10 Weirdest Lovecraft Stories Every Horror Fan Should Read

If you were asked to produce the perfect Gothic horror story, combining elements of science-fiction and suspense in such a blend that the reader is constantly forced to look within the dark corners of their own minds for the monsters that may live there, you would still come nowhere near the beautiful composition of The Rats In The Walls.

Following the untimely death of his only son during The First World War, an American by the name of Delapore and the last descendant of the wealthy De La Poer family elects to return his namesake to the coasts of England and restore the family estate to what it once was. Upon arrival, the constant sounds of distant scrabbling within the walls of the old house soon drive Delapore into a frenzy, leading to the eventual discovery of a hidden underground city that was maintained by the De La Poers for years, a city that harbours even more sinister secrets.

Once cited as "a near flawless example of a short story" by Lovecraft scholar S.T. Joshi, The Rats In The Walls is an almost perfect reflection of the weird and terrible places within the mind of its author, conveying the most primal fears and preying upon the worst instincts of its reader.