New books!

Some time ago, I started work on a project of passion that quickly evolved into two separate but connected books. One is a non-fiction book about sword and sorcery movies of the 1980s and the other is a novel inspired by those very movies. You know the ones; Conan the Barbarian (1982) and The Beastmaster (1982) and all the low-budget cash-ins like the Roger Corman-produced Deathstalker (1983) and Barbarian Queen (1985). There was also a ton of Italian entries like Conquest (1983) and Ator the Fighting Eagle (1982). These movies have long fascinated me – even the really terrible ones – and I always wanted to write a book in that vein.

Barbarians at the Gates of Hollywood: Sword and Sorcery Movies of the 1980s is out now and takes a comprehensive look at over 40 movies of the decade. What started as a planned series of blog posts soon blossomed into a full-blown book. It’s been an immense pleasure to research and write and I’m very pleased with the end result.

Bladereaper and the Game Zone of Fate is available for pre-order and is partly a sword and sorcery novel about the titular warrior Bladereaper and his fight against an evil sorceress in the distant land of Skaldheim. Simultaneously, it tells the story of Billy, a troubled teen in the America of 1987; a kid who finds solace in fantasy movies, comic books and video games. And he’s becoming obsessed with one game in particular; a new side-scrolling adventure game called Bladereaper. In the vein of Stranger Things and Ready Player One, Bladereaper and the Game Zone of Fate is my love letter to barbarian movies, ’80s arcade games and heavy metal.

So if any of this sort of thing is your bag, head on over to Amazon and take a look!

Buy Barbarians at the Gates of Hollywood: Sword and Sorcery Movies of the 1980s here.

Pre-order Bladereaper and the Game Zone of Fate here.