The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe

By: Peter Clines

Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

This version of the classic tale, assembled by two legends of English literature and abridged by Peter Clines, is the terrifying supernatural true story of Robinson Crusoe as it has never been told before.  

Robinson Crusoe is one of the most enduring adventures of the past four centuries and one of the most well-known works in the English language. Or is it?  

Recently discovered amidst the papers of the 20th-century writer and historian H. P. Lovecraft is what claims to be the true story of Robinson Crusoe. Taken from the castaway's own journals and memoirs, and fact-checked by Lovecraft himself, it is free from many of Defoe's edits and alterations. From Lovecraft's work a much smoother, simpler tale emerges - but also a far more disturbing one.  

Here Crusoe is revealed as a man bearing the terrible curse of the werewolf and the guilt that comes with it - a man with no real incentive to leave his island prison. The cannibals who terrorized Crusoe are revealed to be less human than ever before hinted at - worshippers of a malevolent octopus-headed god. And the island itself is a place of ancient, evil mysteries that threaten Crusoe's sanity - and his very soul.

©2016 Peter Clines (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

95% verbatim Robinson Crusoe

95% of this book is verbatim Robinson Crusoe, if not more. The lycanthrope-part plays an insignificant role and the story had been just the same without it.

No Mr Clines, this isn’t even close to your other works...

Robinson Crusoe is always a tough read...

But this book was fun and unique. Language remains thick, but worth the credit. If you are a loyal Peter Clines fan, this is good stuff.

A clever hijacked work of adapted fiction... just not a particularly memorable one.

Time and again Peter Clines has demonstrated a remarkable ability to conjure unique and interesting ideas in his fiction, yet sadly the initial premise doesn't always hold up to the final reading. Given the source material (which provides a basic outline which Clines follows in this retelling of Robinson Crusoe), that is not as problematic as in some of his other works. Nonetheless, I found that what started as a somewhat clever idea and a very nice piece of literary adaptation (Clines' continuation of the Robinson Crusoe literary style and feel of the narrative is nearly flawless), soon becomes a bit tedious and difficult to digest to the modern ear. If I had not read the publisher's synopsis describing this as a classic "true found diaries", the entire premiss of the story would have been lost to me. The "found diaries" set up for the entire novel is sadly absent in the audio version of the book (I can only assume it is contained in a foreword or note in the print version that never made it to the audio version). I was so curious as to how closely this adaptation adhered to the original text of Robinson Crusoe, I actually pulled the original text from the library's or comparison. Surprisingly great chunks of the original text are preserved here. I'm not sure if this qualifies as brilliance or lazy writing, but it does serve to blend the two stories nicely. As with much of Clines' earlier works, the macabre slowly builds throughout the story (almost too slowly) and once again pays homage to Clines' love of Lovecraft. Possibly due to the period language or the modern reader's over familiarity with Lovecraft-style horror, there should be no fear of sleepless nights in fear of the Dream Lord. It should be noted that the narration of Tim Gerard Reynolds is pitch perfect for this particular period story (although a bit lacking in vocal inflection beyond the narrator's own voice). Overall, although not an overly memorable outing, Peter Clines has crafted a very serviceable entry into his Lovecraft inspired collection of stories.

Great twist on a clasic

Peter did a great job this book being most likely written in 2016 not sure if it was before 14 or the fold but adds to the storyline I hope he puts out another book very soon

Lovecraftian Rehash

Almost word for word of Defoe’s text w/ some hazy Lovecraftian nuance... Imo didn’t really bring all that much new to an already excellent adventure tale... Narration is superior and adds to the reading experience... Not the author’s best effort, but a passable listen...

Not his usual caliber

I applaude the effort of his reworking of a clasic tale but it was left lacking.

Stylish, but Ultimately Dull

I’m a pretty big Peter Clines fan, so I was really looking forward to this.

I give it major points for style. Clines nails both the tone of the Crusoe & Cthulhu mythos.

Style wasn’t enough for me ultimately. The Eerie Adventures were slow and mostly dull.

good stranded on an island story but...

i really like his writing... but while there was talk of Cthulu he didn't come out of the sea... to my chagrin. otherwise good story

This is not The Fold or 14!

I found this after 14, The Fold, Terminus. Don’t read if you’re after another one of those. It’s very slow and not very interesting. Wait for the next book.

Beware Cthulhu!

This is a strange book which proports to be co-written by Daniel Defoe and H.P. Lovecraft. It’s a fairly faithful retelling of Robinson Crusoe with three substantial differences. Crusoe is a lycanthrope, changing into the beast on the full moon. The island he is marooned on contains a church to Cthulhu (the dreamer). Oh, and Friday is not human.

On the one hand, it is a very clever story, reworking all the events of Crusoe’s life around his lycanthropy. Clines’ lycanthropes are not like those of most urban fantasies. Crusoe is not stronger and hardier in his human form than other people. And he doesn’t seem to have to worry about losing control and changing other than at the full moon. In fact, the lycanthropy really didn’t seem necessary to the story at all until the very end of the novel.

The H.P. Lovecraft elements, on the other hand, really do add some tension to this tale. Cthulhu enters Crusoe’s dreams and the cannibals visiting the island (including Friday) worship Cthulhu. This adds some definite tension to the story, especially when Cthulhu attempts to prevent Crusoe from escaping the island.

Overall, I put this in the category of an interesting idea which fits in well with many others of Clines’ novels which are tributes to Lovecraft, showing how the Cthulhu mythos could fit into modern novels. I’m glad I read it, but it’s far from the best of Clines works.

A good listen

After listening to 4 other Peter Clines books, this took me a while to get into.
I’m guessing it’s written In the same fashion as the original Robinson Crusoe, but not having read that, I can’t confirm.
Whilst being a good story and being very well narrated by Tim, I feel it was probably restrained by its links to the original and so wasn’t as good as his other books... but still worth a listen!
I listened at x1.25 speed and felt it improved the pace.

A disappointing mash-up

Though I regularly enjoy Peter Clines' lovecraftian stories, this was not one of them. It was a struggle to finish, and I couldn't relate to any of the characters. In my opinion, the diary keeping format kept me out of it, something that I didn't expect when I started listening, but realized less than an hour in.

A hard book to finish.

I loved Robinson Crusoe as a kid and, as a grown up, I love horror and particularly the works of Howard P Lovecraft.

Due to this, I was really excited to see the marrying of these worlds but, regretfully, it was not a happy marriage.

Let's start with the good. The narration is great and the voice and timbre suit the era and setting perfectly, really offering a real sense of reality to the reading.

Additionally the idea is a great choice. Robinson Crusoe, marooned on a desert island and dealing with both the act of survival and the beast that hampers his efforts all the time.
Equally, what better setting to inject some esoteric terror than a forgotten island inhabited by evil tribesmen.

Sadly, while both these settings would be great Individually, together it is to the detriment of the whole as there just isn't enough of either facet to really make them work. Additionally, the diarist-style of writing simply doesn't work for a werewolf tale as it prevents the current-tense 'tension' of action and threat from working and it's all left very rote and formulaic.

In all, I struggled to finish the book but finish I did but was left wholly unsatisfied and sadly Tim J Reynolds excellent narration was insufficient on its own to alleviate my boredom.

Very disappointed

Ordered this book, time says 8 hours + but it only plays about 2 minutes worth...great value for money for £16+ Very unhappy!