Luigi Musolino
Oscure Regioni 1 e 2

In the vast ocean of dark literature, Luigi Musolino emerges as a luminous star in the nocturnal firmament, proving forcefully that he is not inferior to his illustrious foreign colleagues. The two volumes of "Oscure Regioni" represent a deep dive into the underground of the Italian peninsula, where shadows dance and ancient legends intertwine like serpents in the dark. Musolino, like a modern word alchemist, penetrates like a sharp blade into the reader's mind. His prose, devoid of superfluous frills, evokes sinister images and dark atmospheres that insinuate into the soul like a slow but relentless poison. In "Oscure Regioni", Musolino leads us through a labyrinth of myths and legends, each darker and more disturbing than the last. Every story in these 2 volumes is more beautiful than the other, a journey into the unknown, an immersion into the primordial darkness of imagination. Frequent evocations of occult zoology abound with descriptions of semi-human beings and mysterious creatures: from the dark polyp-like being of the Sicilian legend in "La Signora delle Cisterne", where the supernatural merges with a tale of dark rituals tied to the mafia connection, to the monstrous Calabrian myth of Scylla in "Cani d’acqua", the enigmatic Nessie transported to a Lombard pond in "I nastri di Larrie" (a sort of local Loch Ness monster) or the terrifying serpent-like creature of Sa Reina. "Crustumium" (with an apocalyptic Lovecraftian ending in which the city of Crustumium resembles R’Lyeh) fascinates with its marine mysteries swirling beneath the placid surface of the waters. "Sibillini occhi d'avorio" unfolds like a serpent through the mists of time, dragging the reader ever deeper into the abyss of ancient Italy. The general atmosphere of terror and wonder remains constant. "Il Carnevale dell’Uomo Cervo", based on a Molise folk festival, recalls the ancestral memory of an ancient mastodon, the Megalocero, a majestic deer extinct due to human beings. We then find "Smeraldo", a sort of melancholic monster of the dark waters of Basso Polesine, and in "Le Abominazioni delle Alture" the Dahu, a legendary creature of the Aosta Valley tradition, in a story set in high-altitude places where eternal solitude reigns, reminding me of that evoked by Lovecraft in "At the Mountains of Madness". The general atmosphere of terror and wonder remains constant. Musolino proves to be a master in the art of telling stories that delve into the deepest darkness of the human soul. In conclusion, "Oscure Regioni" is an essential stop for those seeking the most remote and unexplored darkness. Musolino stands as a guardian of ancient legends, a solitary wanderer venturing where the lights go out and the shadows fall.