The Bookwyrm's Review of the Tower of Zhaal by C.T. Phipps

 

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Rating: 9.25/10 Stars

Plot Synopsis

It has been a year since John Henry Booth's exile from New America and the fall of the Black Cathedral. Cursed with a slow transformation into a monster, he has begun a doomed relationship with fellow escapee Mercury Halsey as they seek some way to arrest his transformation.

Dubious hope arrives in the form of the University, the deranged scientists and cultists descended from the staff of Miskatonic University. Except their offer of help comes at a price. Having sold themselves to ancient aliens called the Yith, they wish John and Mercury to join a group of rogues in hunting down a wayward member of their faculty: a man who intends to release the last of the sleeping Great Old Ones on an already ravaged planet. If they're telling the truth, John and Mercury will be heroes. If.

The Tower of Zhaal is the second novel of the Cthulhu Armageddon series, a post-apocalyptic continuation of H.P. Lovecraft's popular Cthulhu Mythos.

Review

C.T. Phipps’s books tend to blend the lines between genres, and Cthulhu Armageddon is certainly no exception. In fact, it probably mixes more genres than any of his other books, having elements of post-apocalyptic dystopia, weird west, Cthulhu mythos and horror mixed throughout. It’s this combination of elements that really sets this book apart, especially because it is very sparing in humor compared to the author’s other books.

The story centers around John Henry Booth, former ranger for one of the remaining human settlements, and now outcast in the wilds of the post-apocalyptic world left after the old ones returned. He is still trying to cling to his humanity, even though it was revealed in the first book, Cthulhu Armageddon, that Booth is not human, but something far different. This struggle to hold onto his identity is a central theme in the book, especially as events spin out of control and he is forced to embrace what he has denied for so long, in an effort to save those he loves, and avoid becoming a bigger monster than those he fights against. He is just a tragic hero, and you can’t help but root for him, even though the odds are definitely stacked against him.

The secondary characters are excellent. Mercury Halsey is such a strong character on her own. She’s there to chew bubblegum and kick ass, and she’s all out of bubblegum. She is the perfect partner for Booth, although you have the feeling that her relationship with Booth has tragedy written all over it. She is his link to the humanity that he is slowly losing the fight to maintain, and it’s interesting the way her character develops throughout the book. There are several other side characters that get some attention as well, and they each have their own arcs as they go in and out of Booth’s sphere of influence.

The villains are a mixed bunch, ranging from cultists to post apocalyptic raiders of varying levels of humanity. Some of the villains are of the unexpected variety as well, as they didn’t appear to be villains until their sudden, inevitable betrayal. It’s an excellent mix to keep the tension ratcheted up throughout the story, and leads to an excellent epic showdown at the end,

The world building is what you would expect from a big fan of Lovecraftian worlds. It’s a world steeped in despair, where kindness is as rare as hen's teeth. It’s a world where the Elder Gods came in and wreaked havoc on the world, not even noticing the bacteria that is humanity to them. This has left the world a dystopian wreck, with what remains of humanity scrambling to live in a world that even the strongest have trouble surviving in. It's a world where the definition of humanity is murky at best, where human hybrids are common and and it has become impossible to claim that their is a pure strain of humanity left. It gives the reader some interesting things to think about, including the nature of what is a family, and what is truly important when all the nonsense of modern life is suddenly cast aside to focus on survival. 

The audiobook narration is performed by Jeffrey Kafer. He brings a lot of warmth and snark to a story that could have been fairly grim and dark due to subject. He gives each character a wide array of emotions, and each has their own voice , distinct from the others. His narrative pacing is excellent, and you really get engrossed in the story.

This is very much a worthy sequel to Cthulhu Armageddon. It takes what worked in the first book and expanded on it, all while increasing the stakes. You really are in doubt throughout the story if the protagonists will pull through and save the world, and the answer will definitely shock you in a unseen twist. The author's deep knowledge of the Cthulhu mythos is quite obvious, and it really helps to build a fleshed out universe of incomprehensible beings who are responsible for the near annihilation of humanity. Its a book that will appeal to any fan of the mythos, dystopian futures and fans of good writing in general. I give it my highest recommendation.