An amusing and strange adventure that is hard to put down and even harder to forget. It also boasts one of the best titles ever. ( )

This fun book is a day-by-day accounting of one October. Told by Snuff, Jack's dog, it includes recognizable characters such as The Great Detective, the wolfman, and the Doctor who does experiments with lightning. While it deals with the Cthulhu mythos of H.P. Lovecraft, it is not necessary to be familiar with the mythos to enjoy the book. ( )

Re-reading for the SF/Fantasy monthly & loved it. It's a fast, fun read & has the quality I've come to expect from Zelazny. The story, as one of the character's of the book puts it, is 'a lunatic scavenger hunt' in more ways than one. Who are the people, what are they trying to accomplish - are they good or bad guys? It's also perfect Halloween reading.There are 31 chapters, one for each day of the month of October during which the story plays out. The early chapters are short, but they grow longer as our understanding of the story progresses - the plot thickens & so do the details. At first, we're not quite sure what is happening, but the characters are interesting. The story is filled with unlikely heroes & villains who make unlikely alliances & friendships. The characters, their names & other references were fun reading up on. Many are pulled from all over classic horror & the real world. Some I knew, others I vaguely recognized & some I'm still not too certain of. As usual, his novels are worthy of a re-read at a later date.The copy I have is illustrated in B&W. I didn't care much for them & found them more of a distraction than anything. Usually, I ignored them. ( )

ZB5

One of my favorites, I read it annually during the month of October--a chapter a day (or a day a chapter, if you like). Never before (and probably never again) will the reader root for Jack the Ripper. When it comes right now to good, evil, and a major cosmic rift, my money's on Jack and Snuff every time. With a rather comic ending and short chapters, every major "monster" is highlighted in an epic battle on Halloween night. A YA must-read, it's still this grown-up's all-time favorite! ( )