The Case of Charles Dexter Ward

By: H. P. Lovecraft

Narrated by: H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society

Length: 2 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's Summary

An escaped madman. Unspeakable research into the blackest depths of the occult. Shadowy figures ruthlessly pursuing unholy secrets. Will a young man’s thirst for knowledge push him over the brink to madness, or will it lead him to a fate far, far worse?

Download the accompanying reference guide.

Public Domain (P)2012 HPLHS, Inc.

This might be the best episode of DART!

I love this episode! It's epic and horrifying, at times heartbreaking and at all times amazing. The flashbacks are so well done. The actors make the family relationship of the Ward's so believable which pays off so well at the end. The music in this episode is so spot on for enhancing the scenes and the sound effects are chilling. DART just keeps getting better.

Perfect radio-era version of the story

Case of Charles dexter ward is one of the quintessential HPL stories and this dramatization is a great radio-drama in its own right

Fun listen

Very well done! They did great capturing that one time radio show feel. It's a fun listen.

Great work by the HPLHS

A great story by HP Lovecraft and a great radio drama adaptation by the HPLHS .

Excellent Narration!

This was my first audio book by Dark Adventure Radio Theater and now I must get all of them! Absolutely fantastic! Quality sound, clear narration and special effects. Highly recommend.

Amazing, the reading adds life to the story

I honestly was disappointed before listening to it that it was a radio show style read, but was I wrong!

Amazing production! Hope they finish all Lovecraft's stories, I'm downloading them all.

great story. poor ending.

the story and acting were fantastic. my only issue is the ending. it was poorly crafted and not well suited for the story. almost as if they threw it in last minute or just wanted to try their hand at a twist ending(clearly failing at it).

Longer than others, two great parts

These dramas are phenomenal. I love the radio theme, the sound effects, the acting, the story! Couldn't ask for more.

My favorite Lovecraft story brought to vivid life

I tried out Charles Dexter Ward after enjoying a couple other dark radio theater productions. This one blew me away. All the essentials of the original story are included with more drama to keep your interest and the brilliant use of sound effects to create atmosphere. When the narrator descends into the catacombs, I felt like I was right there with him. Using a credit might seem a little expensive for a two hour audiobook, but really it's a steal. I'm already sure that I'll listen to this one again several times. If you like supernatural horror at all, you owe it to yourself to try this.

The ending is the only shortcoming

The original story has always been a love-hate piece for me, because the concept is so good and quite the Lovecraftian narrative set piece, but the writing style is just so unnecessarily long and winding, that I find myself falling asleep listening to unabridged audiobooks of the story. Luckily, we have HPLHS to bring us just the right amount of action and dramatic tension, without the long grind through antiquarian details!

To be honest, I have some huge gripes about the ending bit HPLHS decided to put in. It's cheesy in old pulp radio play fashion, I know, but it kinda ruined the melancholic air they have so elegantly woven together near the end. Other than that, great, great performance.

Excellent 1930's style radio play

excellent 1930s style radio play which follows very closely the original short story by the master

Great performances, just one issue..

I really enjoyed, the adaptation was good and the performances were excellent. however... I could have done without the interruption of the episodic device and its accompanying adverts... took me out of the immersion.

A story within a story within...

Saying this as a non-native English speaker this audiobook needs your utmost attention and concention. It is both longer and thus harder to follow compared to HPL's shorter novellas. Despite it's length it's still a good story and a must-listen for a HPL fan.

pretty dang good

Willet's voice actor put on an amazing performance.

wish there were more audio dramas by this company.