Cthulhu Blues: A SPECTRA Files Novel by Douglas Wynne
JournalStone (September 2017)
302 pages; $16.93 paperback; $4.95 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington
Cthulhu Blues is a fitting conclusion to the SPECTRA Files series which began in 2015 with Red Equinox and continued last year with Black January. I’m going to miss Becca Philips and Jason Brooks as they battle the cosmic horrors found in the Lovecraftian mythos. I’ll even miss Becca’s dog Django.
The latest story begins with Becca having checked herself into the Psych Center at UMASS, Tewksbury, to be monitored while she slept. Her symptoms: singing in her sleep and a recurring nightmare at 3:33 every morning. In addition, mirrors are showing a link to another world.
A cyclone of eels revolved in the water below the mirror’s surface, coalescing in a pattern resembling a woman turning in a pirouette, trailing scarves of black flesh. A chill coursed through Becca’s skin just as warmth ran down the inside of her leg and urine puddled at her feet.
There are a number of children around the country who also have been singing in their sleep, and they’ve been collected by a mysterious minstrel to form A choir of the Voice, an instrument played by the ocean…”They’re going to raise Cthulhu.”
Can Becca save the children and stop this catastrophe from occurring or will she join the choir?
Filled with twists and the Lovecraftian vibe these “SPECTRA Files” stories are known for, Cthulhu Blues works well as a standalone novel, but I certainly recommend reading all three books in the series.
