The House on the Borderland (Version 2)
William Hope Hodgson
Read by John Van Stan
This story helped propel 19th Century gothic fiction in the direction of “cosmic” horror. In fact, H.P. Lovecraft lists it as among his greatest influences. It begins simply enough: with two friends stumbling upon a ruined and curious house while vacationing in a remote village. After reading the tattered journal of the old recluse who lived there, they are shocked to discover an interdimensional, reality-bending nightmare full of nearly-indescribable horrors that range from demons, to bestial (somewhat Lovecraftian) monsters, and devastating parasitic fungal diseases. - Summary by jvanstan (5 hr 38 min)
Chapters
Dedication and Author's Introduction | 3:36 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Finding of the Manuscript | 23:37 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Plain of Silence | 12:48 | Read by John Van Stan |
The House in the Arena | 14:08 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Earth | 7:05 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Thing in the Pit | 13:44 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Swine-Things | 20:15 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Attack | 11:10 | Read by John Van Stan |
After the Attack | 9:45 | Read by John Van Stan |
In the Cellars | 8:15 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Time of Waiting | 6:40 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Searching of the Gardens | 13:55 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Subterranean Pit | 21:37 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Trap in the Great Cellar | 9:40 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Sea of Sleep | 9:10 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Noise in the Night | 23:01 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Awakening | 11:50 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Slowing Rotation | 14:05 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Green Star | 17:02 | Read by John Van Stan |
The End of the Solar System | 9:54 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Celestial Globes | 7:45 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Dark Sun | 11:00 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Dark Nebula | 11:00 | Read by John Van Stan |
Pepper | 2:20 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Footsteps in the Garden | 8:26 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Thing from the Arena | 19:05 | Read by John Van Stan |
The Luminous Speck | 5:55 | Read by John Van Stan |
Conclusion | 9:11 | Read by John Van Stan |
Grief | 2:30 | Read by John Van Stan |
Reviews
Wonderfully Read Proto-Lovecraftian Novel
A LibriVox Listener
The narrator of this wonderfully melancholic cosmic horror has a stupendous sense of the dramatic, which creeps through his reading. This was a thoroughly enjoyable book.
classic
agathe
a classic story of the genre brought to life by a skillful, light handed reader. i am very grateful for all his hard work.
Max
Very good story and well read. But I did find parts of it rambling.
W. M. Pienton
I enjoyed how it was read more than the story itself.
Sara Virginia
An amazing story, read by a wonderful narrator!