A Tor.Com Original (Laundry Files Book 9) - A Laundry novella

Stross does it again, combining wit, humor, and horror into a fun little short story that had me grinning like a loon and left me with the creeps. But really, did you need someone to tell you to to read another Laundry Files story?

Another in the Laundry series but probably not one for the uninitiated. Unless you know Bob Howard reasonably well, it could be confusing. The story is fairly predictable though, and could have been tightened up a bit.

A solid short story, with Stross' ability to mimic different writing styles as the backstory is presented through the disclosure of letters included in a briefing. A really fun example of taking pieces of history, myth, and fiction to a story that really holds together.

This is my second favorite Laundry Series short story. The premise is excellent, the evil is VERY evil, and the resolution was both icky and thought provoking. An excellent read by an excellent author.

Classic Laundry files. An interesting take on the whole unicorn myth as only Charles Stross could do. If you like the Laundry files novels its definitely worth a read. A bit heavy on Britishisms compared to some of the other books.

Short; snarky; and with a purported letter by HPL included....opens the way for a (possibly) interesting development at the laundry involving Bob Howard. On the mark with depiction of the horsey set in rural England.

In Charles Stross' world, unicorns aren't pink and sparkly and cute, nor are they snow white and majestic, with narwhal-like horns curling from their stately brows. Rather, they are over-sized, vicious carnivores, creatures far better suited to an H.P. Lovecraft narrative than to Saturday morning cartoons.

And Bob Howard is about to confront some.

Recommended.

Charles Stross is a consummate professional, his prose elegant, the horrors he creates offset by sly, dry humor. I discovered his work only recently but he's already firmly ensconced in the list of my favorite authors. I should note that I save 5 stars for the acknowledged titans of literature - Homer, Shakespeare, et al.

I generally enjoy the Laundry Files, but this one was underwhelming. In particular, the HP Lovecraft story arc felt thin (and was not helped by formatting issues on my Kindle that meant from about the middle on, the Lovecraft-specific text was not differentiated at all). And while Stross made light of the way the Lovecraft prose infected narrative, Lovecraft's voice did not stand out as being distinctive. And at times it seemed that Lovecraft had been infected with Stross' jokey style, rather than the other way around.

Then there was the incursion itself, which really made little sense when you stopped to consider. Sure, the Laundry never fights normal, terrestrial beasties, but usually there is a tricky twist, a "ta da" moment when the reveal shows us how clever we mere mortals really are. Our reveal here was relatively flat and the superior nature of the foe suggests that without high-tech weaponry it would prevail, which makes no sense either, because by rights we'd already be overrun with the nasties.

And the representation of country England was even more farcical than Stross usually is, with characters so over the top it verged into silliness.

So, more of a miss for me but if you're a rabid Laundry fan the price of admission is not too much that you couldn't overlook the structural flaws and probably enjoy it.

My apologies to Charles Stross, but I've never liked Lovecraft, despite having gone to college in Providence and even lived on Benefit Street. Stross successfully captures the ambiance that Lovecraft builds into his writings, and I don't like it. Several other reviewers have used the word "ick;" if I were restricted to a three-letter review, I would too. Next time, less dismal, more techno.

Equoid is a short story in Charles Stross's Laundry series, an fun horror-espionage series that seethes with the horrors of Otherworldy evils threatening humanity's existence and British bureaucratic process in equal quantities. This story revolves around suspicious deaths in very,very rural England and the true nature of Unicorns...they're not happy, bouncy things you'd want your daughter playing with, not by a long shot. The plotline does get muddy at a couple points insofar as who is doing what and why, but overall Stross does and excellent job of weaving a tale filled with mystery, horror, and no little bit of humor that culminates in a disturbing, action-filled ending. I give extra kudos for the innovative Lovecraftian tie-in and the Cold Comfort Farm (one of my favorite movies) references. The story is a good stand-alone if you've never read anything in the Laundry series before, otherwise I recommend picking up the first book in the series The Atrocity Archives. Three out of five stars.

Equoid by Charles Stross

Stross provides a distinctly different look at some fantasy staples or stables as in this case. The protagonist postulates a rather different Unicorn than that of the run of the mill fantasy portrayal. This is part of the Laundry series and is a novella.

The Laundry series seems to be written with the tongue in cheek, understated Brit or Dr. Who whimsy. The secret division of government that is tasked with keeping the occult under control is referred to as the Laundry.

Bob Howard is the understated protagonist. He perceives himself as a hard working yeoman in a generally boring branch of government unless he is knee deep in critters trying to do him in!

The understated, low key and occassionally verbose style is entertaining. It is reminiscent of the stereotypical "English Countryside" fiction. The inclusion of manic unicorns and special ops teams provide an excellent counterpoint to the laid back style.

I particularly liked the methodology of bureaucratic nonsense bashing with the periodic government memos.

It was suspenseful and entertaining, it was a good read.

I recommend the book.

The writing is excellent. It's an excellent fusion of technology and Lovecraftian horrors. I didn't read any of the other Laundry series, but this work stands quite well on it's own. Although it did have a few "shudder worthy" scenes, I wouldn't classify it as a work of "horror" fiction. I think perhaps it was because of the humor and interesting prose that lightened things up. Overall a great story.

This is a horror story. Its details are horrifying all right, but somewhat disgusting as well. A story Lovecraft might have written if he were much less inhibited and neurotic. Unforgettable, for good or ill, like Stross's equally horrifying but less stomach-churning story "A Colder War".

Typical, brilliant Astros at his best. Love these shorts and hope he makes more. A brilliant and fresh take on the Mythos creature Byakhee fused with unicorn legends and the Dark Old Ones that Lovecraft revealed to us.

M

I ordered this, It never downloaded-this idea of using wi-fi is a hoax, I'm no longer going to bother with the Kindle, it's been improved until it has become junk-which is what happens when you let tinkering geeks play with this stuff.

i ordered

Stories about demon horses are as old as history. In his Hugo-nominated
novella, "Equoid," Charles Stross takes this idea and runs 50 miles an hour
with it.

Bob Howard works for the Laundry, a top secret agency tasked with
protecting the realm from supernatural horrors. When he is assigned to
investigate reports of unicorns, he jumps at the cushy
assignment. Unicorns are imaginary, right? Unfortunately, the dossier
on unicorns contains a lengthy correspondence from H.P. Lovecraft as
well as Requests for Proposals for carnivorous horselike creatures to
replace the police equestrian forces.

Tentacle in cheek, Stross takes us on a scary ride that burns down
half of rural Sussex. And readers should not blame Stross for
Lovecraft's florid writing style but rather congratulate him.

That reminds me: we recently toured the Glasgow Police Museum, and I
highly recommend it. They are nice blokes who we hope won't have their
souls sucked out of their bodies by a Microsoft Word document.

Funny Brit word: ringpiece. Had to look it up in the Urban Dictionary.