The King in Yellow is a collection of stories with the tied in element being the titular King in Yellow, which at times is a symbol, a mythical being, or a play/story. The King in Yellow is often symbolized by his sign, which is also an element in some of the stories.
Before I break down the first story in some minimal detail, let me tell you that I think all the stories in this book are great. Some are better than others, and some barely even feel like they fit the theme (if there is a theme). Ultimately, the book is a good read and I recommend it if you like Lovecraft or weird fiction in general. If you don’t know what weird fiction is, read my article describing my thoughts on it. If you’re already a fan, I recommend my friend Matthew Pungitore’s work if you’re a fan of that kind of literature.
The book I had was a 2018 reprint by Minerva Publishing, featuring eight stories. Anyways, the story I wanted to talk about is the first one in that set, “The Repairer of Reputations”.
This story begins with the author reading the play The King in Yellow as he recovered from a head injury. He’s bothered by the play, but reads it anyways. Once he gets to a certain point he tosses it into a fire, but immediately grabs it and rereads it like a mad man. The author explains its was the 1920s and the first scene afterwards is him visiting a blacksmith named Hawberk. He sees there Constance Hawberk and discusses a man named Mr. Wilde, who is the “repairer of reputations”. He also has an interaction with a Dr. Archer.
The author of the story is named Hildred. He goes to find Mr. Wilde and attempts to use Mr. Wilde’s long stories about conspiracies to take over the United States as a king. It’s an obviously false story Mr. Wilde is telling, but Hildred isn’t in the right state of mind. He thinks his cousin Louis, who is Constance’s fiancé, is in his way. So he tells Louis that he killed Dr. Archer, but when Hildred returns to Mr. Wilde’s he accidentally hurts Wilde with a knife. At least, I think that’s what happens. The end of the story is confusing because Hildred has lost the plot.
As Hildred is taken away by the police Constance is crying in the doorway. Did Hildred actually kill anyone? What exactly happened?
This story was excellent, and probably the best of the bunch. It’s confusing at times, but that’s because the author is losing his grip on reality. He’s constantly talking about becoming king and the Yellow Sign. At one point he puts on a crown, and Louis sees it as something cheaper than he said to the reader. The real question is: was he losing his mind because of the head injury he received or because he read the play The King in Yellow?
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You may like some of my other reviews:
- Book Review: Stormbringer by Michael Moorcock
- Book Review: A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs
- Book Review: Fury by James Alderdice
You may also like some of my other work:
Frank Ormond 