Epeolatry Book Review: Madness from the Sea: The Dreamlands by Jonathon T. Cross

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​Title: Madness from the Sea: The Dreamlands
Author: Jonathon T Cross
Genre: Occult Horror
Publisher: Independent
Date: 6th September, 2024

Synopsis: Finn came of age knowing nothing of the world that once was. Cthulhu was released prior to Finn’s birth, and madness has since loomed over humanity. 
Although Cthulhu never left R’lyeh, his call continues to lure victims by the boatload.
On every continent, societies prepare their young against Cthulhu’s telepathic reach. Teaching them to resist the allure of R’lyeh, lest they be swayed to their doom.
Bad dreams and monsters under the bed are no longer scoffed at, they are active threats to humanity’s survival.
No one is exempt, no location is beyond reach, not even the depths of one’s mind are off-limits.
The frailty of humankind has never been on grander display.

Greetings, Reader! When you think of the End Times, what do you picture? The rise of demonic creatures? The collapse of society? What if the End Times just means living our lives exactly as we are now? Going to work or school just like normal, all the while an ominous figure sits, waiting, and a voice in the back of our heads tells us to get into a boat and sail far into the sea.

Jonathon T. Cross gives us the second book in his Madness From the Sea series, Madness From the Sea: The Dreamlands. In a unique approach, The Dreamlands takes place after the summoning of the Great Cthulhu. Unique in that, to most, the arrival of Cthulhu spells the end, but here, it’s simply the beginning. Cross has built a world around Cthulhu’s presence. While some hear the call, others are simply less prone to its pull. Life continues ever aware that at any minute doom could strike from R’lyeh. 

Finn, the lead protagonist, is a student at a local university. When his dreams are disturbed by an unfamiliar calling, he seeks help from his estranged mother, Emma-Lynn. Emma-Lynn, suffering from the calls of Cthulhu, has taken to secluding herself. After their reunion fails, another God from Lovecraft’s mythos will make themself known to mother and son. From there, Finn will travel into the fabled Lovecraftian Dreamlands and journey to find his purpose.

From traversing the world of cultists to exploring the Dreamlands, Cross’ second book makes an explosive expansion to the Cthulhu mythos. With the introduction of another member of Lovecraft’s pantheon, readers learn that are others at play post Cthulhu’s rising. The best part for fans of Lovecraft’s work is the attention to detail that Cross pays in the Dreamlands. As Finn sets forth on his Dream-quest, the reader is reintroduced to mythical creatures like zoogs, gugs, and night-gaunts. Locations and characters from the original works make a return appearance and are used to great effect in the continuation of the series.

Having reviewed Cross’ first book, I’m hugely impressed with where the second novella takes us. Finn’s Dream-Quest feels epic. Those he meets along the way, the places he visits, and battles fought make these hundred pages feel like much more, as if I had read a much longer story by the time I was done. The characters from the first novel, too, make a return and continue to add to the lore surrounding this addition to the mythos. The ending is left open, hopefully for a continuation of this series.

Madness from the Sea: The Dreamlands by Jonathon T. Cross is an epic in novella form. True to the source material, fans of Lovecraft’s works and of dystopian occult, will enjoy this book, and I highly recommend it.

/5

Available from Amazon and Bookshop.

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