The Nameless City

Howard Phillips Lovecraft

Summary

Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890-1937) was an American writer, poet, literary critic and essayist, recognized as one of the greatest writers of horror literature together with Edgar Allan Poe and considered by many to be one of the precursors of Anglo-American science fiction. His works, a contamination between horror, soft science fiction, dark fantasy and low fantasy, have often been described, even by himself, with the term weird fiction (where weird stands for "strange"), being recognized among the main origins of the modern literary genre of the new weird.One of Lovecraft’s most famous horror stories, The Nameless City was written in January 1921, it was first published in the November 1921 issue of the amateur press journal The Wolverine. It is often considered the first story set in the Cthulhu Mythos world.The unnamed narrator of the story travels to the middle of the Arabian Desert to explore an ancient underground lost city. After hearing a clanging seemingly coming from deep inside the earth, the narrator inspects mysterious carvings and ruins until nightfall. The next day, the narrator discovers a cliff riddled with low-ceilinged buildings, unfit for human use. While he attends to his suddenly nervous camel, the narrator discovers a somewhat larger temple, with altars, painted murals, and a small staircase going down. After he descends, his torch dies, and he crawls on his hands and knees until he enters a hallway with small wooden coffins containing bizarre reptiles inside of them lining the walls.

Available since: 01/09/2026.

Other books that might interest you

Shadows Of Hell

Rachel Lawson

While watching the sky at night Blake, the King of Death and his son the Necromancer see a falling star and go to see where it fell, finding there a crashed UFO are these aliens friendly or dangerous? How will this end?

Show book

Z Horizon - A Post-Apocalyptic...

Camille Picott

Civilizations ravaged by a virus. Desperate survivors fight for scraps as unlikely heroes rise from the ashes.
Z Horizon features 4 full-length, post-apocalypse novels. Get 42+ hours of pulse-pounding action and gripping, apocalyptic characters in this bargain box set.
Undead Ultra - Book 1 of Undead Ultra
Boston Marathon meets The Walking Dead
When a zombie apocalypse suddenly erupts, seasoned runner Kate must journey on foot to reach her son, trapped miles away. And with the hungry undead roaming the streets, it’ll be the hardest race of her life…
Dead Run - Book 1 of Afterworld Apocalypse
Running Man meets 28 Days Later
Plaguers prowl the earth. Humanity has become prey. A war of intrigue rages for control of a vaccine. Sulan and her family of misfits find themselves in the crosshairs of power-hungry warlords. They just might be the key to saving civilization … if it doesn't destroy them first.
Book of John - Book 1 of Jesus Christ Zombie Killer
Game of Thrones meets WWZ
In ancient Galilee, a new evil rises. King Herod conspires with a High Priestess of Death. Using unholy necromancy, they raise an army of the dead. John and his unlikely band of warrior shepherds are all that stand between the world and total destruction.
Red Virus - Book 1 of Zommunist Invasion
Red Dawn meets Dawn of the Dead
1985. Height of the nuclear tensions between Russia and the US. A sleepy town is the epicenter of a Soviet invasion. But the Russians don't attack with nukes. Instead, they deploy a lethal zombie virus. Leo, an ordinary apple farmer, finds himself caught between Soviet crosshairs and the ravenous undead.
4 deadly outbreaks, 4 collapsed worlds, and the heroes who battle monsters both dead and alive. Get this bargain box set today!

Show book

The Mass for the Dead

E. Nesbit

The Mass for the Dead was first published in 1893 in E. Nesbit's "Grim Tales", a collection of romantic horror stories.Jasper's true love is to marry another man for the sake of familial wealth. On the eve of the wedding, the two lovers are each haunted by supernatural music, reminiscent of a funeral mass.

Show book

At The Mountains Of Madness

H.P. Lovecraft

This is one of the most famous Horror novels by perhaps the most famous - certainly, most famous American - Horror author of the early Twentieth Century. A literally chilling tale with an engaging and cleverly crafted cast of characters, propelled inexorably towards unwanted discoveries and inevitably insanity. 
This reading has been produced by Alexander Leithes with the aid of his thespian friend, Pincent Vrice, doing his utmost to capture the spirit of his near namesake.

Show book

Inked in Blood and Memory

Allison Ivy

Recluse Sophie Vanguard's winter cabin retreat turns ominous when blue flowers mysteriously appear. They're everywhere. On her front porch, in kitchen cabinets, and even on her pillow. It isn't long before chilling whispers echo in the halls, and her journal repeats seven unsettling entries.  
Enter the bloodied and beautifully eccentric Ly Thi Ren. Though Ren seems familiar, Sophie refuses to believe the girl's insistence that they are trapped inside a book. 
In a land of fiction, truth and lies blur together, clear decisions are marred by doubt, and shared family trauma lurks just below the surface. 
Can Ren and Sophie make it out alive? Or will they end up nothing more than words inked in blood and memory?

Show book

Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge An

Ambrose Bierce

In An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, Ambrose Bierce spins a gripping tale of psychological tension and the brutal realities of war. Set during the American Civil War, the story follows Peyton Farquhar, a Southern plantation owner who is sentenced to death by hanging for attempting to sabotage a Union railroad bridge. As Farquhar faces his imminent demise, Bierce masterfully plays with the boundaries of time and perception, drawing readers into a haunting exploration of life, death, and the mind's final moments.
Bierce's stark portrayal of human suffering, the futility of war, and the illusory nature of time makes this story a striking commentary on the fragility of human existence. Through its sudden twist ending, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge remains one of Bierce's most iconic works, a brilliant reflection on the contrast between hope and despair.

Show book