and more sinister in her intentions, especially when she strong-arms Wendy into going into the war by forest; the deep, dark, creepy forest that the drunk bootlegger at the bar warns her against. Armed only with her wits and her mother’s special amulet, Wendy must save herself and her brother from the things in the woods. Great atmosphere, some subtle but engaging characterisation, and an intriguing object in the form of the amulet, make this a memorable story by Lauria.

The collection’s penultimate story, Professor Warren’s Investiture, is by Warhammer veteran David Annaldale, and an author I consider to be a deeply accomplished scifi and horror writer; his entries in the Warhammer Horror imprint have been some of the best fiction ever published by Black Library. Taking us to the Anthropology Department of Miskatonic University, Annandale focuses on Peter Warren, professor of Anthropology and a man who has been obsessively working on a book about the occult for several decades now. A book, so Warren hopes, will impose a system of order on the chaos that is occult lore; somehow categorise the uncategorisable. Approached by a new colleague, someone claiming to truly understand what it is he is trying to achieve, Warren soon finds himself immersed to far greater depths of occult knowledge – and far worse things – than he could ever have imagined. Annandale weaves a tale that is horrifying and unsettling in equal measures, as he demonstrates that knowledge is never neutral – and always has a price. Thomas Parrott finishes the collection with the second of his stories, Sins in the Blood, continuing the story of P.I. Joe Diamond and his investigation into the cult. Parrott has the difficult job of tying up the entire collection, pulling together those various strands that have been gathering together in the previous stories, and in the hands of a less talented and assured writer this might have been a stumbling block. Fortunately, however, the talented Parrott is more than up to the task, imbuing both his own story and these narrative threads with energy, imagination and a healthy dose of black humour. Demonstrating an innate understanding of the core concept that makes the Arkham Horror setting so engaging, Parrott gives us a story in which the dread forces are thrown back and thwarted, but only at horrifying cost – and only ever temporarily.

The Devourer Below is both a hugely impressive collection of Arkham Horror short stories, and also a fascinating success story in terms of creating a shared worldbuilding experience within that setting. Not only are each of the stories engaging, atmospheric and deeply compelling slices of Jazz Age horror fiction by themselves, but editor Charlotte Llewelyn-Wells has ensured that every tale progresses the overarching narrative of the horrifying activities and occult plots of the Cult of Umôrdhoth, developing a cohesive and chilling meta-narrative that comes to an action-packed and quietly unsettling conclusion. It’s another success story for Llewelyn-Wells and Aconyte Books, as well as each of the authors represented in the collection, and particularly so for several authors whose stories stood out to me as particularly compelling and engaged with the setting. Georgina Kamsika’s sobering and deftly-judged story of an average citizen trying to find some measure of vengeance against a cult enmeshed in an entire city was a stand-out tale for me that stuck with me for a while after finishing the collection. And Thomas Parrott’s duology of tales featuring a Private Investigator could easily have lapsed into bland clichés and generic genre tropes, but instead shone because of the energy and wit Parrott poured into his prose, and the imaginative, intricate plotting. Both authors feel like they would be ideal candidates for future novels in the series, and I eagerly await any future work from them in the Arkham Horror setting – or any other publications from Aconyte Books.

This is a short story collection set in the Arkham Horror Universe, a table top game based on Lovecraftian mythos. All of the stories in this book happen in the 1920s in a city called Arkham (this city is based on Salem, Mass from one of Lovecrafts short stories). WW1 either caused or was caused by Eldritch gods attempting to come into our realm and the cultists of Umôrdhoth are causing mayhem in Arkham. The short stories follow unlikely heroes in their attempt to save lives.

For the most part these stories aren't particularly frightening in any way, although they are often gross because of the body horror. For the most part these read like private eye short stories with a horror twitst. One of the things I enjoy most about these stories is that the "good guys" aren't particularly good people, they're morally grey at best.

My favorite story in this collection was "Labyrinth" which is a story within a story. A detective is trying to track down why people with a specific birthmark are being targeted by cultists and a librarian tracks down a story of how these people are decedents of Ariadne of Crete and the Minotaur and Labyrinth tale is actually based on Minos gaining his wealth though Umôrdhoth. This was a very cool retelling. None of the other stories really stood out but, overall, if you like the 1920s golden age of detective fiction AND Lovecraftian horror you'll probably enjoy this universe.

The Devourer Below: An Arkham Horror Anthology edited by Charlotte Lleweln-Wells is a great collection of short historical fantasy horror short stories set in the world of the Arkham Horror Files universe. I'm not at all familiar with the board game that the books in this series are based on, but after having read Litany of Dreams (Arkham Horror #19) by Ari Marmell I knew I absolutely needed to read more of them. Luckily, this was a lot of 1920s set dark fantasy fun as well. All eight stories in this collection are strong reads and have done a great job of tiding me over until I have the chance to pick up more full length novels and further familiarize me with the universe of the series. I can't wait to read more from this series and maybe even try the board game.

“a dark shadow grows over the town of Arkham. Alien entities known as Ancient Ones lurk in the emptiness beyond space and time, writhing at the thresholds between worlds. Occult rituals must be stopped and alien creatures destroyed before the Ancient Ones make our world their ruined dominion.”

My thanks to Aconyte Books for a digital review copy of ‘The Devourer Below: An Arkham Horror Anthology’ edited by Charlotte Llewelyn-Wells in exchange for an honest review.

Arkham Horror is a highly popular board game set in 1920s Massachusetts. It is inspired by the cosmic horror fiction of H.P. Lovecraft. Players take on the roles of investigators that are set against a sweeping tide of occult activity aimed at resurrecting alien gods who will consume our world.

This anthology contains eight stories that expand on this theme, with various folk getting themselves into spots of bother. The presence of the Devourer Below runs through a number of the tales.

As with any anthology there were stories that had a stronger appeal for me. One of my favourites here was the two-parter by Thomas Parrott that drew on the myth of the labyrinth of King Minos and a link down the centuries to Arkham. My other favourite was the quirky ‘All My Friends Are Monsters’ by Davide Mana.

It’s been quite a few years since I have played Arkham Horror, so I am a bit out of touch with the game. For example, some of the characters that appear in the game feature in these stories. Not that it’s necessary to be aware of this to enjoy reading this collection.

However, I would have appreciated a short introduction to each story or some kind of linking material rather than just moving from story to story.

Overall, I felt that this was an entertaining horror anthology with plenty of chills.

On a side note, I found the cover art very striking.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Edited by Charlotte Llewelyn-Wells, The Devourer Below is part of Aconyte Books’ growing range of Arkham Horror fiction and features eight short stories from seven different authors all exploring a sinister presence rising in Arkham. Dangerous deals are being made, threats issued, lives devastated and plots hatched, monsters emerging and reluctant heroes standing up, all in the name of or in defiance of a darkness that few truly understand. From local landmarks to the dark countryside that borders the city, detectives and grieving widows to bootleggers and vagrant children, these stories explore Arkham and its inhabitants in dark, unsettling detail, united by a common theme – sometimes overt, other times implied – of a monstrous, corrupting power and the sinister servants it can call upon.

The first two stories set the tone for the anthology, with protagonists putting themselves into dangerous situations only to find that things are much worse than they realised. In Evan Dicken’s Running the Night Whiskey that takes the form of a bootlegger hoping for a big score, while Georgina Kamsika’s Shadows Dawning sees a grieving, vengeful widow searching for the men who murdered her husband – both interesting, engaging stories about regular people seeing Arkham’s true dangers for the first time. After that it’s a pair of excellent stories within stories which look beyond Arkham’s bounds to illustrate the darkness that lies at the heart of all these tales. Josh Reynolds’ The Hounds Below features a nervous writer venturing into the Sanatorium to interview a man about his awful experiences during the Great War, then Thomas Parrott’s Labyrinth – first in a two-part tale that concludes later on – draws upon myth and legend as a detective tries to understand what he’s about to get himself involved in.

Davide Mana’s All My Friends are Monsters focuses as much as anything on the monstrous behaviour of humans, moving as it does between the horrors of the mortuary and the illicit thrills of underground speakeasies, reminding the reader of some of the sad truths of 1920s America. Cath Lauria’s The Darkling Woods is similarly concerned with portraying humans as no less grotesque than the creatures seen elsewhere, in a tale of two street kids running from trouble in their usual neighbourhood and ending up in over their heads. Drawing the anthology to a close, David Annandale’s Professor Warren’s Investiture takes a deliberately ambiguous view on the dangers of pursuing secret knowledge in a cleverly observed tale of academic jealousy and obsession, before the second of Thomas Parrott’s stories – Sins in the Blood – picks up where Labyrinth left off and races into an action-packed finale. An ancient curse, mysterious enemies, shootouts in the streets and a dark ritual in the cemetery, it all comes together for one last climactic battle.

Each of these stories is, individually, a lot of fun to read, all rooted in that engaging blend of creepy occult horror and pulpy 20s Americana that typifies Arkham Horror. Personal preference aside, there’s no real standout story as they’re all engaging and entertaining, each one offering up a different angle on the setting and an interesting set of characters. Each author applies their own style and approach to their stories, providing an exciting sense of variety and inventiveness that keeps things fresh and avoids any sense of repetition, without ever losing sight of the fundamental Arkham Horror tone. As if the setting itself didn’t unify them enough though, the common theme running through every story – existing fans of the setting will recognise it from the title, but without spoiling too much we’re talking cults, horrible creatures and the looming presence of something really nasty – helps provide a strong sense of identity and tie the whole anthology together.

Overall it errs more on the side of the pulp adventure aspect of the setting, with lots of action that keeps the pace moving without ever dominating, but there’s more than enough creepy creatures, evil people and looming, ominous darkness to satisfy fans of the occult horror lurking at the heart of the setting. Anthologies inevitably offer something different to full-length novels, taking a broader view on the subject matter rather than digging deep into one set of characters and ideas, but by focusing on a single cohesive theme this manages to work as both a compelling and characterful overview of what Arkham Horror has to offer and a clever exploration of one aspect of the setting. As always with Aconyte’s impressive (and ever-growing) range, it also finds a satisfying balance between being detailed enough for existing fans of this IP and accessible enough for readers taking their first steps into Arkham Horror fiction. All told it’s fun, suitably creepy, wonderfully varied and consistently entertaining. What more could we ask for?

I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Arkham Horror book The Devourer Below edited by Charlotte Llewelyn-Wells, published by Aconyte Books, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.

Stories in this collection are written by Evan Dicken, Georgina Kamsika, Thomas Parrott, Josh Reynolds, David Annadale, Davide Mana & Cath Lauria.

So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.

Also I am friends with a couple of the authors on social media, not that we are close friends, for them its probably about connecting with fans rather than wanting to be my pal!

I am going to try my best to not let that cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.

What is Arkham Horror
Anyway that put to one side, let’s look at this book, by first looking at the game Arkham Horror which is a cooperative game, originally designed by Richard Launius, and is now in its third edition which was released in 2019.

It’s published by Fantasy Flight Games, a subsidiary of Asmodee, and is set in 1926 in the town of Arkham, Massachusetts. Each player takes on the role of an investigator, who are working to stop the Ancient Ones, eldritch horrors which lurk in the void beyond space and time.

It’s a 1-6 player game and you work together to gather clues and defeat the evil of the Ancient Ones and save the world.

As I said I haven’t actually played Arkham Horror but I do own its spin off Elder Sign the cooperative dice game.

The Story
Like the rest of the Arkham Horror novels, its set in the 1920s, and this collection of short stories all feature characters from the upcoming new revised edition of the Arkham Horror Card Game Core Set.

So lets look at each story one by one and I will give you some brief thoughts on them.

Running the Night Whiskey – Evan Dicken
This story is about Leo, a war veteran who runs into an old comrade in arms and gets himself involved with a bootlegging run with very sinister consequences.

This story was fantastic to open the book as it really did have a loveable protagonist who whilst a bit naughty, but very loveable.

The story has hints of horror that finally culminate in an ending which is quite eldritch, and sets up the rest of what’s to come very nicely.

Shadows Dawning – Georgina Kamsika
Lita Chandler, a recent widower whose husband was murdered by cultists, is desperately trying to get revenge.

The story wasn’t big on horror as the others, but was interesting to read as Lita seemed to get more and more desperate as the story went on, there was a real sense that she had lost all control of herself in her desire for vengence.

You really do find yourself rooting for her.

The Hounds Below – Josh Reynolds
This is in my opinion the strongest story in the collection as a journalist, Holsten manages to convince the doctors at Arkham Asylum to let him interview Mr Drew, a war veteran with a particularly gruesome compulsion.

This story is very sinister and chilling as we slowly hear the backstory of Mr Drew and his decent into depravity and madness. The ending is very intense and an extremely horrific twist, a real page turner.

Labyrinth – Thomas Parrott
This is part one of a two parter and is the most unique of the stories, being the telling of a story from Greek Antiquity in a Lovecraftian way.

Joe Diamond is trying to save the life of an innocent girl and his research leads him to find a connection to the myths of the Minotaur from Greek myths, and its very horror filled.

The time jump was a bit weird, and this finish left me a little confused, but the second part resolved that issue, but it would have been nice if it was clear that this was a two part story as that wasn’t clear to me.

Its a really solid story and shows that the world of the Cthulhu mythos isn’t confined to a small part of New England.

All my Friends are Monsters – Davide Mana
This is one of my favourite stories as it sees the morgue worker, Ruth Turner find herself blackmailed into helping sinister and dark forces when her other life of cross-dressing, speakeasy visits and a queer relationship is discovered.

This is a tragic tale of how Ruth slowly finds herself getting involved deeper and deeper with the cult. Its a deeply engaging tale and you find yourself rooting for her and Charlie.

The plot is in my opinion the most engaging in the book and it got me hooked more so than the others.

The Darkling Woods – Cath Lauria
This is an okay story, but I found it less engaging than the others simply because it felt so obvious in its nature.

The characters didn’t speak to me and the plot felt rather forced.

But it was really well written and cleverly crafted story, I just couldn’t connect with it, and I felt it lacked the same horror as the other stories, but that was just me and I am sure others will feel differently.

Professor Warren’s Investiture – David Annandale
This story shows how easy it is to succumb to darkness and evil, as they say the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

In this story Professor Warren has been working on a book about the occult for the past two decades, mocked by his colleagues at Miskatonic University, when a mysterious woman approaches him at the library and offers him all the occult secrets he ever desired.

Professor Warren feelings of anger and humiliation come through quite well and this story really does show how he was susceptible to the approach of the cultists.

Its a very interesting story in the way it plays with your emotions, you sympathise with Professor Warren, but at the same time are horrified by his choices.

Sins in the Blood – Thomas Parrott
The conclusion to Labyrinth and sees Joe Diamond team up with a waitress called Agness to save the life of Nadia.

I enjoyed this one, the pacing was just right and it built upon very solid foundations from the first part with the characters involved in a race against time and cultists to prevent Nadias life being taken by a horror of the old times.

My only negative comment about this story is that Joe kind of got overshadowed by Agness, despite his being the hero of sorts, perhaps had Agness been involved in the first story that would have felt better. But they had to do a lot to shoehorn her and her story into the limited time she featured.

Conclusion
This was a very enjoyable and creepy book, a lot of emotions were played with and some fantastic characters to root for, or be horrified by.

There were of course stories I enjoyed more than others, but in general they complimented each other very well and built a general idea about the particular cult who form the antagonists in this collection.

The length of each story was just right and allowed me to dip in and out over a couple of days, making it a very very easy to read book.

Its a good primer for the general idea of Lovecraftian horror and sets up the card game very well, potentioally giving you new insight to the characters you will play with.

The editing I would add is extremely good, other than the slight confusion about the two partner, nothing feels off, and the stories flow very nicely from one to another.

A good balanced anthology that leaves you wanting more.

5 out of 5 Stars

𝟰 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝘂𝗽 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝟯.𝟱

Running The Night Whiskey by Evan Dicken - 3 stars.
I did enjoy this one, even though it was a bit slow to get started and to get to the main point of the story. That being said, I understand why it was a bit slower, it was the first story in the anthology and it needed to set the scene more so and introduce us. I would have preferred a bigger focus on the ghouls and their backstory and less on our characters getting chased etc. My favourite part of this story though was how it constantly alluded to something bigger going on, as if our characters were just pawns in a game.

Shadows of Dawning by Georgina Kamsika - 4 stars.
This was one of my favourite stories from the anthology, more so for the way the emotions were portrayed. You could feel Lita's emotions through the pages, and her relationship with Priya was beautifully written. Whilst I didn't enjoy the actual story so much, I felt the way the characters were written and how they expressed themselves made this an enjoyable read.

The Hounds Below by Josh Reynolds - 5 stars.
This was my one of my two FAVOURITES of the entire set of stories! It was a really simple idea, one that I'd seen done a thousand times before but the author just seemed to have this ability to make it feel so much creepier and set you on edge whilst you were reading it. And the ending, I did not see coming at all - I actually thought I'd guessed what would happen but I couldn't have been more wrong!

Labyrinth by Thomas Parrott - 5 stars.
This one was my other favourite of the stories, anything with a Greek mythology vibe I am instantly going to love! From the start this story had a secretive feeling to it, which was enhanced throughout the story, and at the end when we were left with more questions than answers. The whole story linked so well together, especially with how the Greek mythology merged with the idea of The Devourer. Everything about this story was just so well done.

All My Friends Are Monsters by Davide Mana - 3 stars.
I didn't quite get the same feeling from this as I got from the others, it didn't feel (for me at least) as if they got the same brief as the rest of the writers, it didn't seem to fit as well with the other stories. It was a very well written story and it read brilliantly, it just didn't fit with the others and the overall feel of the book.

The Darkling Woods by Cath Lauria - 2 stars.
I can't really say much about this one except it felt as though it didn't have a plot, it didn't wow me or make me scared or make me jump or thrill me like the other stories did. It also ended quite abruptly without tying up the lose ends which I found frustrating.

Professor Warren's Investiture by David Annandale - 1 star.
From the start, I knew exactly how this one would end, it was so predictable. I found the story to be overly simplistic and without any additions to the story to bring that wow factor, it fell quite flat. It made an impression on me, but it was the wrong one, sadly.

Sins in the Blood by Thomas Parrott - 5 stars.
This was a great way to finish of the series, it felt as if it brought a natural ending to the collection of stories. It also helped that the story itself was brilliant, it built up the tension and atmosphere so well! I didn't know it was going to end, it kept me guessing from start to finish, which was good because the characters were really likable so you were rooting for them but you weren't sure if they would survive... It was a really simple idea but excellently executed.

Excellent tales from the land of H.P. Lovecraft and Arkham. I’m currently reading my way through all of Lovecraft and loved seeing some of my favorites like Miskatonic University and references to Innsmouth and Dunwich. Long time lovers of Lovecraft will enjoy for sure, but I think even reading as a stand-a-lone book of stories would be enjoyable for those who love horror. Bonus for the amazing cover art!

The Devourer Below is the first anthology book in the ever popular Arkham Horror book series, and takes readers on a host of adventures around the titular city as ordinary folk, private investigators, and monster hunters come face to face wit enigmatic cults, twisted monstrosities, and the ancient evil that connects them all; Umôrdhoth, the Devourere Below.

The first story in this collection, 'Running the Night Whiskey' by Evan Dicken is a great way to kick things off, and introduces us to several ideas that will make repeat appearances across the book. The story follows Leo, a former soldier in the Great War turned into a bit of a rogue, who upon finding himself in some trouble with local bootleggers and gangsters, agrees to help an old friend from the army smuggle some illegal booze into Arkham.

Over the course of this story we get to know Leo, and learn about his history both as a criminal and his time in the war. Dicken gives several curve balls across the narrative, letting you think one particular thing is going to happen before subtly subverting your expectations, before the final horrific revelations. The story introduces the entity of Umôrdhoth, the cults that worship him, the ghouls that serve him, as well as the idea that there are people in the world who oppose these forces, and are willing to fight against them.

'Shadows Dawning' by Georgina Kamsika tells the story of Lita Chandler, a recently widowed woman whose husband was targeted and killed by a cult. Not knowing who in Arkham she can trust anymore, but knowing that the cult is still out there, Lita enters a desperate mission to find answers as to why her husband was killed, as well as taking revenge against those who took him from her.

There's a sense of desperation to this story, as Lita struggles to find answers and to stay alive in the face of these evil people that really transports you into her shoes. Even as a reader you never know what's going to come next, you're always on guard waiting for a sudden attack to come, and you're never sure who Lita should be trusting. It really sells the insidiousness of the cults in Arkham, how they seem to be everywhere and everyone, yet also impossible to find when you want to.

'The Hounds Below' by Josh Reynolds is one of the more chilling stories in the collection, and revisits one of the ideas first suggested in 'Running the Night Whiskey'; that the battlefields of World War One played host to ghouls and monsters. The story sees an investigative journalist visiting an asylum in Arkham, hoping to talk to a man who has been locked away for cannibalism.

Over the course of watching this reporter talk to the cannibal we get to discover that he was set on this path of killing and eating people thanks to the war and the horrors that he saw there, both human horror, and those much older. It gives us a disturbing insight into how a regular person can begin to find themselves serving the darker forces of the universe, and how close we all are to pure evil under the right circumstances.

Thomas Parrott makes two contributions to this collection, in a story that gets spread out over the course of the book. The first, 'Labyrinth' sees private investigator Joe Diamond getting wind of a possible case connected to the occult. A woman named Nadia Leandros has the same strange birth mark as a man recently found murdered, and the young woman has begun to complain about strange dreams, and people following her. Joe sets out to try and dig up some background information on the case, and with the help of a fried discovers that it might be connected to the secret of what really inspired the myth of the Labyrinth of Knossos.

This story lays the seeds for the rest of the tale, which comes at the end of the collection, but manages to craft it's own satisfying and engaging narrative as Joe is told the 'real' story of what happened to the hero Theseus. With every other story in this collection, and most stories involving the Lovecraft mythology, set within the last hundred years or so it makes for a wonderful and striking change to see this mythology meeting the myths of Ancient Greece.

Davide Mana's 'All My Friends Are Monsters' tells the story of Ruth Turner, a woman who works in the local morgue by day, but spends her nights dressed as a man drinking in the local speak-easy's. With Ruth visiting the illegal drinking establishments, wearing 'mens' clothing, and being in a relationship with a woman she's worried one day when she's approached by a couple of people who ask her to turn a blind eye to them claiming a few bodies in exchange for them staying quite about her own activities.

This story shows us how easy it is to dragged into something that is out of your control, where you can see something awful taking place, yet are powerless to do anything about it. Not only that, but over the course of the story we get to see Ruth going from appalled by what she sees happening, to strangely indifferent. The way Mana looks at how people can become desensitised by the things around them, to the point where the monstrous can become the mundane is deeply chilling.

'The Darkling Woods' by Cath Lauria tells the tale of two young orphans living on the streets of Arkham who decide to try and and get off the streets for a night. Geting away from the gangs and dangers of the docks, the two of them head into the city where they convince the owner of a small boarding house to let them rent a room for the night. But they soon discover that perhaps the streets are a little safer when the owner takes an unusual interest in them.

This is the only story in the collection that doesn't focus on adults, and frames children as the lead characters, which definitely makes it stand out a lot. So often with the Arkham Horror franchise we see adults having to deal with these issues, discovering the existence of existential horrors and cults that I never actually considered how a child would fare with doing the same. It frames the whole thing a new way, one that I'd love to see done again in the future.

'Professor Warren's Investiture' by Davidd Annandale tells the story of Professor Peter Warren, a somewhat looked down upon member of the Miskatonic University. Warren has spent years gathering information and notes on what he believes to be the greater mysteries of the universe, things that see his colleague mocking him and his life's endeavour. However, when he's approached by a woman who shares his interest, and offers him new evidence that will help his work it takes him in a dangerous new direction.

I found this story to be incredibly interesting, as it really went into Warren's obsession, and how it transforms him and consumes him to a point where it pushes him towards the very evil that he's trying to learn about. So often in these stories we discover people who are already involved in the cults, who're zealots and believers, so getting to see how someone gets twisted into that, how they come to accept these evils and enjoy it makes for an insightful story.

The final story in the collection, 'Sins in the Blood' by Josh Reynolds, continues the story of private investigator Joe Diamond as he and an ally of his, a magic practising waitress named Agnes, set out to help Nadia Leandros, and break the curse upon her family bloodline that will soon lead to her death. Unfortunately, this means that the three of them will have to not only deal with the deadly cultists that are closing in on them, but will have to perform a dangerous ritual that could destroy them all.

Whilst very different from the first part of this story, 'Sins in the Blood' works well as a conclusion to this tale, and shifts it's focus from investigating into the past to fighting for survival in the present. It's one of the more action packed entries in this collection, and is a great not to end things on. The story also makes me want to read more about Joe and his fight against the evils in Arkham; so I'm hoping this could be a character that Reynolds comes to again some day.

I've really enjoyed the Arkham Horror novels I've read, and have found them to be some incredibly creepy and compelling horror mystery stories, so I'm absolutely over the moon to see these tales work so well in short story form too, and I'm excited to see more anthology books like this. Whether you're a long time fan of the series, or looking for some shorter fiction to try out before making the big plunge, The Devourer Below is the ideal read.

Thank you to Aconyte and Netgalley for the e-ARC!

Arkham Horror is pretty much my favourite tabletop franchise outside of RPGs, so getting approved for this delicious little anthology just about made my day. In other words – I had expectations. And I was not disappointed.

First of all, I just have to scream about that cover art for a second! It’s stunning!? And honestly, I want it on my bookshelf, right now. As for the stories within; I feel like everyone involved brought their A game, and really managed to bring Arkham to life, in all its pulpy, cultist-infested glory.

I wouldn’t say you have to be familiar with the games to get a kick out of this, it does more than enough to stand on its own just fine for those looking for cosmic horror of the Lovecraftian tradition, with the added benefit of ditching the hateful nonsense and the more boring tropes common in his works. The eight short stories all revolve around the same deity, The Devourer, but aside from that, every story shake things up with a new focus and perspective on just what’s loose on Arkham’s streets today, complete with origin stories and showdowns. Seems to me like everyone included here had fun messing around with the setting and time period, and the end result is super on point and very solid. Collections are really hard for me to rate, for many reasons, but this is definitely a good one. There are no bad stories here – they all work on their own, and as part of a larger whole, with a consistent vibe and coherent depictions of the world and its inhabitants, building on top of each other as you go through. If I had to pick favourites, it’d probably be the ones that dive the most into The Devourer, of which there are a few, if only because of how gruesome a lot he and his following is. Nasty stuff, but it's just so much fun, and exactly what I’m here for.

Great for the general horror fan and Arkham players alike, this is easy to recommend, and finding out that a bunch of these books exist, I’ll definitely be picking up the rest!

Writing short horror stories is not an easy task. It's difficult to create an atmosphere conducive to scaring a reader with such a limited character count. Of course, HP Lovecraft, was a master at this, with plenty of his works being short stories or novellas and his eldritch abominations inspiring hundreds and hundreds of works for the past hundred years. One such work, that collects 8 short stories written by various authors is ;"The Devourer Below" published by Aconyte Books.
The authors in this book do a great job at doing what HP himself did well, and that's delivering a bite sized story with great atmosphere filled with cosmic horror goodness. These authors, who are obviously huge fans of the Arkham Horror LCG, do a wonderful job of blending canon from the Arkham Horror universe and Lovecraftian mythos into well written, suspenseful stories.
These 8 stories perfectly capture the personalities of various and diverse characters that fans of the franchise will recognize, giving more growth and backstory to well established characters. But where it really shines is giving lesser known characters (Lita Chantler) or enemy cards (Ruth Turner) their own great stories and these characters quickly become favorites you hope to read more of.
This book will quickly make you feel as if you are playing a scenario of the LCG as you read about Leo De Luca picking up whiskey during prohibition and battling ghouls, or Lita Chantler looking for information about her murdered husband. Fans of the series will rejoice at familiar characters and locations like Arkham Sanitorium, Velma's Diner, and Umordhoth.

This anthology is really a fantastic book filled with short stories that are independent but contribute to an overarching plot. Fans of Arkham Horror, Lovecraft, and new comers alike will thoroughly enjoy this book page after page, although to get the most enjoyment I do recommend playing through The Night of the Zealot from Arkham Horror LCG. This is absolutely a book to look out for when it comes out July 6th.

These stories were really interesting. I've never played Arkham Horror but I found it easy enough to get invested in the worldbuilding and stories. I was impressed with how consistent the tone was across all of the short stories, and I didn't feel like any of them were particularly poor - a rare success with anthologies in my opinion. These have totally piqued my interest in the Arkham Horror world, and I'll be suggesting it to my gaming group.

The tone felt appropriate for the time period they were set in, with the language feeling accurate while still being easy to read. They were a lot of fun. It did feel a little repetitive at times, where words were repeated a lot, especially 20's slang. While I guess that's to be expected with a limited selection of slang available, it was noticeable when reading.

"The Devourer Below" (2021), edited by Charlotte Llewelyn-Wells, is a collection of eight short stories in Fantasy Flight Games' Arkham Horror Files setting.  Arkham Horror is inspired by the writings of H. P. Lovecraft (and a few other early 20th century writers, such as Robert W. Chambers and Clark Ashton Smith).  It is the setting for several board and card games that put players in the roles of investigators trying to uncover evil schemes and stop cultists and otherworldly creatures from causing death and destruction.  The stories in this collection feature characters and locations from the tabletop games.

With one exception, each story is written by a different author and uses its own plot and characters.  The stories are tied together by their common setting and the fact that the same Elder God, Umôrdhoth, a.k.a. "the Devourer Below," is causing trouble.  Essentially, each story stands on its own, and the stories can be read in any order.  (The exception is that the fourth and eighth stories are written by the same author and should be read in that order.)

Here is a short review of each individual story:

"Running the Night Whiskey" by Evan Dicken is a high-velocity story about a bootlegger who needs to work with an old war buddy to deliver a shipment of strange alcohol from Canada to Arkham.  The two hardened veterans don't show much vulnerability or character depth, but their banter and the strong action writing held my interest and kept the story moving forward at a brisk pace.

In "Shadows Dawning" by Georgina Kamsika, a widow, Lita, seeks to avenge her murdered, morally gray husband by uncovering the cult that is responsible.  Lita is a complex character with a range of emotions and a mixture of strength and vulnerability.  In the first half of the story, Kamsika creates an atmosphere of oppression and paranoia, as Lita tries to face down intimidation and violence with few resources, no way to know who might be a part of the cult, and no help from the authorities.  The last part of the tale sees Lita harden up and is closer to a crime thriller; the first half is more unique and more unsettling.

"The Hounds Below" by Josh Reynolds features an author interviewing a patient in Arkham Asylum about his experiences fighting in the trenches of WWI, including the strange things he encountered in a timeless twilight as a deserter between the lines.  Reynolds fits a complete-feeling story with some surprises into a small word count.  Writing is consistently strong throughout.  This was my favorite story in the collection.

"Labyrinth" by Thomas Parrot is a loose retelling of the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur, if the monster were a Lovecraftian horror rather than a bull-headed man, and if Theseus' manservant and a Cretian maid were the real heroes of the tale.  In theory, I like the concept that mythological or historical events were actually caused by Lovecraftian Mythos entities.  In practice, I found the use of many plot elements borrowed from the Greek myth (which I knew well) reduced the story's novelty and interest for me.

"All My Friends are Monsters" by Davide Mana follows the secret and forbidden romance of two women, Ruth and Charlie.  Ruth works at a morgue, which makes her a target of unscrupulous people who need access to the recently deceased.  But the heart of Mana's story lies in the exploration of the question of what makes someone or something a "monster." Most stories and games in this setting simply assume the answer.  This story questions what readers (and players of Fantasy Flight's board games) usually take for granted.  This was my second-favorite story in the collection.

"The Darkling Woods" by Cath Lauria amps up the tension by choosing a young child protagonist, with limited physical capabilities and no resources to speak of.  It resembles a dark fairy tale, along the lines of "Hansel and Gretel."  This story would have been one of my favorites, if not for one significant flaw: it gives the child a magic amulet that serves no plot purpose.  It warns the protagonist of danger only when her intuition already made it clear to her that the situation was dangerous.  And at one point, it helps her to briefly hide when there is no need to hide.  This wastes precious word count, and it reduces the story's impact by making the reader think the child has a magic way to get out of trouble.  The story would be tighter and stronger if the amulet were not mentioned.

"Professor Warren's Investiture" by David Annandale is a very short story about a less-than-successful professor finding his true calling.  I appreciated that this story was different from others in the collection.  It made me think of the fact that aggrieved and marginalized people in the real world are among the most vulnerable to online radicalization into extremist groups.  This was my third-favorite story in the collection.

"Sins in the Blood" by Thomas Parrot follows detective Joe Diamond's efforts to save a young woman threatened by an ancient family curse (detailed in Parrot's story "Labyrinth," earlier in the collection).  This story felt very much like an action-packed session of a tabletop RPG: lots of fighting, with a little investigation and humorous banter mixed in.  (In fact, a tabletop RPG game master could adapt the story as a one-session adventure in almost any fantasy setting, not just 1920s Massachusetts.)  It closes the anthology on a fun note.

On the whole, I enjoyed the way the anthology allowed me to explore the Arkham Horror Files setting from a variety of angles and through the words of seven different writers.  The use of a single antagonist Mythos entity across the whole anthology gives enough common ground to help the stories fit together and to give the impression that you are learning about a distinct facet of the Mythos, which would not have come across if there had been a mish-mash of antagonists.  The stories are true to the spirit of the tabletop games, and their fast pacing feels more game-like than publisher Aconyte's slower, more thoughtful Arkham Horror novels.  "The Devourer Below" would make a great introduction to the setting, especially for people deciding whether they like the theme and want to invest in the board or card games.  It also will be appreciated by fans of the games and books.

For a follow-up short story collection, my recommendation to Aconyte is to go outside Massachusetts and explore more of the dark, Mythos-haunted world.  This collection adequately detailed the town of Arkham and its environs.  Next, let's visit the jungles of Brazil, where indigenous peoples keep horrors at bay through rituals threatened by modernity.  Let's see a submarine crew encountering a strange underwater city.  Let's explore the dawn of aviation and the mysterious disappearances of pilots like Amelia Earhart.  Let's have an underground expedition like Jules Verne's "Journey to the Center of the Earth."  Let's learn about the terrifying things the early Mercury astronauts saw on their flights beyond the atmosphere, or that the Apollo astronauts saw on the moon.  And why not have one or two stories set predominantly in the bizarre other dimensions that the board game characters periodically visit?  There is so much potential to create spellbinding tales by exploring the setting beyond the confines of New England.

An excellent short story collection and everything I could have asked for from a title based on Arkham Horror. Eldritch abominations and all manner of spooky subjects reside in this book and it couldn’t be more fun. Well worth looking into for any fan of cosmic horror who may want it just a touch lighter than some of the author modern writers,

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Devourer Below is a short story anthology from the Arkham Horror setting – dealing with scenes of cosmic horror; dealing with unknowable horror rather than relying upon shock or violent horror. In The Devourer Below, there is a central theme to each of the short stories concentrating on one particular deity throughout the series of works. Each story within is written by a different author – aside from one which comes as a two-part series.

Running the Night Whiskey – Evan Dicken

A very solid start to the short story collection focusing on Leo, a lovable rogue who, along with a recently returned friend embarks on an illegal importing run. A fast-paced adventure novel that brings with it the undertones of something much more sinister.

The two central characters in this novel are well-written and have a flavor of their own while also working well together. The plot of exciting in itself and has scenes that dip into the overall feeling of horror. Each of the individual scenes was clear in their intent and there is a real feeling of connection with the characters and their thoughts and feelings to what was happening around them.

This short story sets the tone for the rest of the series of work and gives the first glimpse of the overall theme of the future stories.

Shadows Dawning – Georgina Kamsika

Selfishly, I enjoyed this particular short story for the central character – Lita Chandler – who has turned up in a game that I play with my regular gaming group. It was insightful to read more of her back story and discovering more about her. There was a real feeling of desperation from the central character in her desire to uncover the truth behind a life-shattering event for her and I did find myself rooting for her tragic, yet, heroic cause.

As a story, I did find it somewhat weaker than others in the novel and a bit lacking in the ‘horror’ department. As a short story, there wasn’t anything wrong with it per say, but I didn’t connect with the plot as easily as some of the other stories within the collection.

The Hounds Below – Josh Reynolds

Mr. Holsten is a journalist investigating the unsettling peculiarity of anthropophagic compulsion and seeks out mental asylum inmate Mr. Drew in order to aid him on his quest for knowledge.

Featuring a broken narrative and a flash-back that details Mr. Drew’s descent into the affliction, The Hounds Below is one of the strongest short stories in the anthology – chilling and intense, this one was a real page-turner; filled with enough mystery to keep the reader guessing and a horrific twist of a conclusion.

Labyrinth – Thomas Parrott

The first of a two-parter in the anthology, setting the scene with Private Investigator Joe Diamond, who is on the case trying to save the life of Nadia Leandros. The investigation takes him to the Miskatonic Universities Library where we’re transported back in time to the era of Mythical Greece, where a truly horrifying scene is set.

An atmospheric short story that keeps the overarching theme running throughout the rest of the series. While I had some struggles with the jump in time and wondering where the story was heading (not realizing that it was going to be picked up again later in Sins in the Blood) I was left wondering if I’d missed something!

Still another solid entry in the collection.

All my Friends are Monsters – Davide Mana

A mystery-themed horror novel that focuses on Ruth Turner, morgue worker by day, cross-dressing, speak-easy visiting, aficionado by night. Blackmailed by powerful individuals to ‘turn the other way’ in regards to aspects of her job, she makes a new set of ‘friends’ that threaten her blossoming relationship with Charlie.

Of all the stories in the anthology, this one was my personal favorite. I found it had a chilling atmosphere, despite some of the more upbeat elements to the story. There is a tragedy to Ruth and the events she endures and I found myself connecting to her plight. The plot felt more engaging and gripped me more than some of the other stories on offer, with a pace that felt well-considered and came to a chilling crescendo.

The Darkling Woods – Cath Lauria

Wendy and James are orphans on the run. Escaping the clutches of gang hierarchy on Arkhams docks brings them to a run-down hostel in Riverside; near the Arkham Woods.

I wasn’t such a fan of this particular short story. I found the characters more difficult to connect to and their plight felt forced somehow. It wasn’t a poorly written story, but I did feel that there was something lacking on the horror level. Whereas the other stories all led to a chilling conclusion, this one didn’t feel like it had the same level of threat compared.

Professor Warren’s Investiture – David Annandale

Professor Peter Warren has been gathering evidence for his life's work for the past 20ish years. Working doggedly to explain some of life's greater mysteries – too much mockery by his colleagues at the Miskatonic University. Frustration abounds, Peter finds himself at the Orne library where everything he wanted is delivered.

An interesting take on the overall theme of the stories! It offers a different insight into the cultists that have shown their faces time and again throughout the series. Offering a different perspective to the heroes and villains trope. While Professor Warren isn’t the easiest character to relate to his motivations are highly understandable due to the treatment he endures at the hands of his peers. It’s an engaging short story that had me partially enjoying and somehow cringing for the blindness of the lead character; very well written to inspire such conflicted emotions.

Sins in the Blood – Thomas Parrott

In the concluding half of Labyrinth, building on the knowledge that has been imparted through research, Joe Diamond must do what he can in order to save Nadia Leandros the same fate suffered by her bloodline.

Sadly, I struggled with this particular short story; while it stands up as a good conclusion to the previous part, there were some characters that I struggled to connect with. I found waitress Agnes, was overbearing and tried to steal the show from Joe Diamond, rather than complimented him. The conclusion of the story was well-considered and brought the anthology to a sublime ending – just a shame it was hindered by such a bolshy character trying to shoe-horn her way into an otherwise decent plot.

Overall, I enjoyed the anthology and found the collection of short stories thrilling and chilling. As always, there were stories that I enjoyed and preferred over others – this is always going to be the case with short story collections – some conveyed the chilling horror of the Lovecraftian-inspired Arkham more successfully than others.

Some characters will connect more than others, some will even inspire insipid amounts of hatred. Due to the nature of the short story, I did feel that some characters weren’t as well developed or considered compared to others and while the overall theme of The Devourer Below was carried between each of the short stories at times I did feel that there was something lacking in the horror elements of the stories. None-to-often did it seem that there was much to cause our heroes any real level of concern for their overall well-being. They seemed to deal with what they were seeing with relative ease; considering the vastness of what they were having to contend with.

Each of the stories is of just the right length for the anthology, not once did I find myself becoming bored with any of the particular stories, and nor did I feel like any of them were too short. They filled the time away over several evenings, taking my time to digest the information within.

The Devourer Below does a fantastic job of setting the scene for the Arkham Horror setting for those new to the world – giving a fantastic, collective, glimpse into the abject horror that can be found in the ill-fated city.

A hunger has awakened in Arkham, Massachusetts. Eight stories tell the tale of Arkham and the horrors that lurk there. Stories of those who want to fight the hunger, and of those who want to fuel it. This hunger wants to devour all.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I’m impressed with this book. I loved all 8 stories, and I had a hard time putting this book down. I especially loved how each story was separate, but they were all still connected in a way. Each story revealing just a little bit more information and glimpses into this hunger – The Devourer Below.

If I had to pick — my top two stories would be:
1. Labyrinth by Thomas Parrott
I’m a sucker for Greek mythology, and Greek mythology mixed with horror really made this one of my favorites. I also liked more than just the content – I enjoyed the pacing of this story and the suspense.

2. All my Friends are Monsters by Davide Mana
I really enjoyed Ruth as a character. It was interesting seeing how she handled the situation she was forced into. This was also a story where I feel like you got more of a connection to the other stories. I would love to read more about Ruth!

Overall this book had a good balance of suspense, mystery, and horror. This made me want to pick up more Arkham Horror books, and look into the board game as well!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you NetGalley and Aconyte Books for the ARC.

Thank you to Aconyte Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this anthology in exchange for an honest review.

"The Devourer Below" gives eight short horror tales, each one providing more windows into the world of Arkham, Massachusetts, and its strange, terrifying happenings. The "hunger" that has overtaken the town unfolds bit by bit with each tale, from the origin of its lore to the story's present, and with that, the reader is left with a very well-rounded and overall satisfying story as each piece connects itself.

While each of the eight stories does give overall information on the lore for this "hunger", there were only two that I was really blown away by. That's not to say that the remaining stories were uninteresting or poorly written, because they certainly weren't, they just lacked that OOMPH and hook that keeps me turning pages with excitement. Stephen King referred to it as the "gotta" in "Misery" ("I gotta know how this ends", "I gotta stay up a bit longer to see what happens in this chapter"), and that's where the majority of these tales fell flat for me.

That said, I did enjoy the puzzle aspect of this anthology, where each story continued to build the lore and background to this horror in Arkham. If you enjoy horror anthologies, especially with a bit of a Lovecraftian vibe, I would definitely recommend this. To me, the tie-in with Greek mythology in the "Labyrinth" story, and the "Silence of the Lamb" vibes in "The Hounds Below" would be worth picking this one up.

"The Devourer Below" will be out on July 6, 2021!

⭐⭐⭐/5

I was lucky enough to be granted this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I love horror and a horror anthology is something I've always been on the hunt for. One based on Lovecraft's works, a series of stories where I don't have to worry about overt racism is the best.

This group of stories gets three stars from me. I got an uncorrected proof and the stories will benefit a lot. They're pretty solid as they are presented now.

Pretty solid, three stars. I wanted more. And yes, yes I know. Short stories are meant to be quick, they don't have the time for the details a novel would. That doesn't mean there can't be better characterizations.

I felt bad for the characters because they're in danger. There are monsters around and that's terrifying. But I didn't care about any of them on a personal level. The focus really is on the darkness of the world, the monsters and the people sort of just fall to the wayside.

It left me feeling sort of flat by the end of it because none of them were memorable.