This season, I've fallen behind on the Audio dramas with all the festive planning, and on-off COVID scares. But I finally managed to complete one. Arkham County is free to listen to Audiobook, available with an Audible subscription.
Title: Arkham County
Author: Guy Adams
Fluff: Welcome to Arkham County. Population: 749,824. But that number is dropping all of the time...
Lying northeast of Massachusetts, just south of Hell, Arkham County is somewhere you find yourself, not somewhere you ever mean to go. Once you do find it, though, you better get used to living there, as you may be there for however long you have left to live.
From within the walls of Arkham asylum, reclusive writer Randolph Carter tells the story of orphan Violet Flintock, who arrives in Arkham County in search of her own history only to be instantly greeted by the bloody realities of this small town, whose foundations are built from the lore and mythology of HP Lovecraft.
In this Audible Original production, Stanley Tucci (The Devil Wears Prada, Fortitude) leads a cast to introduce you to the horrific, bizarre and just plain weird world of Arkham County. This HP Lovecraft-inspired tale will delight fans and those unfamiliar with his wild, surreal and terrifying horror stories.
Starring;
David Annen as Vincent Matravers
Emily Barber as Violet Flintlock
Dakota Blue Richards as Morrigan
Burn Gorman as Wilbur
John Heffernan as Walter Gilman
Alex Kingston as Henrietta
Laurel Lefkow as Keziah Mason
Stuart Milligan as Marsh
Carlyss Peer as Chloe
Blake Ritson as Herbert West
Dan Starkey as Dean Halsey
Shane Taylor as Detective Lewis
Becky Wright as Lavinia
Director: by Simon Barnard
Review
Review
An imaginative retelling of all the Lovecraftian stories at once. We are treated to the mashing of multiple tales brought into a slightly more modern age. These tales are connected to the author Randolph Carter who spends most of his time in Arkham psychiatric hospital typing away. He seems to have a more robust understanding of what is going on around him, but it is unclear if he controls the pieces or can narrate what is happening.
The story itself jumps between the Mythos while modernizing parts and creating new ways to justify everyone being in one place simultaneously. I can see the story having a polarizing effect on fans. Some like myself will enjoy the new take on these tales, while the purist will struggle to accept the changes made. Overall I have a lot of positives about this tale. I really enjoyed it from start to finish, and it has sparked my interest in re-reading the source material. I enjoyed the Herbert West arc and, of course, the Marsh story, two of my favourites from the original material.
But it wasn't all perfect, wasn't was off. One minute the talking was levelled, but then a sound effect or some music would kick in and be super loud (great with headphones). I also found the ending quickly, which left me feeling a little cheated. Is there to be another audio drama? I really do hope so.
How would I change it...maybe they should have focused on a couple of tales to start with and then, in a follow-up, bleed more characters into the story. You will definitely be lost in the dreamland if you don't know the H.P Lovecraft stories. They don't explain what is going on at all. But for open-minded fans, this is a great little twist on the classics.
Do you agree? Let me know in the comments. I hope you enjoyed it? Feel free to comment below or seek me out on one of the many social platforms I hang out on. Here is a quick LINK (Solo bio link) to my details. Cheers to reading this.
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