Classic horror

'The King in Yellow' is arguably one of the most important pieces of twentieth century horror, going on to inspire writers such as H.P. Lovecraft. The first four stories are the ones that deal with the genre and display a level of cosmic horror and existential dread (via a play whose second act drives the reader to madness) that Lovecraft would later use in his stories. The highlight for me was 'The Yellow Sign' which I found to be genuinely scary. The others are of different genres ranging from war to romance but you might as well check then out.

This audiobook is a great way to experience the story either for the first time or for revisiting it. The narrators give a strong performance without over or under performing (something that's taken for granted until you listen to someone who reads like they're reading the phonebook) making it an easy listen that's never boring. The level of dread is conveyed excellently throughout.

If you're a fan of early horror literature or want a better understanding of the genre's history you should definitely check this out.

13 people found this helpful

Droll, tedious selection of short stories

I really should have done my homework before purchasing this. Knowing this was an influence on Lovecraft, I was expecting a collection of eldritch horror stories. What I got was a handful of tame, vanilla ghost tales which then transitioned into several stories of overwrought romantic guff. The only stories I derived any enjoyment from were the first, The Repairer of Reputations, and the fifth, The Demoiselle d'Ys. The other eight stories were truly a slog, finished only to prove... something... to myself. Not a pleasurable listening experience overall.

6 people found this helpful

Get your Hastur Paranoia Here

To keep this short,
The narration was stellar, the perfect voices and tons from these two. They convinced me of their characters.
Chambers started strong with how the yellow sign twists people and their minds, BUT that motif stopped halfway through and seemed to become simple stories about love.

3 people found this helpful

The Perfect Adaptation

HorrorBabble is one of THE BEST for audiobooks. Their adaptation of classics is just... perfection. I highly recommend to anyone who wishes to listen to classics to get one of their books. You won't regret it

2 people found this helpful

I'm shamelessly biased.

HorrorBabble does amazing work. I actually received this for free because of a gushy piece of fan mail (I'm still so touched they answered my email!). I simply adore their Lovecraft readings, and I loved the horror short story contest they held over on YouTube. This review is long overdue, but keep up the good work guys!!

2 people found this helpful

Am I missing something? Or is this book boring?

I was very, very excited for this book. It gets a lot of hype. But the first few stories are mediocre weird tales. The narrative then just withers away as story after story pass by - nothing really happening or having anything to do with The King in Yellow. Ian Gordon is one of my favorite narrators ever, so it sucks to dislike this so plainly. The female lines are performed by a woman with a depressing absence of acting skill. The whole thing is a slog that I just can't seem to put the last hour into.

ok

1st part is what I was after, 2nd half was not as great, to me.

Great selection of stories, just know what you’re getting

I really enjoyed all of the stories, only the first few really relate to the king in yellow. One chapter is a collection of very short stories that almost felt like the overall theme transitioned from stories about the king in yellow to, stories from the king in yellow. Each short story in that chapter deals with ‘gods’ and cosmic beings in some sort of parable, but a parable that feels like it’s intent is to mess with your thinking; rather than clarify it. After that chapter, the rest of the stories are love stories, all be it, clandestine love stories. To be included in The King in Yellow, in line with some of the parables referencing Love and it’s mental bewitchery, I think the final intent is to say that love is the god of insanity. The pallid mask, the thing of beauty, that drives us to do things we would never do in the name of an emotion we don’t understand. The love stories at the end are great on their own. But if you think about them as a part of this collection, you either have to make some leaps to connect them back to the meaning of the king in yellow in such a way, or you will be upset that they are in this collection.

Nothing Special

I'm at a loss as to why this is so highly rated. The performance is fine, but often feels rushed one minute and then lazily slow the next. Gill isn't the worst I've heard, but thankfully, she has very little in the way of speaking. Then there is the annoying spaces between the stories which seem utterly pointlessly to me.

And then there's the stories. I feel like the people that like it, say they do because they feel like they should. I'm a huge lover of eldritch horrors, but most of this book was painfully boring and has nothing to do with the King in Yellow. I had to keep coming back to it after breaking for other books to cleanse my pallet. This book should have an additional title, "And other Stories". And why is everyone an artist? Or an object (I use that word specifically) of affection. Sorry, folks. I am not a fan. The second and third stories were fine, but the rest are not for me.

loved it

a strange and wonderful variety of short stories, I now understand why they call it "weird-fiction"