I had to see what the issue was with Lumley, I'd never read any of his stuff. Lucky me it turns out. What he appears to do to Lovecraft isn't even derivative, it's just drivel.

The term 'Cthulu Mythos' really wasn't around when I read HPL, but with the onslaught of Ballatine books at the time reissuing everything from Bramah and MacDonald to the pulp writers from the 1920's more people had more to say. Including 'mythos'.

Lovecraft was refreshingly bleak during a time of 'peace love and flowers', and that no one got out alive or sane was quite an improvement.