I picked up this book from a Camphor Press ebook sale awhile back. They are a great small press that specialize in South East Asian books. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect going into this book, but the cover art intrigued me. I am always up for an adventure, so I thought, what the heck and clicked ‘add to shopping cart’. I have never read an H.P. Lovecraft book, nor ever heard of him but they compare this writing style to him a lot. After reading this book, I am certainly more intrigued about that author, too.

The book starts with a description of how the book was made. They discovered the short stories online in Chinese, and translated them to create this book. The translators crafted an over-arching story to hold the 4 short stories together to make it feel more like a novel.

Each story could stand on its own, but there is certainly a similar theme running throughout all 4 stories. I really enjoyed these weird, spooky stories. It felt like a mix between Indiana Jones, Dan Brown, but in a tense, spookier setting. You felt like you were reading the journal of an explorer who isn’t quite sure what they’ve stumbled upon and by turning each page you are falling deeper, and deeper into the growing mystery.

If you’re up for something strange, yet satisfying, you can pick it up for only a few USD from Camphor Press. You’ll also be supporting a small book press as well.

Also, if you like weird stuff, one of the translators has written a strange one called Party Members which might interest you as well.

Rating: ★★★★

Book #10 in my My 2022 Reading Challenge