In its third printing, Spores from Sharnoth and Other Madnesses, truly fulfils reviewers' comments it is a masterful professional debut collection from leading Australian weird literary figure, Leigh Blackmore.
The collection "establishes Blackmore as one of the leading weird poets of our time, fit to be mentioned with the likes of Bruce Boston, G. Sutton Breiding, Ann K. Schwader ..." -S. T. Joshi. "It belongs on the same shelf with August Derleth's Dark of the Moon and Lin Carter's Dreams from R'lyeh, to be treasured for its elegant lines, spooky sonnets, cosmic vistas, and, since Blackmore is a genuine poet and not just a pastichist, occasional departures from all expectations." -Darrell Schweitzer. "Magnifique! Sobresaliente! Mumtaaz! [Blackmore] definitely has the touch ..." -Richard L. Tierney.
Within are devotions to H. P. Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos, Clark Ashton Smith, Arthur Machen, and paeans to the gods of Poetry. Wonderful poetry of fantasy, the supernatural and dark imagination abounds within this fine Antipodean collection. Sheila Merritt reflects, "In his evocative embracing of American horror authors ... poet Blackmore shows that writers' influences know no boundaries. Lands may separate, but literature unites."
Through their P'rea Press offerings, Blackmore and fellow Australian poet Kyla Lee Ward (The Land of Bad Dreams, 2011) are surely one with the international weird poetry universe.
Scott E. Green observes, Blackmore "has no hesitation to go beyond Lovecraft and sonnets in writing excellent poetry of the weird." Poetic forms represented include the sonnet, haiku, quatrain, and blank narrative verse. Donald Sidney-Fryer notes the collection's "Outstanding technical quality ... deeply felt and well-crafted poems."
The third reprint has an updated bibliography; includes the 2nd reprint's revisions by Blackmore, making these the definitive texts. The cover has fantastic new coloring by artist, Gavin O'Keefe, and the always superb interior book-designing of David E. Schultz. With a Foreword by US critic and scholar S. T. Joshi, and an introduction by the editors of P'rea Press, Spores from Sharnoth and Other Madnesses' third printing is an essential acquisition for enthusiasts of weird and dark fantastic verse.
