Ah, spiders. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, there’s lot of ‘em in “Cult of the Spider Queen”, the latest skincrawling story in the Arkham Horror series, so arachnophobes beware. I should know, I am one.
A mysterious package takes plucky Arkham Advertiser reporter Andy van Nortwick to the jungles of the Amazon on the trail of missing actress and movie director, Maude Brion, who vanished a year ago but is rumoured to be alive. What Andy and his team of explorers find there will drive them to the edge of sanity and take the reader along for the ride.
This is the first novel from the Arkham Horror range that I’ve read and if it’s indicative of the quality of the other books then I’ll be reading them ASAP. Author S.A.Sidor captures the era beautifully and writes so well that this book will definitely not be the one to make me love spiders. In one scene there are thousands of them which will test the resolve of even the most ardent arachnid lover. And, yes, there really is a Spider Queen, and she’s big, but Sidor keeps her mostly in the shadows which is very effective. There is also a strong Lovecraftian vibe which is a constant, oppressive presence in the background of the story. The characters are well-rounded and believable and the story is perfectly paced. Chapters are short and snappy making the book a real page-turner.
From the gloriously schlocky (in a good way) title to the exacting 1920s period details, “Cult of the Spider Queen” is a note-perfect, pulpy rollercoaster that reminds me of those weekly cinema serials back in the day such as “Flash Gordon” and King of the Rocketmen”, and it would be awesome if it was developed now for TV or a movie. This book is a must for horror fans and masochistic spider-haters alike.

Cult of the Spider Queen is a rip-roaring 1920s set story that mostly takes place in the depths of the mysterious Amazonian jungle. Here, the fabled Spider Queen lives and junior reporter, Andy, of the Arkham Advertiser has snagged his way into a journey there, hoping to find the story that will make his name, if he can locate missing starlet, Maude Brion.

S.A.Sidor writes beautifully. The story flows well, the language and descriptions of that time are spot on and as an arachnophobie, the scene where there there are literally thousands of spiders made my skin crawl.

I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery/horror tale, but I’d rather hoped for more of a showdown at the end between the spider queen and Andy and his crew. We kept getting glimpses of this spider, but I’d wanted more, but that’s just my personal preference and there may be enough for others.

I loved this book it was atmospheric and creepy and just a good read, writing, characters and story were all good, an enjoyable read

Aconyte to me, over the last half dozen books or so, has become synonymous with Arkham Horror. The card and board games feature Lovecraftian horror taking place in or around Arkham during the roaring 20's and the authors at Aconyte have perfectly encapsulated that in prose form.

So, when I saw that they announced a new book taking place in the Amazon forest with SA Sidor at the helm, who previously wrote The Last Ritual, I was immediately interested. Now, before I begin this review I would like to say that I was given a review copy, but I have still pre-ordered a physical copy of this book so my money is on the line just as yours is. I have been an Arkham Horror board and card game player for 3+ years, and a Lovecraft reader for about 15.

As previously mentioned; Aconyte and SA Sidor have previously done Arkham Horror justice, and Cult of the Spider Queen keeps that track record going. It starts with an actress and her camera crew becoming lost in the Amazon jungle and a reporter, Andy, finding a film reel and note saying that the actress is still alive.

What follows is an Indiana Jones adventure with Lovecraftian horror beautifully mixed in. Andy goes to the Amazon Jungle to get the story of his career with a group of explorers (including an Arkham Horror fan favorite) and quickly realizes this is not the trip they were expecting, and maybe his crew isn't either.

I will state that an Arkham Horror adventure taking place in the Amazon, with a particular main character has an easily predictable associating campaign and Lovecraft story. I will also state that The Cult of the Spider Queen does not fall in to that easily predictable story line. Sidor blends multiple aspects of the Lovecraft mythos with the Arkham Horror universe and creates a sense of dread that will make you feel that something is watching you just out of your periphery, and unfortunately for our protagonists that is exactly the case.

Sidor and Aconyte do not disappoint with the latest addition to the Arkham Horror universe. Sidor is obviously someone well acquainted with Lovecraft and the Arkham Horror games and knows how to use them to blend together a very haunting story that will give Lovecraft and Arkham Horror fans nightmares.

And there are spiders. So...many...spiders.