Conan the Buccaneer

Conan the Barbarian

by L. Sprague de Camp, Lin Carter, Frank Frazetta (Illustrator)

Sphere 1988 edition paperback, fine In stock shipped from our UK warehouse

Genres: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Fiction, Adventure, Pulp, Science Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy

Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

Lyon Sprague de Camp was an American author of science fiction, fantasy and non-fiction literature. In a career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, both novels and works of non-fiction, including biographies of other fantasy authors. He was a major figure in science fiction in the 1930s and 1940s.

Reviews

[Rodrigo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Otro mas para la saca y como me lo paso, desconecto totalmente.
Sinopsis: Después de un sinfín de vagabundeos, Conan se ha establecido como corsario en el reino de Zingara. El robo de un mapa que había quedado en comprar le conduce a una intensa persecución por las costas del océano Occidental.Conan se encuentra envuelto en una conspiración que intenta derrocar al rey e implantar el culto a Set en Zingara, y que sólo su intervención puede malograr. A lo largo de la Costa Negra, más allá de Estigia y de Kush, llegando incluso al reino de las amazonas, se sucede una aventura singular durante la cual Conan se enfrenta a todo tipo de peligros y al más temible de los magos estigios, Toth-Amon.
Valoración:7/10

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the sixth volume of Lancer's editions of the Conan saga. (It was among the last to be printed but is the sixth chronologically.) L. Sprague de Camp, with the help of Lin Carter, expanded Howard's original Conan stories and edited them into chronological sequence in a twelve-volume series in the late 1960's (and early 1970's, obviously) and the controversy has never quite died off completely. Many people believe that only Howard's original versions of the complete stories are acceptable, and many believe that the Lancer series with the original Frazetta covers are canon, and then there are those who accept or reject the Bantam titles, the Robert Jordan series (and/or/or not the other Tor titles), the comics versions and movie and television versions, and on and on and on... They're all right and all wrong.... This Lancer series is the one I read while growing up, so I'm all for it. I can accept comics hero stories by different writers, and pulp heroes frequently had different writers under a house name, so... This one features a royally sanctioned piratical Conan and has no content by Howard. It's also the first novel length story in the Lancer series. Howard was the consummate pulp writer, and I think de Camp and Carter enhanced his legacy without tarnishing it. They helped Conan become one of the most universally recognized literary characters of all time. This one was written to fill a gap in the chronology that Howard developed and that de Camp expanded. It's not Howard, but it's a good swords & sorcery adventure.

[East Bay J · Rating 1 out of 5]

More bad writing from De Camp and Carter. Chronologically, Conan The Buccaneer takes place before Conan Of The Isles, but was written after. This one is marginally better than Conan Of The Isles but still pretty rough. At least there’s no scuba gear.

That’s all I’m going to say about the story. This review will focus on the introduction by Lin Carter. It is ridiculous. It was very nice of De Camp to give Carter a crack at writing an intro but what a load of tripe. It starts with a pretty good first paragraph:

“This novel is set in a world where there are no television talk shows, no income taxes, no commuter trains, no air pollution, no nuclear crises or campus riots or midi skirts.”

Well, actually, there were income taxes in Conan’s world; failure to pay resulted in imprisonment or death. I have not heard of this midi skirt but, if it’s like a mini skirt, they had those in Conan’s world, too. Let’s move on to the second paragraph:

“A world blissfully innocent of detergent commercials, thirty cent subway fares, Spiro T. Agnew speeches, freeze dried coffee, electric toothbrushes, pornographic movies from Denmark, draft dodgers, Women’s Lib and the Los Angeles Freeway.”

Translation: I am an uptight, sexist, porn watching weirdo. I can’t vouch for Spiro but Carter seems to be saying all these things are negative and Conan’s world does not contain these things. Perhaps I’m wrong. I see nothing negative about the Women's Liberation movement. And what's wrong with draft dodgers? Not everyone wants to risk death for no good reason. Also, I thought all good old school porn came from Sweden. Shows you what I know.

The writing continues in this sophomoric, adolescent fashion throughout this tired introduction. Examples:

“A gorgeous, improbable, romantic world where all the men are handsome and heroic, all the girls impossibly beautiful and willing to dally back of the arena with a gladiator or two.”

Well, actually, not all the men in Conan’s world were handsome and many fewer were heroic. As for the women, they didn’t seem to have a lot of choice who they dallied with as they were considered property except in the rare instances, such as Conan’s old girlfriend, Belit.

“This is the world of a popular new kind of fiction we call Sword & Sorcery. Welcome to it!”

Thanks, Lin, but this “popular new kind of fiction” was at least forty years old by the time you and De Camp wrote this ridiculous piece of crap.

First paragraph, page 10, Carter says many people think reading for sheer entertainment is a crime and that a story “should really come to grips with something crucial and important.” Examples given:

“… like the oil slick on Laguna beach, or the vanishing yellow crested sandpiper. At the very least, such persons advise, the hero should be a Negro striving to free his people, a homosexual gaily battling for social recognition, a concerned college youth protesting the iniquities of the Pentagon by blowing up his English Lit class, or an Amerindian getting back at the paleskins by seizing control of Alcatraz.”

Now, I get his point, which is that escapist literature is enjoyable for what it is, not for what it means. The problem is the way he says it. It’s disrespectful and dismissive. This may not have been Carter’s intent, but that only highlights his ignorance.

One of the things I find most offensive about these fine gentlemen is that they essentially used something someone else (in this case, Robert E. Howard) created to make a lot of money. That phenomenon is nothing new but it's always suspect. Carter gives a brief bio of Howard, ending with the statement, “He died [in Cross Plains] in 1936 when I was a little boy. I never knew him at all.” No, of course you didn't, but you went ahead and capitalized off him, didn’t you? Didn’t even blink, eh, Carter?

There’s a hilarious statement on page 13 about how, though De Camp is older than Carter, it was Carter who first read the Conan stories. You know, “I found it first!” Yeah, found it first, did it worst. It’s no insult to De Camp, though, because Carter calls De Camp one of the “greatest living masters of the craft.” Oh, brother. He talks about how he, De Camp and Nyberg worked in collaboration with Howard on these stories. “Collaboration” doesn’t mean taking a dead man’s work and doing what you will with it. It must have been a thrill for these fanboy hacks to put their name next to Howard’s on a book cover. On page 15, Carter has the audacity to say that Howard “inadequately chronicled” Conan’s life. Yeah, because he'd moved on from Conan before he became troubled and depressed enough to take his own life, you money grubbing vulture!

Carter says that he, De Camp and Nyberg “probably added more wordage to the Conan saga than Howard wrote originally.” Wordage. That’s a fantastically accurate way to put it. Wordage. Wordage sounds like mediocre filler. Even when reading for sheer entertainment, I expect more than mediocrity. I expect passion and talent, neither of which are present in the Conan stories of De Camp, Carter and Nyberg.

I realize I’m being pretty caustic here, but I think it’s at least somewhat appropriate. De Camp must have pissed himself the day he found those “unfinished manuscripts” in Howard’s estate. Sure, partially because he’s a fan, but he had to know how much he had to gain by capitalizing on those Conan fans who Carter says were “clamoring for more.” Can you imagine if two half wit musicians decided they were going to continue The Beatles without John, Paul, George or Ringo? It would have been crap. At least in that instance, though, the two half wits would have gotten their asses sued off. Thanks to Robert E. Howard and Glen Lord, these jokers got a career out of it.

At least Frazetta’s cover art kicks ass.

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Rellenando huecos en las aventuras del icono.-

Género. Narrativa Fantástica.

Lo que nos cuenta. La joven heredera del reino de Zingara tiene unos sueños terribles y busca ayuda en la deidad Mitra, lo que la empuja a seguir un camino que la llevará hasta una isla sin nombre y que la cruzará con los destinos de un mezquino aspirante al trono y a su mano, de un pirata sin escrúpulos, de un sacerdote que adora a fuerzas malignas y la de un bucanero implacable, brutal, caballeroso y muy lejos de su hogar llamado Conan.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...

[Иван Величков · Rating 2 out of 5]

Добре, това беше супер зле. Една звезда само от уважение към Хауърд и Конан.
Отдавна съм чувал, че дуото Картър/де Камп е доволно зле в пастишите си за Конан, но навил се да ги прегледам сам останах изненадан.
Пиратската история като структора е добра, но романа прилича на много подробен синопсис на нещо чакащо тепърва да бъде написано. Конан отива тук и тук, случва му се това и това, бие се с този и този, побеждава такава и такава гад. Все едно четеш някакво чиновническо съчинение на тема какво правих през командировката, гарнирано безвкусно със струпвания на клиширани, повтарящи се прилагателни.
Не мога да повярвам, че може да се получи нещо толкова скучно от Конан, пирати, карта на съкровище, зъл магьосник, предателство, сладка девица и гореща амазонска принцеса.
Даже Джон Мадокс пише по-добре.

[Stuart Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

A novel length Conan story written by L. Sprague deCamp and Lin Carter to bridge a chronological gap in the Robert E. Howard storyline. Conan has a letter of marque from the king and is now a professional, government sanctioned pirate. He stumbles into a bit of palace intrigue which leads him to cross horns with another pirate, his old friend Juma, an Amazon Queen, a buxom naked princess, and evil sorcerer Thoth Amon. He also battles a toad.

Good but not as well written as the Howard stories. Too much ancillary characters and not enough Conan. When he does show he acts accordingly, if a bit wordier than usual. The other characters are as wooden as ever, but the Shakespearean Viking is just annoying. "By Odin's left foot and Frigga's hoary beard doth I smiteth thee!" The action is good but it takes a while to get there. Literally takes a while, as in there's a lot of time spent travelling from one place to another. Unless that would adversely affect the plot, then travel is nearly instantaneous.

For an effort to explain the missing two years of Conan's life with no input from Robert E. Howard it does its job satisfactorily.

[M. Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll start with a quote from a different source entirely: "If ya don't like singing, stay outa the opera." (Hamilton Khan).

Staring moodily past the language (cliches, surfeits of synonyms, and strings of unnecessary adjectives) as well as the universally aimed body-image stereotypes (all women are buxom and "bouncing", all men are tall and strong, except the mean, meek, and mischievous ones, who are all short and weedy), this is a stick of seaside rock/candy cane with the word ROMP printed in big pink tooth-rotting letters all the way through it. No real twists, but twists for twists' sake are just twistle. Lots of fairground fun: you might regret it a tiny bit afterwards, but just go with it.

[Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strictly pastiche work. Readable but it isn't really Conan.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the odd Conan tales wherein the titular character isn't the focus of his own book.

If that sounds strange, I thought the very same thing considering the foreword by Lin Carter certainly suggests that the writers of this work had a great grasp and understanding of the Sword and Sorcery genre and Conan's place in it. The title of this book and the primary reason someone would pick this work up is, after all, the Cimmerian barbarian in question, but rather than being the driving force of the narrative through impulsive actions that conceal his sharp mind and understanding, Conan trails behind the antagonists, waits and watches, holds his crew back from picking fights, and spends an inordinate amount of time being drunk, drugged, knocked out, or captured. Hardly standard Conan material.

Some of this could be attributed to de Camp and Carter pushing an older, wiser, more cunning Conan rather than the firebrand of his youth. Several spots outright state that he chooses caution and restraint over action because he has learned from his mistakes and feels the weight of his years (despite only being around thirty-five). This has the effect, however, of him doing a lot of waiting and sitting around while it's the bad guys who are plotting, searching, getting into arguments, and discovering the next step in the story. I consider it a mistake to have Conan this plodding and slow, reminiscing upon past loves and old allies just for the sake of showing his considerable experiences, when The Hour of the Dragon, a tale that takes place considerably later in Conan's life, still highlights that craftiness and call to action. Conan universally kicks ass and takes names, but in this case he gets beaten and blacks out time and again because of oversights or double-crosses that Howard's version of the man would either anticipate and be ready for, or overcome through sheerest force of will.

If you want to see Conan follow the breadcrumbs of the story he's supposed to be in the center of, bearing a tangential investment in the adventure he's on and being stopped by the mundane rather than the incredible, then this book is for you. But if you expect battles and blood driven by Cimmerian muscle and brain, if you're here because you want to see the man himself fight off demons and overcome wizards and get the girl in the end, then hit up a different title because this isn't the story you're looking for.

3/5 at most.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable enough read. But it does frequently enter into "uncanny valley Conan" territory. Parts of it feel like spot-on R.E. Howard, while at other times, Conan's dialogue, thoughts, or even actions, just feel inauthentic. You'd think that authors so invested in R.E. Howard's work would've been able to see that.

[Borislav Germanov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Много приятна и лека за четене, е - човек не може да очаква поредицата за Конан да е сериозна литература.
Но повче от отлична, ако ви трябва нещо леко за четене, докато например чакате някъде.
Недостатък е на моменти леко малоумния превод ...

[DJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

not a Robert E Howard story but fun.

[David Sarkies · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is just plain bad
18 August 2012

I probably should not comment on the introduction to this book because somebody has already done a really good job at tearing it apart, though I must admit that this particular person seemed to have a bee in his bonnet regarding the fact that de Camp and Carter have gone and made a bucket load of money off of somebody else's idea. Now, while that is true, the fact that Howard has been dead for a very long time, and that his Conan stories were very popular, taking the concept and working with it is probably not all that bad. Okay, Conan was not what I would call 'canned fiction' in the sense that the Hardy Boys were, but still, as Carter says in the introduction, Conan is pulp fiction, and was never intended to be anything more than pulp fiction.

Personally, I do not mind pulp fiction, as long as the story and the writing are good. There are thousands of books on the shelves of bookstores these days, and with the development of portable e-readers such as the Kindle, this is only going to increase a thousand fold. Take Goodreads for instance: there is a part of the site where people can produce their own stories for others to read (and you can also self-publish on Amazon). The fact that the publisher has now effectively been sidelined, anybody and everybody can publish content, and it does not need to be all that good. The challenge is, though, to be able to sift through all of the rubbish and find things that are worth reading. Remember, reading a book tends to take a lot more time than watching a movie, and while writing a book is a lot cheaper than making a movie, reading them tends to be a lot more time consuming.

Now, I bitterly disagree with Carter that Homer was little more than Ancient Greek pulp fiction. The fact that the Odyssey was used as the standardised text book to teach children simply raises it far above that. Teachers do not use pulp fiction to teach children these days, and many teachers will fly into a rage if you even thought of writing a book review on such works. However, we must also remember that what one person considers literature is not what somebody else might consider literature. In fact I have been tempted at times to go up to owners of bookshops to ask them how they determine what is literature and what is not.

This book was written in 1971, and while Howard can, to an extent (as there is no excuse for racism) can be excused for making his bad guys Negroes or Arabs, by the time Carter and de Camp came around, things had changed. However, I discovered as I made my way through this book that this was not the case. It appears that simply because Howard made the Negroes bad, does not mean that the later authors can do so either, however it appears that de Camp and Carter have done just that.

Now, this book is bad, very, very bad. There seems to be no consistent plot and the story itself was very hard to follow. While I find other books to be in the same category, there is an excuse. These other books were written hundreds of years ago which makes contextualisation difficult. This book, though, was written post civil rights movement, and as such there is no excuse for demonising Negroes, as has been done here.

The other problem that I found, other than bad writing that is, was that the book was hard to follow (which is probably a symptom of bad writing). I simply could not see a major plot which moved the book from the beginning to the end. This book simply seemed to be Conan going on a journey and encountering things along the way, only to end with him killing somebody that he did not particularly like. Also, the book was badly written (did I say that already, oh well, I guess I am making an important point). In a way I was looking forward to a full length Conan novel, however when I did get to reading this one I discovered that I was sorely let down. I simply could not wait to finish this book to move on to something better.

I think, thus, I will stick with my friend's opinion. If you want Conan, read the Howard originals and simply sideline the de Camp and Carter stories. There are much better books out there to read, so you don't need to read some book that has effectively been plagiarised by some later authors, as has happened here.

[Redsteve · Rating 3 out of 5]

While CONAN THE BUCCANEER isn’t in any part written by Robert E. Howard, nor was it written in the pulp era (It’s actually a 1971 novel by de Camp and Carter), it’s actually an enjoyable pulp-style pirate novel. That being said, if you eliminate the overt fantasy elements, it owes more to pulp tales of the golden age of piracy than it does to standard tales of sword and sorcery. While written as a pastiche of Howard’s Conan stories, in many ways it doesn’t really resemble them – except in certain bits where it almost reads like a parody of the original style (super purple prose and the inability to describe a female character without using multiple synonyms for boobs). Plot wise however, it’s got it all: swordfights, skullduggery, treasure maps, squalid taverns, exotic lands, weird monsters (Man-eating trees, anyone?), dark sorcery, lost treasure, hairbreadth escapes, and monstrous idols. That works for Howard’s Conan stories. But the tale itself seems more Pirates of the Caribbean (with magic instead of gunpowder) than Conan the Cimmerian, and to drive that point home, all the mariners speak as if they’re graduates of the Jeffrey Farnol School of Pirate Dialogue (including Sigurd the Vanir, who sprinkles his ‘belikes’ and ‘fry me for a lubber’s with assorted pagan oaths). Other than on the open sea and on mysterious islands, the story takes place in Zingara (fantasy Spain), Kush (fantasy West Africa), and Stygia (fantasy evil Egypt). Most of Howard’s overt racism is absent in the story, although it is equal to Howard at his most sexist. Also, I advise readers to skip over Lin Carter’s cringe-worthy “old white guy SF author” rant of an introduction. This novel includes Juma the Kushite (originally from the story "The City of Skulls". 3.5 stars.

[James T · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was really hard for me to decide whether or not to give this book a 3 or a 4. I guess I ultimately decided on a 4 because I’m a sucker for pirate stories and I did read it all in 1 day.

First let me say that I am philosophically opposed to pastiches. People should not write stories set in other people’s worlds or use their characters. It’s glorified fan fiction.

That being said Carer and De Camp managed to write a solid adventure novel that, excluding the section in Kush, was a fun read. Especially the first 1/4.

However, it just doesn’t quite get Howard. Conan just doesn’t feel quite like Conan. The Hyporborean age feels right, except the magic feels more DnD, and less Lovecraftian and incomprehensible. However, the adventure story that is there is pretty fun. If this had been a knock off Conan, or a story set it Howard’s world with different characters it would have bothered me less.

Another thing that annoyed me was the call backs to previous Conan stories. It was like the authors were shouting at me “see it really is Conan not just our fan fiction. He remembers stuff from the real stories.”

On a final note Lin Carter’s intro is interesting. One he doesn’t get Howard, though his stories were ultimately adventure stories or horror stories they did have a deeper themes. Despite the fact Carter thinks they were pure escapism. The wheel of civilization theme in all of Howard’s writing is not subtle, but it went right over Carter’s head. Additionally, I had always taken Carter for a lefty, given his disdain for religion, his hostility towards Vietnam, and his disdain for any kind of sexual mores. But here was his intro, written in 71, complaining about the over politicization of fantasy and the need for good old fashioned mindless escapism. Seems that battle is eternal. The part where he called the Iliad pure escapism was painful. I think Carl Jung would have an aneurism if he had read that.

Does this book get Howard, no. But is it, other than the cringy Kush section, a good time. Yes.

Howard purists like me will probably be annoyed as much as they had fun. It just squeaks a 4 out of me, cause pirates are my jam. Also Zarano is a great cartoon villain. Loved him.

Anyways, long review. It was good, but deeply flawed. Honestly 3.5/5 but goodreads doesn’t do half stars.

[Robert Mckay · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book isn't by Robert E. Howard, but is a full length novel by L Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter. But if I didn't know who did write it, I'd think the author was Robert E. Howard, who created Conan. There are a few differences between Howard's work and this book - Conan normally swears by saying "Crom!" but here he does things a little differently, and I don't know that the verb "yare" appears anywhere else in the Conan stories (it evidently means "hurry up," judging by the context; I've not looked it up). But overall it reads like Howard, and I suspect these differences wouldn't stand out for me if I didn't know that de Camp and Carter had written it; no author is perfectly consistent from one story to the next, and Howard dashed off his stories in a hurry, trying to make a living during the Depression rather than striving for perfectly polished literature.

As for the plot, it's not difficult - a search for a damsel in distress, a search for treasure, encounters with villains, an encounter with a stone idol that comes to life. These elements appear frequently in the Conan stories, sometimes with variations (e.g. an idol might be gold instead of stone), but sword and sorcery doesn't pretend to be deathless prose (though in fact the Conan stories contain some of the most vivid and pungent lines anywhere). It's exciting prose, not profound; it's entertainment, not social commentary.

And for what they are, the Conan stories are the best. And while this book suffers somewhat from being a novel - fast paced entertainment isn't supposed to go on that long - it is still a Conan story.

[Kurt Reichenbaugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh man, it's like I'm 12 years old again reading this thing. I've had a few of these Ace/Lancer Conan editions on my shelf and felt like something brainless to read for Halloween weekend. Conan is a captain of a pirate ship and is drawn into the rescue of a kidnapped princess. Who wouldn't get pulled into saving a princess? It used to happen to me all the time when I was younger and better looking. Anyway, the chase leads to a "lost" island which is cursed by an ancient god. There is, of course, a lost treasure that holds magic power. A sorcerer gets into the action. Conan is taken hostage by a lusty Amazon queen to be her consort. Swords are drawn, blood is spilled, wine is drunk. Man, this is the life! Note for the purists: this yarn is not by Robert E. Howard but instead by Lin Carter and L. Sprague de Camp. It was written in the late 60s to fill in a "gap" in the Conan chronology developed by Howard back in the 30s. Yeah, I would tell you the original Conan stories by Howard are perhaps better, but this was still kind of fun.

[David B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Conan, now a pirate in his 30s, becomes embroiled in politics and treasure hunts as sorcerers and swashbucklers contend for gold, a magic crown, and the hand of a princess. This novel-length Conan adventure was conceived and written entirely by posthumous collaborators Lin Carter and L. Sprague de Camp. These two gentlemen deserve praise for helping to reintroduce Conan to modern audiences with the Lancer series of the 60s and 70s. However, as much as they may have appreciated the character and world that Robert E. Howard created, they didn’t seem to understand that their own modest literary talents were really not in his league. Even worse, I have read reports that they edited some of the original stories for the Lancer editions. These are the books I grew up with and, along with the Marvel Comics series, formed my conception of the barbarian. However, at some point, I need to make sure to read some of the anthologies that collect the stories as originally written.

https://thericochetreviewer.blogspot....

[Joe Santoro · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pastiche can some times be really great.. they can fill in a hole in a narrative, or show a new angle, or even show a new side of a character previous unconsidered. When you come down to it, though, what it really is fan fiction written by a profession. Sometimes you can really tell that's what it is.

This is definitely one those times.. this story feels like de Camp and Carter took all their favorite stuff about Conan and mashed it together into one barely coherent narrative. I get they wanted Thoth Amon to be the 'arch villain' type, but it just doesn't work. I did enjoy the parts with Juma.. it was fun to see him again, but alot of the other ties felt rather forced, and the teenage power fantasy quotient (which is always high in these books anyway) was cranked up to 11 at least with the whole queen of the Amazons thing.

Not that this is a terrible book, it's still clearly Conan, but I'll be happy to get back to some Howard originals :)

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

The sixth volume of Ace books is the first lacking any true Howard content and it shows. Buccaneer is a serviceable Conan pastiche but lacks the punch and power of a true Howard Conan tale. Growing up, I cut my Conan teeth on the De Camp and Carter pastiches, and they were my standard Conan fare, but once I was able to tread the true Conan originals free of their edits, the pastiches were lessened in comparison and revisiting them has lessened them in my estimation. The stuff they did finishing Howard's fragments or built on his notes fares better, but stuff like Buccanneer that is wholecloth de Camp and/or Carter creations feel lackluster compared to original Conan tales. The tend to be formulaic, predictable, and reliant on Deus ex Machina twists when they paint Conan into too tight of a corner. It's still a passable escapist read, but leaves me feeling the lack of Howard's presence keenly.

[Colin Dwyer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst book I've read where the author wasn't attempting to create some iconic work of art. I appreciate that the author (is it carter or sprague. . what's up with that?) embraces the crappiness of pulp fiction. As a closet Howard-Conan fan(?) the writing in this just doesn't flow with the rich and decadent extremes that Howard's writing does. Best part of the book is the Frazetta painting on the cover. You would read five pages, put it down because you can't stand how bad it is, then you would see that badass Frazetta cover, enticing you to continue and endure five more painfully written pages. The most I could read at one time was on a 5-hour flight with nothing else to do, I stomached an hour of it. A well-written book will lead you through the pages like a leaf on a stream. This was like rollerblading on cobblestones.

[Charlie Shaw-Pentek · Rating 4 out of 5]

My introduction to the Sword and Sorcery genre, and the first book I read when I got back into reading, and it was a great place to start. As a fan of the Conan movues growing up I collected these old books but never read them. I read this one last year at the ripe old age of 19, having had it sat in a box for over 7 years and it was incredibly entertaining. Nowhere near on the calibre of The Winter of The World series which I read after this, but a fun story that explores some interesting places and characters. A good read if your looking for simple entertainment and escapism but if your looking for a more complex and compelling Sword and Sorcery tale I'd highly recommend the Winter of The World series by Michael Scott Rohan.

[Oliver Brackenbury · Rating 2 out of 5]

The introduction to this is kind of amazing and certainly more memorable than anything that comes after. Lin Carter basically swears up and down that there will be no godforsaken message, theme, or subtext to this story, nothing but pure, pure surface!

He's right, so...good for him? Like the Zack Snyder Watchmen this short novel is a great illustration of how someone can be obsessed with the source material they are adapting or riffing off of while failing to understand anything about what makes it work, merely replicating the surface through their own personal lens.

Thank goodness the next volume of this series, edited by Lin Carter (and Sprague De Camp), is pure Robert E. Howard.

[Robert Fenske · Rating 2 out of 5]

As I've mentioned in a previous review of Ace published Conan stories - I can appreciate the efforts of Sprague de Camp and Carter to connect the dots and fill in the gaps of Conan's life. But it's just not that great, taking a nosedive at the halfway point with an introduced side plot to seemingly reach a page quota.

This is the only book in the series with an introduction by Carter rather than de Camp. I found it to be somewhat refreshing as Carter comes off as a fanboy of Howard while de Camp's introductions always seemed studious.

[Alex Budris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I dunno, but maybe Carter and de Camp don't have the chops to do Conan without help from REH. The last four books of the posthumous collaborations with the Cross Plains author were easily four stars. This novel is a dnf. Possibly, I just wasn't in the mood. Onto #7 - Conan the Warrior. Oh no. I don't have #7, I'm going to have to order it. This is un-acceptable. I think I'll skip to #8, Conan the Usurper.

[Gonzalo Oyanedel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sprague de Camp y Lin Carter en una de sus mejores colaboraciones sobre el héroe Howardiano, caracterizadas por un mayor enfoque en la acción que en los planteamientos existencialistas propuestos por el autor. Lectura amena, muy veloz y que incluye guiños no demasiado forzados al universo literario de Howard Lovecraft.

[Martin Rademakers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic fantasy entertainment and commonly called pulp fiction. Most of these stories were written during the great depression, and these fantasy stories still sold very well, because people needed an outlet and diversion from the economic chaos of the time. The pulp fiction era ended at start of World War Two.

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short novelette gets the job done, and manages to capture the swashbuckling nature of a Conan story. But, like most pastiches, it couldn't quite land the fight sequences nor the understated yet intimidating use of magic. That said, I enjoyed the secondary characters and their interactions with the Cimmerian.

[Oscar Espejo Badiola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uno de mis clásicos anuales, siempre Conan en nuestra vida, volver a las historias de espada y volver a la juventud es no dejarla nunca.
Conan es un pirata y vive sus aventuras, pero aquí me ha dado la sensación que, aunque está el espíritu del Sr. Howard, el estilo no es totalmente suyo, pero, aún así, es Conan.

[Doug Brode · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the only non-Howard book I've enjoyed. A childhood favorite and an admitted guilty pleasure. I've read this thing more times than I can count. It's also available in a comic book adaption too. Hardly high art--and probably not even particularly good by most reader's standards--this novel has stayed with me for decades. Just plain stupid fun. Love it.