Kent David Kelly

Although well written and easy to read, the story really held no interest for me. I will not be reading the sequel(s).

The description of the book and the prolog in the book really were for the series, not for this book. They had almost no relevance to this book at all.

All this book had was basically a woman fretting, while driving to a previously prepared bomb shelter in the wilds of Colorado. The prolog promises so much more. And the details of the narrative could hardly have come from diary entries, as the prolog indicates. They are just too detailed, especially for someone that would have been frenzied the whole time.
… (mere)

Kent David Kelly's "The Necronomicon" is one more book to add to the ever-growing ranks of Necronomicon's lining up on the bookshelves everywhere. This particular version is a well-written Lovecraft pastiche and sets itself up as a rather clever occult grimoire with associated biographical and historical touches. As everyone knows The Necronomicon was a fictional tome created by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. Purportedly authored by the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred it was first mentioned in the Lovecraft story "The Nameless City" (1923) and first appeared in the 1924 story "The Hound". Followers of Lovecraft such as August Derleth and Clark Ashton Smith used The Necronomicon in their own works leading many to believe it to be a real book. Taking advantage of the knowledge and notoriety of the fictional volume many writers developed and published books with the title Necronomicon. Kelly imagines "The Necronomicon" as a text written by Abdul Alhazred, but annotated by others. The story introduces us to Alhazred and his adventures across the ancient world, as well as his forays into the Dreamlands, his learning of the terrible secrets of Cthulhu, his encounters with the sects of the Elder Gods and his quest to resurrect his lost love, the murdered Adaya. Although some of the language in "The Necronomicon" is a bit heavy, particularly in the opening sections, it does eventually open out into a highly poetic and impressionistic storyline. Kent David Kelly fill his story with clever nuances and weaves in all his Lovecraft references with subtly and no little skill. That he also managed to make this a love story is also both highly interesting and highly commendable. This version of "The Necronomicon" won't be for everybody, but anyone interested in Lovecraft and his terrifying cosmic grimoire will find much to enjoy and admire within its pages.… (mere)