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Wan Tengri #2
Sons of the Bear God
An astrologer in Byzantium had foretold it: the gladiator Prester John would win three kingdoms, and his name would outlive a hundred centuries.
One kingdom he had won already—and lost to a woman's treachery.
Now he faced the grim sorcery of the beast-worshippers of the mysterious plains of central Asia—wagering his life for a chance to rule a new and richer kingdom!
First published in 'Unknown' November 1939.
One kingdom he had won already—and lost to a woman's treachery.
Now he faced the grim sorcery of the beast-worshippers of the mysterious plains of central Asia—wagering his life for a chance to rule a new and richer kingdom!
First published in 'Unknown' November 1939.
144 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 1, 1939
58 people want to read
About the author
Norvell W. Page
212 books14 followersNorvell Wordsworth Page (1904–1961) was an American pulp fiction writer, journalist and editor who later became a government intelligence worker.
He was born in Virginia the son of Charles Wordsworth Page (1880 – 1947) and Estlie Isabelle Bethel Page (1880 – 1946). The name Norvell came from his maternal grandmother Elvira Russell Norvell Page.
He is best known as the author of the majority of the adventures of the ruthless vigilante hero The Spider, which he and a handful of other writers wrote under the house name of Grant Stockbridge. He also contributed to other pulp series, including The Shadow and The Phantom, and supplied scripts for the radio programs based on the characters he wrote, science fiction and two early sword and sorcery fantasy novels under forms of his real name, Norvel Page and Norvell W. Page. His 1940 Unknown novel, But Without Horns is considered an early classic explication of the superman theme. Under the pen name of N. Wooten Poge, Page wrote the adventures of Bill Carter for Spicy Detective Stories. His works only saw magazine publication during his lifetime, but his fantasies and some of the Spider novels were later reprinted as paperbacks.
The Spider was a crime-fighter in the tradition of The Shadow, wanted by the law for executing his criminal antagonists, and prefigured later comic book superheroes like Batman. Page's innovations to the series included a hideous disguise for the hero and a succession of super-scientific menaces for him to combat. One of these, involving an invasion of giant robots, was copied by an early Superman story and helped inspire the movie Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.
The setting of Page's sword and sorcery novels is central Asia in the first century A.D., when the legendary Prester John supposedly established a Christian kingdom there. In Page's conception, the man behind the legend was hard-bitten Mediterranean adventurer Hurricane John, or Wan Tengri, a hero in the mold of Robert E. Howard's Conan, though more humorous, verbose, and exaggeratedly omnicompetent as a warrior. He comes close to taking over two cities in the course of his travels, but the series concludes before he establishes his empire. He was featured two stories Flame Winds and Sons of the Bear God. The magic John encounters is unconvincingly rationalized
He was born in Virginia the son of Charles Wordsworth Page (1880 – 1947) and Estlie Isabelle Bethel Page (1880 – 1946). The name Norvell came from his maternal grandmother Elvira Russell Norvell Page.
He is best known as the author of the majority of the adventures of the ruthless vigilante hero The Spider, which he and a handful of other writers wrote under the house name of Grant Stockbridge. He also contributed to other pulp series, including The Shadow and The Phantom, and supplied scripts for the radio programs based on the characters he wrote, science fiction and two early sword and sorcery fantasy novels under forms of his real name, Norvel Page and Norvell W. Page. His 1940 Unknown novel, But Without Horns is considered an early classic explication of the superman theme. Under the pen name of N. Wooten Poge, Page wrote the adventures of Bill Carter for Spicy Detective Stories. His works only saw magazine publication during his lifetime, but his fantasies and some of the Spider novels were later reprinted as paperbacks.
The Spider was a crime-fighter in the tradition of The Shadow, wanted by the law for executing his criminal antagonists, and prefigured later comic book superheroes like Batman. Page's innovations to the series included a hideous disguise for the hero and a succession of super-scientific menaces for him to combat. One of these, involving an invasion of giant robots, was copied by an early Superman story and helped inspire the movie Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.
The setting of Page's sword and sorcery novels is central Asia in the first century A.D., when the legendary Prester John supposedly established a Christian kingdom there. In Page's conception, the man behind the legend was hard-bitten Mediterranean adventurer Hurricane John, or Wan Tengri, a hero in the mold of Robert E. Howard's Conan, though more humorous, verbose, and exaggeratedly omnicompetent as a warrior. He comes close to taking over two cities in the course of his travels, but the series concludes before he establishes his empire. He was featured two stories Flame Winds and Sons of the Bear God. The magic John encounters is unconvincingly rationalized
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 14, 2026
Sons of the Bear God was published in the November issue of John W. Campbell's Unknown magazine in 1939. It's a follow-up to Flame Winds, though not really a sequel, which had appeared in the June issue. It's a historical heroic fantasy/swords & sorcery/action-adventure story about Prester John, known as Wan Tengri or Hurricane John, in the first century. Page was the main writer of the pulp superhero Spider series (and he was the pulpiest of the pulpsters) and again gave himself free reign to fling the purple prose in this over-the-top fantasy story. It's a little sloppy and repetitive... after all, the poor man was writing how many words per month? The cover again says, "Heroic fantasy in the great Conan tradition," which I didn't think was at all accurate... it's similar to Howard's Breckenridge Elkins stories maybe, or some of his other humorous adventures. It was a fun story, perhaps done as Campbell's answer to Weird Tales. I didn't like it as much as the first book, perhaps the novelty had worn off, but it was still good fun. Page wrote little after taking a high-level job with the government in 1943, mostly with the Atomic Energy Commission.
July 28, 2010
The sequel to Flame Winds. Not as good but still enjoyable. I wish he'd done more about this character. Wan Tengri
March 23, 2017
OK, lets be real. This is not a good novel. It uses goofy and repetitive language that often dull occasional flashes of wit and vivacity. But, as a central asianist and Conan fan both, I really appreciate the effort this guy went to to work out a backstory and adventures based on the legends of Prester John.
September 7, 2023
"I am the man" has turned into "I am the conqueror!"
Flame Winds Review
Sons of the Bear God Review
Between The Flame Winds (Book 1) and Sons of the Bear-God (book 2), Norvell W. Page paints a landscape of brutality and grit, showing that many threats are simply manipulated fears that we perceive, which is the bulk of magic here. John's assertiveness is at times cocky and demeaning but the environment is one of heartless enslavers, shady magicians, do-nothing gods of gold and wood, and thieving masses. Cockiness is hardly a sin in comparison.
From the last book, the first kingdom
John's faith and pursuit of treasure reminds me of an era of Nebuchadnezzar in the Book of Daniel. Prophecies are made about the future of the kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar finds Daniel's God to be a God above gods, and Nebuchadnezzar is willing to make people bow to his image/god at the risk of being burned alive (or throats slit, as John says). John's bloodlust and bravado has blinded him to the two different women now, both haughty princesses. John is no exception to the atmosphere of manipulation and fear, using his own tactics to garner fealty but truly believing his desires as righteous. The story is good and I would have looked forward to a third kingdom sought after but John is definitely an arrogant sort that doesn't make many friends.
Breakdown of characters for my reference:
Flame Winds Review
Sons of the Bear God Review
Between The Flame Winds (Book 1) and Sons of the Bear-God (book 2), Norvell W. Page paints a landscape of brutality and grit, showing that many threats are simply manipulated fears that we perceive, which is the bulk of magic here. John's assertiveness is at times cocky and demeaning but the environment is one of heartless enslavers, shady magicians, do-nothing gods of gold and wood, and thieving masses. Cockiness is hardly a sin in comparison.
From the last book, the first kingdom
John's faith and pursuit of treasure reminds me of an era of Nebuchadnezzar in the Book of Daniel. Prophecies are made about the future of the kingdom, Nebuchadnezzar finds Daniel's God to be a God above gods, and Nebuchadnezzar is willing to make people bow to his image/god at the risk of being burned alive (or throats slit, as John says). John's bloodlust and bravado has blinded him to the two different women now, both haughty princesses. John is no exception to the atmosphere of manipulation and fear, using his own tactics to garner fealty but truly believing his desires as righteous. The story is good and I would have looked forward to a third kingdom sought after but John is definitely an arrogant sort that doesn't make many friends.
Breakdown of characters for my reference:
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April 11, 2014Read this a long time ago and really liked it. It wa adapbted to a Conan grpahic novel at one point
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews