'The enigmatic Carl Sanford is the master of all things occult in Arkham, until a charismatic newcomer threatens to take everything away from him in this dark mystery set in the world of Arkham Horror.
'Carl Sanford's mastery of the Silver Twilight Lodge gives him unbridled power and influence, but unforeseen turmoil is coming to Arkham... A new occult curiosity shop in the city, opened by newcomer Randall Tillinghast, draws Sanford's ire, challenging his formerly unrivalled authority. Sanford expects to crush the newcomer like an ant and take what he wants from the wreckage, but Randall Tillinghast isn’t quite as humble and harmless as he seems. In possession of an array of magical artifacts, Tillinghast begins to subvert Sanford’s reputation in more ways than one, forcing Carl Sanford to call all the monsters and magic at his disposal to stop him. Will it be enough?'
Last year I read The Ravening Deep by Tim Pratt and found it to be one of the most engaging and entertaining books in the Arkham Horror series, with some great characters, superb world building, and a plot that kept me hooked throughout. I was surprised to find out that the book wasn't a stand-alone adventure, however, as Herald of Ruin sees the return of several of the characters that made the previous entry in the series such a delight. Whilst this return was a surprise, it was a thoroughly pleasant one.
One of the biggest changes is that this time round one of the antagonistic figures from the first book, Carl Sanford, who became something of an unwilling ally to our protagonists, steps into a lead role; forcing the audience to have to fully embrace the moral greys that make Arkham its home as you begin to root for a character you really shouldn't.
Carl Sanford runs the Silver Twilight Lodge, a secret society that makes Arkham its home, and whose study into the occult and the mystical can be considered dangerous at best, or downright evil at worst. Sanford is a man who is used to power, both in the world of men and in the world of the occult, and uses his position to gather as much as he can. As such, when a new occult book shop opens in the city it adds a wrinkle into Sanford's carefully crafted world. The shop owner, Randall Tillinghast, gives one of Sanford's followers an item that Sanford has always wanted it begins to form cracks in his carefully created kingdom.
It's easy to paint certain characters as truly bad, especially in works of horror where people tend to fall onto one side or another in moral alignment. Carl Sanford would absolutely be evil in the hands of a lesser writer, a character who would be almost cartoonish in his quest for power and dominance. However, Pratt has managed to craft a surprisingly layered character here, one who you absolutely wouldn't trust, but one that you can enjoy spending some time with. The same can be said for another returning character, Ruby, who was on the opposite side of Sanford for much of the first book in the series. A thief by trade, Ruby has come to work for Sanford, despite knowing what kind of person he is, both for the thrill of the work and the obscene amount of money that she can make working for him.
Whilst the book spends a great deal of time making you cheer Sanford on, much to your own surprise, you also start to lose some respect for Ruby, and she does some stuff during the book that makes you wonder just how many of her morals she's going to have to go against whilst on this path. It's an interesting journey to go on, seeing a villain from the last book become your protagonist, whilst one of your previous protagonists starts to lose her way more and more. Despite this, it's still great to see both characters return, and they make for some truly enjoyable additions to the Arkham Horror universe, and now that we've had one sequel I hope that this leads to more books featuring the two of them.
Much like the first book, the Silver Twilight Lodge is a great excuse to explore some fun parts of the universe, and there are a ton of tiny easter eggs and lore nuggets scattered throughout the book that grab your interest. Thanks to Sanford being a voracious collector there are a number of times throughout the book where you learn a little about the things he has in his private collection that could be the star McGuffin of its own story and you find yourself wanting to learn more about them. It's not just Sanford who brings this wealth of lore with him, however, as Tillinghast's shop is a plethora of cool items and interesting books that make this feel like a bit of a cameo-fest in the best possible way.
Pratt doesn't just fill the pages with these small treats and hints at bigger things though, as he also crafts a wonderfully enjoyable narrative. The story has twists and turns, surprises, betrayals, and plots that feel like they'd be at home in a gangster story as much as they do here. Sanford almost operates in a world of organised crime, just with dark magic, and Pratt really seems to know how to convey this on the page. You get small mentions of things early on in the book that come to matter in big ways later on, and expected tropes get subverted in surprising ways.
Fans of the Arkham Horror game series will get a lot out of this entry in the novel series, but it will absolutely appeal to non-gamers too. The story works well as a stand-alone too, and knowledge of the previous novel isn't vital to enjoy this one, meaning that anyone with a passing interest will be able to pick it up and have a brilliant time with it. Hopefully this won't be the last time that Tim Pratt gets to play in this universe, as he brings some fantastic things to the table when he does.
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