A Night in the Lonesome October in Beyond Reality

Sep 07, 2008 Stephen rated it really liked it

Shelves: award-nominee-nebula, fantasy, to-re-read

4.0 stars. A fun, whimsical story narrated by a dog featuring all of your favorite monster characters (Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolfman, Jack the Ripper) as they battle to prevent (or allow) the Elder Gods of Lovecraft's universe to enter our world on Halloween. A great read.

Nominee: Nebula Award for Best Science Fiction Novel (1995) ...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Christine H rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: funny

This book is an old friend. I read it again every October, though I never manage to restrain myself to the day-a-chapter pace I envision. It's always fun to check in with Jack and Snuff and the rest of the horror story gang, not to mention The Great Detective. Zelazny artfully pulls together a plethora of well-known characters, all against a Lovecraftian backdrop, while evoking a fun Halloween spirit.

I confess that, just as I do when reading Lovecraft himself, I skim the more Dreamquest-y passag ...more

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Apr 19, 2008 John rated it really liked it

This was a good book. I'm still trying to decide whether the ending was a brilliant wrapping-up of the plot and its diverse threads or a bit too facile, but I really did enjoy reading the book.

It brings together quite possibly the oddest assortment of characters: Zelazny dedicated this "To-- Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H.P. Lovecraft, Ray Bradbury, Robert Bloch, Albert Payson Terhune, and the makers of a lot of old movies -- Thanks." As I recognized, in on This was a good book. I'm still trying to decide whether the ending was a brilliant wrapping-up of the plot and its diverse threads or a bit too facile, but I really did enjoy reading the book.

It brings together quite possibly the oddest assortment of characters: Zelazny dedicated this "To-- Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, Bram Stoker, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, H.P. Lovecraft, Ray Bradbury, Robert Bloch, Albert Payson Terhune, and the makers of a lot of old movies -- Thanks." As I recognized, in one form or another, Frankenstein and his monster, the Count Dracula, and Sherlock Holmes, I presume that characters were drawn from all of these writers. Our main character, our focal character, is a dog. A dog who belongs to Jack the Ripper.

Okay, okay, I know: this probably sounds like an utterly crazy novel. And when I tell you that virtually all of these characters, we discover, are actually wizards and witches of one brand or another, I know I'm probably not making it sound any less crazy. Here's the thing, they're all gathered as October rolls around because, at midnight on Halloween, it will be an opportune time to open a gate to another plane of existence and bring the Elder Gods to our world to wreak havoc and remake the world. Some of these sorcerous personages are coming to achieve this purpose, while some--including Jack and his dog--are there to prevent it and, therefore, save our world.

The dog, I should add, is not only intelligent, but erudite. Jack's busy doing all sorts of important things, but it still seems like Snuff, his dog, is doing most of the real work. All of these magicians have a "familiar," an intelligent animal companion. One cool thing about the book is the way that Zelzany gets these intelligent animals just right. While they may talk with wit, style, and substance, they are also unmistakably the animals that they seem to be, in their mannerisms and in their thoughts. It's fascinatingly well-done.

As we lead up to the 31st (each day gets a chapter), it's not entirely clear who is on whose side. It's a story of intrigue and adventure, a story of magic, mystery, and murder. And I enjoyed it thoroughly. I can't say it's Zelazny's best work, but it's pretty good. Zelazny is always an intelligent writer, a well-read writer, and a writer with style and grace. And fun. I'll no doubt be reviewing some more Zelazny, as I'm going to teach his Lord of Light in my AP English class. I have no idea what we're going to talk about yet. That's for next week--no worries. ...more

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Dec 27, 2017 Richard rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, ebook, sffbc

Three stars... that means I liked it.
Enjoyable interesting fun. Quirky and touching but not life changing.
If you’re into Zelazny then a must read, if not; then still worth a look.

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Mar 29, 2011 Deedee rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi-and-fantasy-book-club, challenge-2011-summer, fantasy, nebula-award-nominee, beyond-reality-fantasy, isfdb-top-100, scifi-and-fantasy-club-read

I read A Night in the Lonesome October because it was nominated for a Nebula Award in 1994. I was disappointed. Overall, this novel is a combination of a scavanger hunt and of the detailing of shifting alliances amongst various "players" (like on the TV-show "Survivor"). I think there were in-jokes that I didn't "get"; I might have enjoyed it more if I "got" the in-jokes. But I didn't, hence my rating.
...more

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