Arkham Horror - "Maschera d'Argento"

Arkham Horror #12

by Rosemary Jones, Marco Crosa (Translator)

Jeany Lin, truccatrice e costumista di Hollywood, si reca ad Arkham per lavorare sul nuovo film del terrore dell’enigmatico regista Sydney Fitzmaurice. La protagonista è sua sorella Renee Love, collaboratrice e amante di Sydney. Nella disperata ambizione di superare il brivido e l’orrore dei popolari film di Lon Chaney, Sydney prepara sequenze oniriche soffuse di occultismo per Renee e i suoi coprotagonisti. Ma non tutto è finzione cinematografica: la troupe sperimenta incubi ricorrenti, incidenti misteriosi e visioni impossibili nelle ore di veglia. Quando gli eventi prendono una piega sinistra e la gente sul set comincia a sparire, tocca a Jeany smascherare i mostri prima che le ossessioni di Sydney conducano tutti alla rovina…

Genres: Horror, Lovecraftian, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Cthulhu Mythos, Ebooks

283 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 20, 2022

About the author

Plunged into the Roaring Twenties for the Arkham Horror titles Mask of Silver and its sequels The Deadly Grimoire and The Bootlegger's Dance. A new sequence begins with The Nightmare Quest of April May and The Arcane Gamble of Harvey Waltersin 2025. I've written novels set in the Forgotten Realms, City of the Dead and Crypt of the Moaning Diamond, as well as several short stories and novella Cold Steel and Secrets set in this Dungeons & Dragons world. When not battling cosmic horrors, animated skeletons, and other supernatural foes, I'm authoring tales of Cobalt City, a place of superheroes, super villains, and regular joes just trying to get by. A new expanded edition of Wrecker of Engines and related short stories was issued in 2024.

My other science fiction and fantasy short stories appear in various anthologies. The complete list on my website at rosemaryjones.com.

As the co-author of the Encyclopedia of Collectible Childrens Books, I spent many years collecting and often dip back into these treasures for my own pleasure and entertainment. I currently share my home with 2,000+ volumes, not all cataloged here.


Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Overhaul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jeany Lin, maquilladora y vestuarista de Hollywood, viaja a Arkham para trabajar en la nueva “película de pesadilla” del enigmático director Sydney Fitzmaurice protagonizada por Renee Love, hermana de Lin y colaboradora y amante de Sydney.

Desesperado por superar las emociones y el terror suscitados por las populares películas de Lon Chaney, Sydney prepara secuencias de ensueño llenas de misticismo para Love y sus coprotagonistas.

Pero hay mucho más que mera imaginería en juego, pues el elenco sufre muchas pesadillas, accidentes y visiones imposibles recurrentes.

Cuando los acontecimientos toman un giro muy siniestro y la gente comienza a morir en el set, Jeany deberá desenmascarar a los monstruos antes de que la obsesión de Sydney los condene a todos.

Una historia de suspense más que de terror y lo vemos todo a través de los ojos de Jeany.

Sabe que Renee es el punto central y que la máscara plateada es el mal. Un mal que tiene muchas caras y aquellos que hayan leído y a su vez disfrutado de Lovecraft, sabrán qué es.

El suspense va aumentando a medida que las pesadillas, los eventos inexplicables, incluso las desapariciones del elenco y otros guiños de los cuentos de terror comienzan a suceder a medida que se acerca el fin.

Tiene un estilo narrativo acorde con la época que hace que parezca escrito hace ya unas décadas.

Como una novela de terror/suspense de los años setenta u ochenta. Y todo guarda y tiene importancia.

Arkham Horror es una serie desarrollada por Aconyte Books ambientada en Arkham y sus alrededores, que, como saben los fanáticos de Lovecraft, es una ciudad en algún lugar de Massachusetts que también se encuentra al borde de otros mundos más oscuros.

Arkham es el hogar de la famosa Universidad de Miskatonic con sus colecciones de historia antigua, lenguas muertas y estudios ocultos.

Una biblioteca de investigación que alberga una de las mejores colecciones de arcanos místicos del mundo, y un museo de artefactos ocultos.

Y como tal todo lo que rodea a Arkham ya sea la propia ciudad, sus bosques.. esconden muchas cosas. Algunas tan antiguas como el mundo.

Tiene una suculenta premisa y la verdad es que disfruté de varias partes, otras se me hicieron demasiado lentas. Me aburrí porque consideré que no sucedían las suficientes cosas, además de la parte atmosférica, me faltó algo más.

Eché de menos algo más de movimiento y acción de cara al final. Aún asi, como fan de Lovecraft, su panteón y de Arkham, leeré más de estas interesantes obras.

Añadir que no necesitas saber nada o haber leído a Lovecraft, Arkham. Aunque no sabéis lo que os perdéis, algo único, prohibido..✍️🐙

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

reading vlog: https://youtu.be/ufNlUwbhmJM

thought there were some really good elements about this book, just don't think I was super invested as I'm not an arkham horror fan! enjoyed the setting + film elements, but sometimes found the writing a bit over-exaggerated

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

«Oh, ottimo» commentò Betsy. «La regina degli svenimenti che usiamo di solito è rimasta a casa.» Tutto d'un tratto sembrò che potessimo lavorare insieme. Persino Pola, che contava tutta assorta i punti vicino al fuoco, apparve allegra e interessata.
Poi le lampade a muro si riaccesero e vedemmo l'uccello morto.

Quando l’eccentrico e visionario regista Sydney Fitzmaurice ritorna dopo anni ad Arkham per girare nella sua vecchia magione di famiglia quello che dovrebbe essere il suo capolavoro, un film dell’orrore muto talmente spaventoso e terrificante da superare in popolarità quelli interpretati da Lon Chaney, le sorelle Jeany Lin e Renee Love, rispettivamente costumista e protagonista della pellicola, si troveranno a vivere sulla propria pelle, insieme agli altri sventurati membri del cast e della troupe cinematografica, orrori e incubi ben più reali rispetto a quelli che erano destinati ad essere impressi sulla pellicola.

In quel momento notai che le siepi erano inclinate verso l'interno.
Non molto, solo il tanto che bastava per mettere in chiaro che il loro scopo era tanto trattenere la gente dentro la tenuta quanto proteggere la casa dagli sconosciuti. O celare la villa da occhi indiscreti e rendere la famiglia Fitzmaurice e le sue attività invisibili al resto di Arkham.
Solo che Arkham aveva la memoria lunga.

E quando una lunga serie di bizzarri e inquietanti avvenimenti sul set culminerà con la scomparsa e la morte di una o più persone, intrappolate nella vecchia casa dei Fitzmaurice che sembra quasi prendere vita e tenere prigionieri al suo interno gli sventurati partecipanti alle riprese di “Maschera D’Argento”, toccherà a Jeany cercare di impedire alle ossessioni di Sidney di condannare tutti quanti ad una fine orrenda.

Le ombre strisciavano sul prato. La casa attendeva che tornassimo e cominciassimo a giocare alle infestazioni tra le sue pareti. Ciò che avevamo già fatto e che avremmo fatto nei giorni seguenti fu da incoscienti, ma a quel tempo non sapevamo abbastanza della famiglia Fitzmaurice... e di Arkham.



“Maschera D’Argento” di Rosemary Jones, dodicesimo romanzo della serie di libri basati sul gioco da tavolo di orrore lovecraftiano e suoi epigoni Arkham Horror, e terzo di quelli tradotti e pubblicati qui in Italia da Asmodee Italia e Aconyte Books, è uno splendido atto d’amore verso il cinema e l’industria cinematografica degli anni ‘20, con l’autrice che ha svolto un lavoro a dir poco egregio nel metterne su carta atmosfere e personaggi, fittizi e realmente esistenti, ed i pregiudizi vissuti sulla propria pelle dai Cinesi Americani in quel periodo.

Senza badare alla macchina da presa, Darrell gridò e si tuffò verso Renee, scaraventandola a terra. Dopo un breve istante di sorpresa, cominciammo tutti a urlare vedendo il ritratto staccarsi di colpo dalla parete. Stavolta corsi anch'io verso Renee, senza più curarmi della ripresa. Il ritratto di Saturnin Fitzmaurice si schiantò a terra, schiacciando la gamba di Darrell sotto la pesante cornice metallica.

Il tutto condito da un senso di orrore strisciante e raccapricciante che si insinua a poco a poco nella mente e sotto la pelle di protagonisti e lettori, fino all’esplosivo confronto finale, con le oltremodo piacevoli comparsate di personaggi iconici del gioco, quali il fotoreporter Darrell Simmons ed il vagabondo Ashcan Pete insieme al suo cane Duke, che mi avevano salvato in più di un'occasione la pellaccia nel corso di alcune indimenticabili partite alle versioni da tavolo e videoludiche di Arkham Horror ed Elder Sign.

Betsy afferrò un' altra mazza e ci seguì.«E chi vuole parlare di barbosa politica? Tutti vivono dei momenti difficili. Perché non dovremmo goderci quello che abbiamo adesso?»
Cosi lasciammo Max e Sydney a discutere di chiavi e terrore, mentre saremmo dovuti rimanere e fare altre domande sulle idee di Sydney.
Quella sera la corrente si interruppe di nuovo. E gli incubi iniziarono sul serio.



Un vero peccato che l’identità del Grande Antico antagonista venga spudoratamente messa in bella mostra sulla copertina facendo venir meno gran parte del mistero e della suspense, ma è stato per me un piacere immenso ritrovare fra queste pagine le sorelle Camilla e Cassilda, la maschera e l’opera maledetta che conduce alla follia, qui presa come spunto per un film muto hollywoodiano, e tutti quegli altri elementi presenti ne Il Re in Giallo di Robert W. Chambers, raccolta di racconti nonché libro fittizio che ispirò il più famoso Necronomicon di H. P. Lovecraft e che, pur non venendo mai nominato, impregna questo “Maschera D’Argento” dalla prima all’ultima pagina con le sue atmosfere e personaggi.

Guardai attraverso la porta del salotto. Non avrebbe dovuto essere possibile, ma vidi Eleanor e me stessa nel riflesso di uno specchio.
Sembravamo entrambe pallide. con gli occhi e la bocca troppo evidenziati, come ghoul o fantasmi.
Distolsi lo sguardo, dicendo a me stessa che era solo uno scherzo del riflesso, del tremolio della luce elettrica.

Caldamente raccomandato a tutti coloro che abbiano mai giocato ai giochi da tavolo di Arkham Horror, Elder Signs, Le Case della Follia, o al gioco di ruolo de Il Richiamo di Cthulhu, ma anche a chi abbia letto Il Re in Giallo di Robert W. Chambers e chiunque altro sia dell’umore di una lettura leggera, carica di atmosfera, e piacevolmente raccapricciante.



Pete si batté sulla gamba e Duke corse ad appoggiarsi al suo padrone. L'uomo accarezzò le orecchie del cane. Ebbi l'impressione che stesse riflettendo attentamente sulle parole da usare.
«Ci sono dei posti nel New England, luoghi bizzarri in cui puoi smarrire la strada e finire dove non vorresti essere. E funziona anche nell' altro senso: strisciano fuori certe cose che proprio non dovrebbero essere qui.»

[Chris Berko · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book seems like it was written forty years ago and that's a good thing. It felt like the horror novels I read in the eighties where you get glimpses of the scary stuff and a lot of character development for the first eighty percent then holy all hell is finally unleashed at the end (Song of Kali, Cold Moon Over Babylon or anything by Ramsey Campbell). I liked the parts about the movie making and that process being a movie freak myself but I can't say I was at all scared at any point while reading this. Unsettled and slightly creeped out, sure, but not scared. I also could have used a little more action at the end. It sort of ended abruptly after a long set up and the cool stuff was cool, there just wasn't enough of it. I also have to give credit to Rosemary Jones for the plotting and the pacing. What I first took to be slow and pointless turned out to be deliberate and clever. Small seemingly throw away things gain significance and the way the author handles the history and reveals of what is going on kept me involved and reading. Overall a fun book I just wish there had been more.

Thanks the Netgalley, Rosemary Jones, and Aconyte Books for the review copy, opinions my own.

[Dawn Vogel · Rating 5 out of 5]

(This review originally appeared at HistoryThatNeverWas.com.)

Mask of Silver by Rosemary Jones is an Arkham Horror novel, related to the Arkham Horror board game. Set in the 1920s, it’s a fun mix of historical fiction and the creeping dread horror that is conjured when one says Lovecraft or Arkham.

The story focuses on a film production team, including their eccentric director, actors, and crew. Though normally based in Hollywood, the director uproots the team to shoot his next film in his hometown of Arkham, Massachusetts. Jeany Lin, the protagonist, is the team’s costumer. Her sister, Renee Love, is the star of the film and the director’s lover. What ensues is a desperate struggle for the two sisters to stay alive and sane in the face of the script, the town, and machinations of outside forces.

Jones’ writing shows a love of the film industry and the 1920s, and she adds in loads of details that shows she’s done her research. Jeany Lin is Chinese American, and the prejudices of the period make their way into her life, whether in the background or the foreground, even as her sister does her best to pass as non-Chinese in an industry that would toss her aside if they knew the truth of her heritage. The story has a wonderful sense of creeping dread as things get stranger and stranger in Arkham, culminating in a devastating end to the film production.

If you enjoy well-researched historical fiction and horror that is more about creepiness and something awful lurking nearby, you’ll enjoy Mask of Silver. Fans of Arkham Horror and other Lovecraftiana will also enjoy this clever twist on one of the mainstays of the Mythos.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had an good premise and I enjoyed parts of it but it was to slow paced for me. I got a bit bored as I didn't think enough happened or it was atmospheric enough for me, but I'm interested in reading more by Rosemary Jones

[Liam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read some of Jone’s Forgotten Realms stories and really enjoyed them. This novel is a 1920s light horror. It’s pretty fun, and definitely eery. Nothing amazing, but very good.

[Michael Latiolais · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to the type of story you tell with a game like Call of Cthulhu.

[Michael Botterill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Arkham Horror book Mask of Silver by Rosemary Jones, published by Aconyte Books, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.

So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.

I am going to try my best to not let that cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.

What is Arkham Horror

Anyway that put to one side, let’s look at this book, by first looking at the game Arkham Horror which is a cooperative game, originally designed by Richard Launius, and is now in its third edition which was released in 2019.

It’s published by Fantasy Flight Games, a subsidiary of Asmodee, and is set in 1926 in the town of Arkham, Massachusetts. Each player takes on the role of an investigator, who are working to stop the Ancient Ones, eldritch horrors which lurk in the void beyond space and time.

It’s a 1-6 player game and you work together to gather clues and defeat the evil of the Ancient Ones and save the world.

As I said I haven’t actually played Arkham Horror but I do own its spin off Elder Signthe cooperative dice game.

The Story

Like the rest of the Arkham Horror novels, its set in the 1920s specifically 1923 and sees a silent movie being produced in the town of Arkham by horror director Sydney Fitzmaurice (who in my head is Nathan Lane, not sure why, just is).

His costume designer Jeany Lin is the protagonist, and her sister Renee Love is Sydney’s muse and star. Sydney has relocated his company to his home town of Arkham where he is going to film a movie filled with thrills and the occult that will make a fortune for the studio and perhaps a lot more.

The story is a very slow burner, with the majority of the book being character development and just sight hints at the horror to come.

There is a lot of background on the production of silent movies, which in itself is fascinating, you can really tell that Jones has done her research and the book is grounded in realty, which makes it all the more creepy.

As things go wrong and the behaviour of Sydney just isn’t right Jeany investigates his past to discover what is going on in the mansion, why people are being hurt during the production and why does the silver mask haunt her dreams.

Conclusion

This is a slow paced book, but it’s deliberate and thoughtful, a very clever plot that is woven together so very well.

The main characters are well rounded, and extremely believable, the background players less so, but there is enough there that they aren’t just window dressing.

Arkham itself doesn’t my really feature too much as the story is set mostly in the Fitzmaurice mansion on French Hill, with the occasional trip to a nearby diner.

But there is a truly creepy atmosphere in the story, and it makes your skin crawl just a little bit.

Jeany is a wonderful protagonist and she offers a real insight into the contribution of Chinese-Americans to early cinema, a contribution that Jones suggests you read up in the notes after the story.

The end in a way felt rushed, but in many ways was not at all, it’s quite old fashioned in that the book builds up the story and characters so that you care about them, and then concludes quite explosively!

This was a book that I really really enjoyed and it’s a shame it took me so long to read it, but I really do highly recommend it.

A solid 5 stars from me!

The eBook and paperback are out now!

[Sylri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another awesome Arkham Horror novel!! I’m so glad I found this universe/series because it’s been such a blast returning to this setting and my favorite Mythos monsties. I always enjoy picking out the characters from the Arkham Horror game and then reading their entries in the gorgeous Investigators of Arkham Horror book, though this is not a necessity by any means and more for those who are a fan of the game.

Silent movies aren’t something I’m super familiar with, but it was a blast reading about the culture around them and the ‘behind-the-scenes’ so to speak. The escapades of the director’s crew were a delight to read. Which is another thing: the author did a wonderful job with the characters’ personalities and made me, the reader, get close to them. Characters that would initially seem like unpleasant people turn around and before you know it you start growing fond of them too. Which makes you anxious for everything to turn out alright for them in the end when you know inevitably things start going eldritch.
Most of this book takes place in a wonderfully described old New England mansion that’s almost as much of a character as the humans in the book. You sympathize with the heroine as her suspicions and dread begin to escalate as things just start to feel more and more wrong.

It might be obvious which Mythos entity makes an appearance in this one based on the cover (which I also love, by the way), one of my favorites!! There are references to the original stories this creature was featured in without it being necessary reading - just something nice for the devoted fans who like picking out references (something akin to the Marvel movies). There were also some changes made to Camilla’s and Cassilda’s roles, switching which was the younger and older.

Overall, another delightful Arkham Horror novel and I’m so grateful to Aconyte Books for publishing this new series! My thanks to them for my review copy.

[Arvilla]

After reading the first couple dozen pages, there was enough terror-ific material for my brain to work with that I had nightmares. Out of all the Arkham Horror books I've read, I think this is my favourite. I loved the main character and the premise: a Chinese American costumer working in the silent film era of Hollywood. I found it well written, keeping me invested in the story, which moved at a fair pace. When I was nearing the end I feared there weren't enough pages to not rush the climax but I think it all worked well. I would recommend this book.

[Caleb Likes Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid read, though one I feel slightly underwhelmed by. This was my first experience with the Arkham Horror tie-in books, and as an introduction I think it was a decent one.

Despite my somewhat underwhelmed feelings I just alluded to, there is some really good stuff here. I think the premise is very interesting: a film crew travels to Arkham to make a horror movie, which then leads to something of a haunted house situation. I really enjoyed the filmmaking side of this story, with all the characters occupying different roles, and it was especially interesting seeing this play out in a 1920s setting. The characters were good too, though not overly memorable, but they all had some unique traits and were enjoyable to read. There’s also a lot of very intriguing stuff going on here that relates to the horror elements, along with the end goal of the film’s director, which provide an interesting mystery throughout.

There are some negative points that stick out to me, though. First, while I said all the characters were good, I didn’t find them very memorable and often had a hard time remembering who was who. The sole exception was Sydney, the director, who actually did have a fair amount of intrigue to his backstory and motives. I also felt as though some of the horrific scenes felt a little unnecessary, as I don’t really know how they were supposed to tie in to the wider plot. Really, that’s the big issue I have here: I really am not sure exactly why things happened the way they did, like how the whole haunted house idea ties into everything. This made some parts of the book feel unsatisfying, especially the ending; it’s written like it’s supposed to be this big, bombastic ending but it left me a bit confused and not sure how everything is supposed to come together. Lastly, I do think it could’ve been shorter, as towards the later parts of the book it feels a little dragged out.

Overall this was a decent read, one that I’m actually a bit conflicted on. There’s a good premise, an interesting historical setting, and lots of intriguing ideas, but I feel like it just didn’t quite come together in the end. A solid book that I would recommend, but wouldn’t expect to be blown away by.

Rating: 7/10

[Michael Doane · Rating 4 out of 5]

An eccentric director and his penny-pinching producer take their Hollywood cast to Arkham. They promise the studio a picture the likes of which has never been seen before. When filming begins, our main character begins to wonder whether the special effects are movie magic or real. Written scenes seem to jump to life from the page, becoming prophecies that injure the actors. And the mansion they’re filming in — the family home of director, Sydney Fitzmaurice — casts strange shadows in the halls and weird reflections in the mirrors. While this novel is slow to start, it picks up steam in the second half and ends in an exciting revelation and fight against the strange forces that inhabit the Fitzmaurice home.

[William Bainbridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.7/5
Final rating of 4.7/5. Brilliant book. Definitely the best arkham Horror book I have read thus far. Many moments when I could not put it down and simply had to read more, regardless of the time or the consequence. Very well written lead female character and Fred is my favourite as her primary love interest and side character. The anticipation is built up and then executed perfectly, dropping you small, creepy hints and making you wait before the big reveal. Main faults with the book stem from being slightly too obvious in places and unresolved story lines.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horror mixed with Hollywood, 1920's style. Eerie and loaded with suspense. Pictured this story in sepia for the noir effect.

[Phillip · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story struggles with pacing. Dialogue is too frequently exposition heavy, and the insertions of the narrators future perspectives often act to remove the tension and dread from scenes. Although it has a thrilling finale, the legwork to get there is too slow and dense to recommend. I am not familiar with the arkham horror games, only the related mythos, but felt that this hindered me more in this volume then others I have read in this series.

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great take for visitors to Arkham. The concept of making a silent film was awesome, as were the characters and cameos. A great world building snapshot for Arkham!
I'm looking forward for Rosemary's next few instalments.

There were a few errors with the editing throughout...

[Lauren Stoolfire · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mask of Silver (Arkham Horror #12) by Rosemary Jones has been one of my favorite Arkham Horror novels so far. I love that it incorporates Old Hollywood into the story, even mentioning real life actors. The atmosphere is excellently eerie as well. I can't wait to read more of this series in the future.

[Joe Crowe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been blasting my way through Arkham Horror novels until this one.

This one, I don't want to finish. It's not at all because I don't like it. I like it *too much* and I don't really want it to be over.

This one contains mystery and thriller elements that would have been at home in a classic Universal monster movie.

One of the best things about this line of novels is the gateway to new authors -- in this case, I had not heard of Rosemary Jones before now. And as I speak, I've got one of her "Forgotten Realms" novels waiting on me.

When I decide to finish "Mask of Silver," that is.

[Eli J.D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably my favorite Arkham horror book so far (going In order) but not without its weaknesses

I loved how much detail is put into each character. They feel like real people now. That was a huge issue I had with the first book.

I do feel like more time was spent on character and world details than on horror itself. I feel like the book was held back by its Arkham horror connection a bit here. While I love seeing familiar faces form the games I feel that if it wasn’t connected to the franchise it could have delved deeper into horror elements and gone a bit longer.

Each book has been better than the previous so here’s to the next one!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm on a bit of an Arkham Horror binge! This was my favourite so far! The process of making a movie in the 20's was really interesting to me. I really liked the characters, especially half Chinese Jeany and Renee, and of course lovers Lulu and Eleanor. I haven't found most of this series to be very frightening but this one was a little more creepy. I listened to the audiobook and the narration was very good. I kind of wish it was a Graphic Audio style book with sound effects. That would have been amazing!

[Anonymouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somebody in Rosemary Jones's world loves silent films. Not only is Mask of Silver a good horror story, it is also a lesson in film making primer in the glory days of films before talkies. I'm not a student of film so this was new territory for me and I enjoyed learning the many ways simple technology could be used to produce the effects that make these films great.

Prohibition is still the law of the land and racism is the norm. Chinese American Jenny Lin is the costume designer for filmmaker Sydney Fitzmaurice, who has dragged his company from Hollywood to his home town of Arkham, Massachusetts, to produce his new film in his family mansion. "Mask of Silver" will feature his star: Renee Love, and other members of his usual cast and crew, plus Max, the studio's bean counter.

Renee and Jenny share a secret. They are sisters, orphaned children of an illegal marriage between a white man and a Chinese woman, brought up together in Oakland, California. Renee is able to pass for white and when she took the train to Hollywood, Jenny came too and now poses as her dresser, travelling together and living near each other. They hide their relationship from everyone, including Sydney.

Arkham Horror is a series developed by Aconyte Books set in and around Arkham, which as Lovecraft fans know, is a medium sized city somewhere in Massachusetts that also sits at the edge of other, darker worlds. Arkham is the home of Miskatonic University with its famous programs of ancient history, dead languages, and occult studies; a research library that houses one of the world's best collection of mystical arcana; and a noted museum of occult artifacts. Although cosmopolitan Massachusetts is only a train-ride away, not so far in other directions lie an impenetrable swamp and deep forest wilderness: dark hollers, murky hummocks, and people who don't venture out much.

The Fitzmaurice mansion is a house of mystery and death. It has burned once or twice consuming some if Sydney's ancestors alive. Yet the house is fully furnished right down to locked trunks in the attic. Creepy family portraits line the walls, and somehow the hallway mirrors reflect around corners.

This new film "Mask of Silver" is one of a string of Fitzmaurice horror masterpieces. Sydney wants it to be different enough to be exciting but still to contain some of his recognizable set pieces, especially the recurring figure of the masked man; masked in silver this time.

To keep things fresh, Sydney bring a new co-star up from Broadway, Lulu McIntyre, along with her lover, writer Eleanor Nash. Eleanor can help Sydney with the film script that is less a document than an idea that progresses along with the filming. Lulu has not worked in film before, and we learn along with her how it's done, as the camera cranks away.

Despite not having much of a script, Sydney is trying to keep to a tight schedule that inexplicably requires filming the final scene on the night of the summer solstice. There is no logical reason for it, but Sydney makes up some story about a family legend he wants to work into the plot. The cast and crew, who are growing more uneasy by the day, just want to finish the film and get away from the house as fast as possible.

This is a suspense story more than it is horror and we see it all through Jenny Lin's eyes. Jenny knows that Sydney is up to something. She knows the house is helping him. She knows that Renee is the pivot point and that the silver mask is evil. The suspense builds as recurring nightmares, inexplicable events, unlikely injuries, cast disappearances, and other accoutrements of horror tales start happening as the solstice approaches.

I read Mask of Silver pretty much straight through. I think that you will especially enjoy it if you like silent films too.

I received a review copy of "Mask of Silver" by Rosemary Jones from Aconyte Press through SFRevu. A version of this review was posted there in January 2021.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Director Sydney Fitzmaurice, the man behind “nightmare movies” fit to rival or even surpass the likes of Lon Chaney, pulls his entire crew to Arkham to film the greatest movie of his career. The movie that he could only make in Arkham. The movie that leaves costumer and make-up artist Jeany Lin increasingly worried for her fellow crew members as well as the star, Renee Love, her own sister and Sydney’s favorite collaborator. As filming starts so do the strange happenings, the nightmares and accidents. In a house full of mirrors that reflect impossibilities, in a city where the past never properly dies, Jeany will have to find a way to break script if she wants to prevent the mask of silver reflecting doom out onto the world.

Rosemary Jones’ Mask of Silver is, in many ways, a book that I was not sure what to expect going into it. I was sure that I would enjoy it, the idea of a director’s obsession with this one movie being a threat to his crew is a solid horror concept even if we take the eldritch elements out of it. Add in the sense of the crew as comrades who rely on and enjoy working with each other and the idea that these are people who trust the director even as they know that he is a bit out there, it makes for a nice looming sense of coming betrayal.

It was the characters that sold me on the horror of Mask of Silver. While the reader knows that Jeany will make it out of the story alive and more or less well, because she is narrating the story from a point somewhere in the future, there is this lovely sense of ongoing dread to the narration. A lot of that dread and the tension that comes with it is down to the rest of the cast. Jeany will be safe, but what about the rest of the film crew, Fred or Renee or Betsy? The characters are enjoyable and their interactions feel nicely organic. I wanted more time with these characters. Mask of Silver had a lot of quiet low points, places where the danger was distant and it was just Jeany thinking about previous movies the crew had made or talking about Fred’s favorite camera and how he’s the only one who can make it run that smooth. I found myself settling into these moments and wishing they would keep going. The details about what parts certain characters were usually used for and how they would make effects work drew me in, in part because I knew that it was all leading to something terrifying, but also just because the details felt good and I wanted to know more about these people.

The horror here was often subtle. Jeany finding herself drawing the same thing over and over, only catching herself after she’s gone through several pages of sketches. The mirrors show things they should not be able to, with Jeany not quite realizing it or only realizing it afterward. There are moments where things go wrong in more obvious, impossible to explain ways. Those instances are sparse though which means they tend to land harder, though I admit the first of them did make me laugh.

Mask of Silver, is a book that I absolutely plan to purchase once the opportunity presents itself. Jones did a fantastic job with the mood and tension of it and her character work was greatly enjoyable. She made a point of referencing actors and directors and movies from the time, which did an excellent job of grounding the story in the 1920’s as well as adding to the reality of the characters as movie professionals, because of course they would be aware of what was going on in their field. I definitely look forward to reading her work again and hope that Aconyte taps her for another Arkham Horror novel. All this to say, Mask of Silver definitely earned a five out of five from me, it is definitely worth giving a shot if you get the chance.

This book was provided to me through netGalley for honest review. Review was previously posted at https://tympestbooks.wordpress.com/20...

[Storm Bookwyrm · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the second 'Arkham Horror' tie-in book I've read, the first being 'The Last Ritual'. I had previously read three of the novellas, and found them all fun, but of less than convincing quality. The Last Ritual surprised me with how much I liked it, with a few caveats: that some of the horror felt a little 'spookhouse', and the actual details of the paranormal scheme didn't entirely make sense. It lacked the masterful, imaginative flair for true 'cosmic horror' that made Lovecraft the genre-redefiner he posthumously became.
Mask of Silver feels much the same. I was entertained by the characters, enjoyed being with them, and was convinced enough by the author's knowledge of the period (as far as I, a non-expert could tell). Yet, by the time I got to the very end, I was not wholly aglow with the sense of having experienced a fantastic, perfect finale.

Mask of Silver, for those in the know as to Lovecraftian lore, would seem to be suggest a fabulous idea on its surface; to blend the story of haunted/paranormal play 'The King in Yellow' with the all-new rise of silent films. If one finds oneself questioning "Movies? They had those back then in 1920?" this book answers such questions and more, giving a very coherent image of silver-screen, silent hollywood. It feels perfect for a further reason, that perhaps an 'evil movie' could take place in such a time, where movies seemed to be made by bands of cowboys, making things up as they went.

As perfect as the premise seemed, and as much as I liked the narrator and the film crew tasked with making the film that might spell doom, much of its promise seems to go unfulfilled.
Much is made of the narrator's relationship to the lead starlette of the movie, who is secretly her sister. When it became revealed that the evil film centered around two sisters who would become unwitting tools in the emancipation of a great evil from its imprisonment, I braced myself for a twist to occur; but barely anything was made of it.

Odd contrivances peppered the story; the script-writer seemed to be descended of sorcerous lineage, with the power to bring to life things she wrote in her scripts. The house in which the movie was being filmed seemed possessed of a will, and magical power, to compel and manipulate its inhabitants. Both of these elements were wholly separate from any supernatural workings of the sorcerous nature of the play as it was being filmed.

As for the unveiling of a 'mystery', it felt less like a slow knitting-together of clues, and more like the narrator simply needed to become spooked enough to take the advice of everyone in town, who never wasted a chance to tell her 'Go talk to the old professor at the university, she'll tell you the plot!'

Then, last of all, the 'grand finale' felt lacking in that unique 'punch' that a lovecraftian story, or any monster story, ought to have with the final reveal of its villain.

I want to like Mask of Silver more, because on the whole it was pretty 'neat' getting to go on a ride with a 1920's movie crew, knowing at the end of the car trip there would be some cosmic fireworks. But when the car stopped, instead of a whole firework show all we had were a few sparklers and some snaps. But on the way there I learned a little bit about 1920's filming, so that was pretty fun.

[Cat Treadwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

After enjoying Aconyte's previous adventure in the Arkham universe, I was keen to see what would come next. This series really does seem to be going from strength to strength, and – I'm very pleased to say – takes the work of HP Lovecraft and expands on it in ways that would probably make him retreat to his room with smelling salts.

This tale is one of 1920s-era Hollywood and our narrator is Jeany Lin, a sought-after costume designer and makeup artist for a troupe of horror movie makers. Oh, and she's half-Oriental. And the female script-writer for their latest movie has a girlfriend. Who is – gasp! - a successful actress! Out of the way, Mr Lovecraft, the twentieth century has arrived!

Right away, Jeany is endearing to her readers. Despite the horrors that she's seen, she is clever, exceptionally pragmatic and aware of the 'otherworldliness' of Hollywood compared to the realities of post-War life. She loves what she does, and the almost Repertory-theatre-like group that she works with make a close-knit family that we're rooting for from the start.

Famous horror director Sydney Fitzmaurice is taking the group to his ancestral home just outside Arkham to work on a passion project that promises to be the scariest film of his career. Is this just studio hokum or something darker? Of course it's the latter, but the book takes time establishing the characters and their history together, as well as the unique mood of Arkham itself and its residents. By the time doors start slamming and the cast's nightmares affect their reality, we can no more leave than they can.

The issues of discrimination are touched upon realistically rather than heavy-handedly, and the general theme of 'other-ness' winds through the narrative as the uncanny events begin to ramp up. Jeany has to create the titular Mask, but most of the cast seem to wear their own just to survive anyway. The insidious magic of their location easily works its way into the monstrous movie, and we're genuinely not sure who'll make it out alive.

'Mask of Silver' is absolutely gripping, and although it's considerably longer than any Lovecraft tale, it takes its time as needed and I was sorry to see it end. I had my favourite characters, suspicions on who was behind the devious activities, and wish to see more of the Arkham natives – who may well appear in other books in this series (I hope).

I absolutely do recommend this, for the mood of Golden Age silent movies combined with ancient unknowable evils. Magic of all kinds, and regular folks trying to survive in many ways.

I loved 'Mask of Silver', and am very much looking forward to the next title in this excellent series.

'Mask of Silver' is out now in paperback and ebook editions.

[Justin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't help but imagine that the original draft of this book was a fairly standard, Agatha Christie-type murder mystery, and that this publisher was the only one that agreed to publish it, under the condition that Jones add in some supernatural elements to make it an Arkham Horror tie-in. Which she did at an absolutely bare minimum, with all the enthusiasm of someone being held at gunpoint.

A lot of traditional mysteries operate under the false pretense that something paranormal is going on, but ultimately, it's revealed that that was all just misdirection to muddy the killer's true actions. When the undeniably supernatural elements do (finally) start falling into place in the last 30 pages or so of Mask of Silver, they unfortunately don't do it any favors, simultaneously being poorly fleshed out and unsatisfying on their own merits, while also undercutting the "a-ha!" moment we'd have had in a traditional mystery, when the killer's true plan was revealed. I obviously can't say that leaving out the eldritch aspects and sticking to the pure whodunnit approach would have made Mask of Silver a better book, but I doubt it would've ended up worse. Because as a horror story, this fails, utterly.

The other 90% of this book that isn't comets, and portals to other dimensions, is near-endless ruminating on the ins and outs of filmmaking in the 1920s. If reading about the financial constraints, and inter-personal drama of a small silent film crew really gets your gears turning, you'll probably enjoy Mask of Silver a lot more than I did. Otherwise, you'll find a very slow burn that never ignites into anything all that worthwhile.

[Thieving Magpie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so good. I love a good horror novel, especially when it's set a couple of years back - and a story about a guy who makes horror movies for a living and ends up haunted himself? I am in!
This was an amazing read. The story was interesting; it had all the necessary elements of a horror story, the characters felt real, they were exciting and from the very beginning, this book had the potential of being perfect. So, why do I end up giving it four stars? Simply put: I did not like the solution of the book. I had been hoping for a bit less "magic". I just don't think it fit well into the story. This whole book was working with so many ways of human created horror effects, I think it'd have been great - especially if the culprit had been one from the crew itself.
I loved the characters; they gave off such amazing timely well adjusted character treats - I think I read this book purely for insight of how horror movies were made some 40/50 years ago, which was amazingly described and well written.
Until this book, I only knew Arkham from the DC Universe, so I was a bit irritated at first, thinking it might somehow be connected to that. It isn't, though that would have been funny as well.
I enjoyed reading this book a great deal and I am going to take a look at the previously published editions of Arkham Horror, while hoping there will be another one.

I received a free ARC by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the parallel between the narrator (Jeaney) and Renee with Sydney and the rest of the film crew and how they all lied to some extent about their past. Presenting and changing their claimed history to match how they wanted to be perceived and making it clear that everyone involved does that made it harder and more interesting to guess who was involved in the plot and how. It made for a more complex story than I was expecting.

I liked how the plot and overall horror was unveiled in here. In the first Arkham Horror book I read, the Lovecraftian nature of the plot only really came up in the climax. In here, hints and foreshadowing are consistently dropped through the book in the form of the narrator straight up telling us that something bad is happening, foreshadowing through odd or ominous events and increasingly escalating supernatural events. I think that did a better job of keeping me engaged and building a feeling of dread.

And one thing that I found really fascinating was the discussion of silent era film making. Mostly around the props and techniques commented on but also the method of acting and directing. Or the implication that most movies were written as the work went on. That's not why I listened to this book and I didn't expect to hear about that but it was fascinating to hear.

[Joseph Cassatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mask of Silver was an interesting read. The heroine of the story is set to be an outcast of the country's political awareness of the 1920s. So her standoffish, and keep to herself attitude seemed a little off-putting at first. Within the first couple of chapters, you could deduce that the main antagonist of the story was going to be obvious. However, gathering information and the reasons behind the actions and the purpose of the movie they were creating, it wasn't clear besides the "take over the world" evil villain trope, which only appears within the last couple of chapters of the novel itself. That lead to a slightly anticlimactic ending with the characters.

I did enjoy the setting of Arkham in this book. The house does give a creepy, yet specificated setting within. It makes you want to visit New England with how the house is written and described.

All in total it is a good read, but not compared to the other novels in the Arkham Horror series.

[Catie Holliday · Rating 3 out of 5]

To begin, I was thrilled to read about a more diverse set of characters than I expected to find. The book was also quick to point readers to the history of Chinese-Americans in the film industry; a topic I will be happy to study more later. I enjoyed sections of this book, and being a scaredy cat, was grateful it didn't truly frighten me. Unfortunately that was because the plot was the kind mostly spent with characters who didn't know they were in a horror novel. The writing style lent itself as a film noir, with the main character telling us the tale after the fact - and therefore dropping hints and warnings of the outcome as we went along. Not my favorite style, I prefer "show, don't tell." Also, there were a few typos missed by the copy editor. Still enjoyed the book, but probably won't read it again.