In a post, reviewing a 1991 book called The Cipher, our friend Loren Eaton says he wishes more writers were pursuing the horror genre. “Oh, the genre lives on in cinemas, but it has largely vanished from book racks. I’ve wondered why for the longest time and actively looked for any authors that specialize in it…”

Loren had high hopes for The Cipher, but found it a bit thick and dismal. “I guess the crux of the matter is this: Horror should seem horrifying, but you need to feel that something worthwhile could be lost during the story for it to become so. Such a sense is completely absent in The Cipher. Things start out badly. They grow marginally worse by the end. In between is 350 pages of mostly senseless, self-inflicted suffering.”

In the comments, a few names and titles are kicked around.

For context on his perspective, Loren discusses all he learned about H.P. Lovecraft in 2013.