I received a digital ARC of this book from Netgalley.

Charlie Tristan Moore returns in a quest to save her boyfriend and stop Nyarlathotep, as known as the man in black.

After weeks spent beside Daniel's hospital bed, Charlie knows he isn't going to wake up on his own. She has to track down the man in black and make him return Daniel's soul. Her search leads her to Carcosa, where the man in black has become a slave of the Yellow King, Hastur. Charlie will need all of her magic, and the help of some friends new and old to get what she needs. But the man in black hasn't yet run out of tricks of his own.

This is a really enjoyable series that remixes the Elder Gods of old H.P. Lovecraft in some really neat ways. I especially enjoy Charlie's coat, made out of the skin of an angel. If you need some Lovecraft creepiness in your life, check this series out.

here was a part of me that was really kinda pumped to get this book in the mail for my TBR pile. Granted, it was the dark, twisted, macabre and grotesque side of me, but a side of me, nonetheless. Levi Black’s first book, RED RIGHT HAND (EBR Review) caught me at a very opportune moment, and as I dove into the next offering from this author that so brazenly takes his mythos from that containing Cthulhu, I found myself digging through my music downloads to find that song by Metallica that had hit just the right spot the first time around. It was a good way to start my week.
And finishing this book was a great way to end it.

BLACK GOAT BLUES (Amazon) is the second book in Levi Black’s The Mythos War. From the outside, the book looks nearly identical to the first. Similarly sized. Same crazy-dark and twisted cover art (by Cliff Nielsen, and I’ll tell you what, that guy has some wicked-cool work posted on his site). Inside, I found much the same as well. Story picked up essentially right where Mr. Black left me sitting at the end of RED, wondering why the story was ending there.
Charlotte Tristan Moore, Charlie to her friends, was picked up as an acolyte and abused by an elder god named Nyarlathotep in RED, but at the end had turned the tables on that man in black, and, while standing over the hospital bed of her comatose boyfriend Daniel (nice choice in names there by the way, Levi), decides to take the war back to the god. Charlie starts out searching for information on the whereabouts of the Man in Black and/or his associates, so that she can kill him. It’s as simple as that. This is a revenge story. Along the way, she happens to pick up another sidekick that mostly gets in the way, runs into our favorite goddess of lust that tries to worm her way into our sympathies, and takes a small detour to find another mythos goddess that is a goat and also very, very sad.
As with the first, I think it was the combination of morbid curiosity and the fact that the chapters were so dang short and quickly paced that kept me reading way past when I should have stopped. This is a book that is a very bad one to take on a work lunchbreak, as the next chapter is only like 3 or 4 pages, and can’t I just quick knock that one out too? What time is it again? Dang. Maybe? It’s horrible. Horrible, I say.
On the whole, characterization is pretty sparse, albeit sufficient for my needs. It’s a fast read, and one that I can’t help but think that all lovers of the Lovecraftian mythos would really enjoy. I’ve never taken a deep dive into it, though, so I could be considerably wrong by making such a statement. Anyone out there fancy themselves a guru of Lovecraftian fiction enough to weigh-in on the topic? Would love a second opinion on the inclusions and expansions of Mr. Black.
The big question I had after reading the first novel in this series, that of necessary emotional removal of the POV character from the frequent splatter-punk nature of the ride, weren’t quite so prevalent in my mind this time around. Most of the crazy stuff didn’t happen to other humans this time, and elder god chunks, I would think, would be much easier to digest than analogous human-people chunks. If one were going to try and consume them, that is. Still, the ick factor though.
Absolute fun romp. Great descriptive text. Solid, linear story. Even some unexpected sympathy. Can’t wait to read the next in the series, Mr. Black. How fast can you pump em out? I’m waiting!

Black Goat Blues is the second book in the Mythos War series by Levi Black. I read this book out of order as a standalone and was immediately drawn into the story and wound up reading it in one sitting. After finishing it, I sourced the first book and am looking forward to reading it as soon as I can.

This is a Lovecraftian horror urban fantasy with all the trimmings. There are elder gods aplenty, machinations, revenge, crazy (extremely creepy) cultists, a brooding atmosphere which explodes into action, and there's even a backwoods horror filled semi-homage to classics with a 'Deliverance'/'Chainsaw Massacre' vibe. The protagonist is a wonderfully flawed character with a serious attitude and an unswerving mission. She (yes, she's female) is deeply vulnerable and nevertheless a butt-kicker. She walks around in a flowing semi-sentient black leather coat made from the flayed skin of a fallen angel. She winds up collecting and inspiring a 'crew' on her stated mission to track down and kill her former mentor, Nyarlathotep, a.k.a. The Man in Black. Her crew includes a skinned hell-hound originally sent to hunt her down, a damaged young man bent on personal revenge who is accidentally sucked into her orbit and the goddess Ashtoreth.

This book is powerfully written. The dialogue is machine gun fast and pitch perfect. The writing is spare and electric. It's literally nonstop taut creepy action for 288 pages. The denouement is satisfying and inevitable and left me really wanting to read the next book in the series.

I'm generally not a huge fan of horror. I make an exception for Lovecraft pastiches and I'm so glad I did. This is high octane stuff; extremely well written.

Available in hardcover, ebook and audiobook formats, 288 pages, from Tor-Forge (Macmillan).

Five stars, super creepy and very very well written

Black Goat Blues is the second installment in author Levi Black's The Mythos War series. The story picks up several weeks after the ending of Red Right Hand. Protagonist Charlotte (Charlie) Tristan Moore is hunting the Man in Black (Nyarlathotep, the God of Chaos and Destruction) who made her his acolyte only to have the student defeat the master and walk away with the ability to wish herself any where, a black coat made from fallen angel skin that has hidden pockets of unbelievable useful tools, and a desire for payback for what he did to Daniel Langford.

Charlie finds herself with a curious group as allies in her desire to hunt down the Man in Black. There is Javier who Charlie stops from killing someone and ends up jumping place to place with Charlie. Ashtoreth, The Scarlet Harlot, Unholy Ishtar, Concubine of Chaos, and Whore Goddess Galore, and a skin-hound named Winnie who once took off a huge chunk of her ear. The most curious aspect of this story that I actually liked, was, shocked face, Winnie and how once adversaries are now allies.

I will say that the name of this book boggles my mind. You see, Charlie wears a black coat that she took from the Man in Black, so why not name the book Black Coat Blues? There is a character named Black Goat, but this character only shows up for barely a chapter or two. It is at this point in the story where betrayal sprouts its wings and Charlie finds herself among a cult who actually hunts Gods down and eats them. Charlie is an interesting character who is coming into her own. 

She acts like a badass, and tries to walk the walk as a badass, but it is her own powers that are truly impressive. The most impressive power is her interdimensional teleportation that she has been using to lead her to the Man in Black. Levi Black, aka James R Tuck can write some strange stories. He is very descriptive and isn't afraid to get his characters blooded and facing life or death challenges almost every page. Curious where Black will go from here since it is apparent Charlie would throw her own life away in order to save Daniel and perhaps Javier's as well.

I was a bit on the fence about this book, if I should read it or not since I hadn't read the first book, Red Right Hand. However, the fabulous cover and my weakness for Lovecraftian stories made me dare to start this book and I'm thrilled to say that the book worked very well, despite that I had not read the first book.

The story in this book takes place some weeks after the story ended in the first book. Charlie defeated The Man In Black, but he's still alive and Charlie goes after him in this book. If you have read the previous book will you know everything that happened in, Red Right Hand, however, if you like me decides to read this one without having read the previous book will it be easy getting into the story Black Goat Blues. Much of what happened in Red Right Hand is mentioned in this book, so it's easy to understand Charlie's plight to destroy The Man in Black and save her boyfriend Daniel. Also, I just want to say that I quite enjoyed the characters around Charlie, like Javier who becomes an important part of the story. And, then we have Ashtoreth, The Scarlet Harlot, Unholy Ishtar, Concubine of Chaos, and Whore Goddess Galore. Yeah, she just like The Man In Black is an Elder God. But, my favorite characters, or creature rather, is the skinhound. Yup, that surprised me too. What is a skinhound? Just imagine a dog skinned and you will get the picture. Sounds creepy I know, but this is a Lovecraftian novel so creepy things are expected.

I quite enjoyed this book and I hope to read book one some day. And, speaking of reading, this book ended with a hell of an unexpected cliffhanger so now I must read the next book!

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, <I>Red Right Hand</i>, I felt like it really nailed the feeling of Lovecraftian helplessness and despair. This second book dials that back for a lot of the story, which was unfortunate, but once everything finally lined up and came together about halfway through, I was fully and completely in love yet again.

There’s plenty to like here, and a lot of solid storytelling and desperation throughout. Enough nods and easter eggs for any Lovecraft aficionado to take some time.

Review: BLACK GOAT BLUES by Levi Black (The Mythos War Book 2)

After all the trouble, danger, and magic in Book 1, RED RIGHT HAND, Charlie (Charlotte) might be ready to rest. But when you've been Marked by an Elder God, rest is a thing of the past. (And Charlie's never really rested since age fourteen.) After being jerked back across the universe by a certain Elder God, battling others, all the trickery, deceit, set-ups, this girl Is ready to get down and fix said Elder God's wagon. But first she has to find him, and to do so, Charlie must travel to Carcosa, to the Court of the feared and dreaded King in Yellow. The beat-downs, deception, and betrayals aren't over yet...not by any means.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33517558-black-goat-blues" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Black Goat Blues (The Mythos War #2)" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1492984122m/33517558.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33517558-black-goat-blues">Black Goat Blues</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14220711.Levi_Black">Levi Black</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2162097240">4 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
A great urban fantasy, I already said elsewhere that I love Lovecraftian stuff way more when Lovecraft doesn't do it. The Mythos war is a great series and Black Goat Blues is a tight, bloody, action packed visceral work. It is a pretty by the book urban fantasy series, but the sheer force and wonderful vision of the world and the characters make it worth the read.<br /><br />I look forward to more of this world. check it out
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/279564-kdawg91">View all my reviews</a>