H.P. Lovecraft is a powerhouse figure within the horror and science-fiction community, and his story “Cool Air” is the perfect start to the 31 days of Halloween.
It offers a chilling story as the air around the reader becomes colder and colder.
“Cool Air” opens in New York around the turn of the 20th century. Readers follow an unnamed narrator who has come looking for “dreary and unprofitable magazine work.” He struggles to find cheap but comfortable housing, until one day he finds an unassuming brownstone which seems to suit his needs.
As the story progresses, we meet the other main character Dr. Munoz.
The characters meet after the narrator suffers a heart attack and looks to Munoz for help. They soon become friends but the narrator can’t help but feel some small sense of revulsion.
Munoz is described as well put together and cultured. He seems meticulous about his work if not a bit peculiar.
It is at this point that Lovecraft begins to foreshadow that all is not right with the dear Dr. Munoz, from the abnormally cold room he lives in, to his strange obsession with defeating death.
The narrator shares the same suspicions but pushes them away as Munoz’s condition begins to worsen.
The story comes to a climax when the narrator reads a note written by the late doctor, and Munoz recounts memories about a certain Dr. Torres.
The ending has you rereading the story right away. Revaluating one of the main characters in light of a certain revelation.
“Cool Air” doesn’t rely on terrifying monsters or overt gore to scare the reader. Instead, Lovecraft uses descriptive language and foreshadowing to keep the reader engaged.
He builds mountains of suspense in a few short pages. Lovecraft creates such a rich and interesting character out of a literally lifeless husk.
It leaves the reader asking a multitude of questions about the characters and their circumstances.
From the title, an inkling of thought begins to form. Reading further, more hints are dropped and it becomes clearer. So, when the last statement makes its appearance, the reader isn’t that surprised. Merely forced to accept what they had suspected all along.
The only failing, if it could be called that, is the overt foreshadowing. It became obvious where Lovecraft was taking his readers.
However, it is important to keep in mind that modern society has been inundated with the undead. In Lovecraft’s day, it would have been a novel concept.
Overall, the story, published in the 1920s, stands the test of time and is still a chilling tale. If you haven’t read “Cool Air,” then stop here and give it a read. Find it on H.P. Lovecraft’s website, hplovecraft.com, for free.
Griffen Winget can be reached at [email protected]