The 37th Mandala
The 37th Mandala is a horror novel written by Marc Laidlaw and published in 1996. It tells the story of New Age writer Derek Crowe who uses an ancient mystical text as the basis of one of his works. As his writing gains popularity, it also attracts the unwanted attention of the 37 mandalas — terrible Lovecraftian-style monsters — that the original text was about. "The 37th Mandala" earned Laidlaw the 1996 International Horror Guild Award for "Best Novel". It was also nominated for World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1997. In popular culture. In the Valve  computer game "Half-Life", which Laidlaw helped design, this book is one of two seen on a shelf in the personal locker of Gordon Freeman. The other book on the shelf is "The Orchid Eater", also by Laidlaw. In addition, another locker in the room is marked with the name "Laidlaw".