My Review Of Delta Green: Strange Authorities

The Cthulhu Mythos stories are the driving force behind the creation of the Delta Green series. A mythos that brings often vivid imagery and description of nightmarish scenario’s through an almost action packed thrilling battle cry. I have only read two of these blended genre novels both of which were recent reads. However the Delta Green universe is very much anchored in my catalogue as favorite new stories. Strange Authorities is written by John Scott Tynes who creator of the Delta Green series. The novel is split in to four distinct sections that almost mimic an anthology but form together more like four engorged chapters that expose a world of dark demonic attacks on humanity from both the skies and dimensionally.

Strange Authorities follow’s a black ops styled group of Government agents known as Delta Green who battle a equally skilled yet evil organization known as The Majestic. After being decommissioned and officially defunded Delta Green goes silent but not inactive. The head of the organization manages to keep the group together in secret to battle the darkness that has infiltrated the world superpowers as well as other top groups that control mankind's fate. This novel is the story of how Delta Green finds themselves facing destruction and the end of the world they know and sometimes loathe and battling to save it all and themselves.

The characters in Strange Authorities are much the same as the previous Delta Green novel that I read Through A Glass Darkly. However that novel was written by Dennis Detwiller. Some how this novel manages to hold true to the same staunch and blunt portrayal of covert agents who live hidden in the shadows fighting for man’s continuation. The fact that this novel was written by a different author than Darkly yet manages to keep true to the format is a testament to the passion behind Delta Greens creation. The stories are vividly dark and disturbing. The only problem I found with Strange Authorities was with the over descriptive narration of the plot which seemed excessive and forced at times. There wasn’t the natural ease of storytelling that can be associated with Detwiller’s writing style. That is only a minor complaint because the novel manages to give a great and entertaining continuation of the horrors when worlds and concepts not only combine but collide in apocalyptic beauty such as Strange Authorities and the other Delta Green novels manage to do. Bringing together the devilish world of Lovecraft with the modern realm of gamer driven action thrills is wonderfully brought to live in the pages of these twisted tales of the Cthulhu Mythos.

ArcDream Publishing