Introduction to the Cthulhu Mythos

Well, besides J.R.R.Tolkien, H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1937) is just one of my favorites writers, when I read his works for the first time back in 1996, I was very pleased and I really likes his kind of words. He created a vast and terrifying world dominated by fear and desperation. He makes a mythology known as "Cthulhu Cycle", made by several tales, dreams and poetry. Of course he was very influenced by Poe and Lord Dudsany in his begin.
When HPL died, others writers continued their legacy, like Clark Ashton Smith and August Derleth. In fact, Derleth continued several tales started by HPL himself. After that, even more authors continued working based on HPL views, like Brian Lumley. Basically, the Cthulhu Cycle is the legend told in the "Necronomicon", the evil book written by the mad arab Abdul Alzhared.
If any of you is new to HPL, I recommend to read "At the Mountains of Madness" or the famous "Call of Cthulhu".