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Red Sonja #3
When Hell Laughs
She lived in a savage world in an uncivilized age - a world ruled by man and governed by the sword. They called her Red Sonja - for her flame-red hair, for the smouldering fire of her pride which gave her sword arm a strength few men could match and none had ever defeated. In the very land where Conan the Cimmerian wields his powerful blade, this beautiful and deadly warrior-maid battles dark sorceries... and her owe dark soul.
On the prison Isle of Os Harku, where the sweepings of Aquilonian society are thrown - traitors, murderers, thieves, and those whose crimes are too terrible to name - a dark force lies entrapped that feeds on the evil of the men around it An ancient demon, the life force of one of Hell's own, it snares Athu, a venal Shemite sorcerer, and drives him to attempt escape from the Isle, and to quest for the entrance to Hell. With the aid of a sorcerous storm, the prisoners of Os Haiku take a ship, and make their escape. But on that ship is the flame-haired woman warrior, the only Aquilonian brave enough, or bitter enough, to try to stand between a demon and the gates of Hell.
On the prison Isle of Os Harku, where the sweepings of Aquilonian society are thrown - traitors, murderers, thieves, and those whose crimes are too terrible to name - a dark force lies entrapped that feeds on the evil of the men around it An ancient demon, the life force of one of Hell's own, it snares Athu, a venal Shemite sorcerer, and drives him to attempt escape from the Isle, and to quest for the entrance to Hell. With the aid of a sorcerous storm, the prisoners of Os Haiku take a ship, and make their escape. But on that ship is the flame-haired woman warrior, the only Aquilonian brave enough, or bitter enough, to try to stand between a demon and the gates of Hell.
183 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published June 1, 1982
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About the author
David C. Smith
110 books45 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 17, 2022
The shortest offering in the series so far at 183 pages but it’s pretty action packed and well paced. My only complaint is that yet again Sonja feels like a secondary character, although she’s not as reserved in this story which is what I was hoping for. I’ve given it 4 ⭐️ because we get a bit of back story on her often debated Armour (or lack thereof) and I love Sonja even more because of it! Now on to the next adventure ⚔️
June 13, 2020
This is the third novel in the Red Sonja novel series, one I read in two days. A good quick read, nicely paced, almost familiar feeling thanks to having this year read the first two novels in the series. Many of the things I found in the first two novels – a sorcerer type opponent, often off screen, a primary and a secondary villain, a few monsters, soldier allies who come to respect Red Sonja’s warrior and leadership skills, lots of sword fights, and a character Red Sonja acts as a catalyst of growth for – are all present in _When Hell Laughs_. They differ in the particulars of course (Tias, a young woman in _Ring of Ikribu_ and Tiamu, another young woman, in _Demon Night_, are swapped out for a middle aged man with a great deal of self-doubt, a character named Desmos, a noble who befriends Sonja early on and in turn Sonja takes under her wing, not just protecting him but shaping into a warrior or whatever he needs to be).
The story has a prologue section of sorts, not going straight into the action but showing the big bad of the novel, a sorcerer named Athu who basically sells his soul to an old god named Ordru. Athu we find is exiled to a penal colony island, used by the Aquilonian empire and called Os Harku, the Isle of Ill Harbor, on the Shirki River. The other big bad, the secondary big bad, on the Isle is Urdus, the warlord leader of the main tribe on the island, described as a giant of the man (working in an uneasy alliance with Athu).
Sonja enters the picture when the pleasure barge she is traveling with Desmos gets shipwrecked on the shores of the Isle, with the crew soon captured by Urdus men. To say much more is to enter spoiler territory, but it does revolve around different villain goals, with Urdus and Athu wanting entirely different things (Athu’s goals involving summoning an ancient evil to at least be a regional threat) and a rescue/punishment mission sent by the Aquilonians.
Quite a big cast. In addition to Urdus, Athu, and Desmos we get Aliel (sort of a girlfriend to Urdus who appears to tolerate her more than really like her, one who sort of forms a love triangle with Athu and does add an interesting element), Betos (Desmos’ brother, who as a judge exiled to the Isle, not really well developed other than as a foe and for Desmos’ character development), Tio (captain of the vessel Sonja starts the novel off on, the _Niros_), Otos (a prisoner on the island who breaks away from Urdus later in the book and forms a separate group), and Captain Hubarthis (leader of the soldiers sent to the Isle to deal with the convicts, who appears later in the book and gets a surprising amount of analysis). At times, as in the first two novels, Sonja isn’t present for page after page as the action revolves around other characters, though unlike in _Ring of Ikribu_ the sorcerer isn’t offscreen quite as much.
Other notes, I liked the giant monster we get at the end of the book, that was neat and some well-written combat that didn’t get resolved with pure physical force or combat. I liked the coaching Sonja did for Desmos as well as their tender but not sexual relationship. The book was a bit gorier and with combat described in more detail than the first two novels in the series. More references to real world historical elements than I remember for the first two novels (the Picts are mentioned once and Ymir is invoked multiple times, Ymir being a figure in Norse mythology). Only one real monster but we do get some dangerous wildlife (serpents and crocodiles). As in _Demon Night_ some oddly specific description of a song bird (and this time the bird is a minor plot element instead of just local color). We get a story of the origins of Red Sonja’s armor (it had its origin in a Hyrkanian’s efforts to humiliate Sonja but instead Sonja continuing to wear it as a point of pride). This famous costume Sonja also loses fairly early on in the book in a fight on a ship, perhaps rather improbably:
“And still Sonja was pulled back. She struggled desperately and her mail halter, its clasp bursting from the strain, dropped free and clattered to the boards. The air was suddenly cool on her freed breasts.”
A few paragraphs later:
“The rogue screamed, missing the knife – but as Sonja squirmed away he took her mail-skirt with him, even as his hands froze and his breath rattled to final silence.”
So yeah, not Tolkien and definitely fan service if you are the fan that is into that. She does fight the rest of the scene and escape “[n]aked but for her sword-belt, knives and Nemedian boots” but doesn’t stay nude long. Amazingly, she is still able to give commands and be respected by her traveling companions and friends (after being surprised at seeing her). Also amazingly, no one takes advantage of this (I mean people continue to attack her in combat with swords and daggers but they were already doing that and it didn’t seem personal; they are bad guys attacking everyone). Also the authors didn’t really linger on describing her in this state either, mostly on the shocked reactions of people seeing her.
That aside, there is only one mild love making scene later in the book and it doesn’t involve Sonja at all nor is she anywhere nearby.
Complaints, the cast might have been too big and Sonja still isn’t really the main part of killing the two main bad guys (with again one of them dying without Sonja anywhere near by and having little to do with it). Many scenes did not include her at all and I find it curious that the book doesn’t revolve around her more. Most of the novel is set on the Isle and it was important that the positions of different parties (I think at one time there were four groups) be known but except for one geographic feature, Swordskull, it was hard to get a sense of distinctive areas to the island, just rocks and trees and swamp/forest with of course a shore.
Not bad. I think if you are reading the series you know at this point what you are getting into.
The story has a prologue section of sorts, not going straight into the action but showing the big bad of the novel, a sorcerer named Athu who basically sells his soul to an old god named Ordru. Athu we find is exiled to a penal colony island, used by the Aquilonian empire and called Os Harku, the Isle of Ill Harbor, on the Shirki River. The other big bad, the secondary big bad, on the Isle is Urdus, the warlord leader of the main tribe on the island, described as a giant of the man (working in an uneasy alliance with Athu).
Sonja enters the picture when the pleasure barge she is traveling with Desmos gets shipwrecked on the shores of the Isle, with the crew soon captured by Urdus men. To say much more is to enter spoiler territory, but it does revolve around different villain goals, with Urdus and Athu wanting entirely different things (Athu’s goals involving summoning an ancient evil to at least be a regional threat) and a rescue/punishment mission sent by the Aquilonians.
Quite a big cast. In addition to Urdus, Athu, and Desmos we get Aliel (sort of a girlfriend to Urdus who appears to tolerate her more than really like her, one who sort of forms a love triangle with Athu and does add an interesting element), Betos (Desmos’ brother, who as a judge exiled to the Isle, not really well developed other than as a foe and for Desmos’ character development), Tio (captain of the vessel Sonja starts the novel off on, the _Niros_), Otos (a prisoner on the island who breaks away from Urdus later in the book and forms a separate group), and Captain Hubarthis (leader of the soldiers sent to the Isle to deal with the convicts, who appears later in the book and gets a surprising amount of analysis). At times, as in the first two novels, Sonja isn’t present for page after page as the action revolves around other characters, though unlike in _Ring of Ikribu_ the sorcerer isn’t offscreen quite as much.
Other notes, I liked the giant monster we get at the end of the book, that was neat and some well-written combat that didn’t get resolved with pure physical force or combat. I liked the coaching Sonja did for Desmos as well as their tender but not sexual relationship. The book was a bit gorier and with combat described in more detail than the first two novels in the series. More references to real world historical elements than I remember for the first two novels (the Picts are mentioned once and Ymir is invoked multiple times, Ymir being a figure in Norse mythology). Only one real monster but we do get some dangerous wildlife (serpents and crocodiles). As in _Demon Night_ some oddly specific description of a song bird (and this time the bird is a minor plot element instead of just local color). We get a story of the origins of Red Sonja’s armor (it had its origin in a Hyrkanian’s efforts to humiliate Sonja but instead Sonja continuing to wear it as a point of pride). This famous costume Sonja also loses fairly early on in the book in a fight on a ship, perhaps rather improbably:
“And still Sonja was pulled back. She struggled desperately and her mail halter, its clasp bursting from the strain, dropped free and clattered to the boards. The air was suddenly cool on her freed breasts.”
A few paragraphs later:
“The rogue screamed, missing the knife – but as Sonja squirmed away he took her mail-skirt with him, even as his hands froze and his breath rattled to final silence.”
So yeah, not Tolkien and definitely fan service if you are the fan that is into that. She does fight the rest of the scene and escape “[n]aked but for her sword-belt, knives and Nemedian boots” but doesn’t stay nude long. Amazingly, she is still able to give commands and be respected by her traveling companions and friends (after being surprised at seeing her). Also amazingly, no one takes advantage of this (I mean people continue to attack her in combat with swords and daggers but they were already doing that and it didn’t seem personal; they are bad guys attacking everyone). Also the authors didn’t really linger on describing her in this state either, mostly on the shocked reactions of people seeing her.
That aside, there is only one mild love making scene later in the book and it doesn’t involve Sonja at all nor is she anywhere nearby.
Complaints, the cast might have been too big and Sonja still isn’t really the main part of killing the two main bad guys (with again one of them dying without Sonja anywhere near by and having little to do with it). Many scenes did not include her at all and I find it curious that the book doesn’t revolve around her more. Most of the novel is set on the Isle and it was important that the positions of different parties (I think at one time there were four groups) be known but except for one geographic feature, Swordskull, it was hard to get a sense of distinctive areas to the island, just rocks and trees and swamp/forest with of course a shore.
Not bad. I think if you are reading the series you know at this point what you are getting into.
March 26, 2012
As we continue the adventures of Red Sonja, we see her get tangled up in a prison break. Our favourite Hyrkanian is not incarcerated, of course. She just happens to get included and eventually (and not surprisingly) becomes one of the deciding factors.
Typically, there is dark sorcery behind events. There is a nod to continuity and Sonja leans on the fourth wall slightly when she acknowledges at least twice that she has encountered sorcery several times before. This is the first suggestion that even three times in a lifetime is an extremely high number. But then, the genre is called "swords and sorcery" after all. And Sonja's extreme skill is unashamedly divinely bestowed.
However, I feel that this third volume lacks some of the punch and clarity of the first two. Apart from Sonja, three or four of the main characters are well defined. But there are many more supporting roles than in the previous two novels and some of them are quite important. There is pace and substance to the story, but a lot of the time the action is a bit confused. In the final battle, I felt description and atmosphere was sacrificed somewhat for pace. It might have let the rest of the book down more.
One nice detail is the explanation of a costume change for Sonja. This is a very nice piece of continuity.
Typically, there is dark sorcery behind events. There is a nod to continuity and Sonja leans on the fourth wall slightly when she acknowledges at least twice that she has encountered sorcery several times before. This is the first suggestion that even three times in a lifetime is an extremely high number. But then, the genre is called "swords and sorcery" after all. And Sonja's extreme skill is unashamedly divinely bestowed.
However, I feel that this third volume lacks some of the punch and clarity of the first two. Apart from Sonja, three or four of the main characters are well defined. But there are many more supporting roles than in the previous two novels and some of them are quite important. There is pace and substance to the story, but a lot of the time the action is a bit confused. In the final battle, I felt description and atmosphere was sacrificed somewhat for pace. It might have let the rest of the book down more.
One nice detail is the explanation of a costume change for Sonja. This is a very nice piece of continuity.
February 28, 2016
Third book in the Red Sonja series. A pretty evenly paced story from start to finish. Imagine the Australian penal colony except on smaller, jungle covered island in the middle of a wide river full of man eating snakes and crocs and you have the place down pat. A place where all the convicts have created tribes and will brutally war amongst each other as well as any naval detachments that happen to land on the island. Enter Red Sonja and the pleasure yacht she is travelling down the river in. I can bet you know what happens, a sorcerous storm slams the yacht into the island and battle against the inhabitants of one tribe begins. The one big unbelievable moment in this book happened during this incident, where Red Sonja looses all her armor and begins battling in the nude. I had to snicker here because it seemed just so much like anime Fan Service that I laughed. But that to the side there is plenty of battle and sorcery, ancient gods awakening demanding blood, and so forth to keep most sword and sorcery fans enthused. Definitely another good book in the series, and looking forward to rereading the next volume.
March 20, 2015
I was pleasantly surprised that this was a much more well thought out book that I would have expected from a patstiche type story. No mention of Conan (I was surprised the authors were able to resist), though the main bad guys was 'defeated by a barbarian', which definitely evoked the image ;)
Sonja is on a boat that crashes into a prison island, and the prisoners attack. Meanwhile, a Shemita named Athu makes a deal with an ancient god to try to become powerful enough to get revenge on the world.
There's some nice sub plots, a judge travelling with Sonja who can't fight because he's been an aristocrat too long, and whose brother is a prisoner on the island... the female prisoner trying to back the right horse, etc. The bad guys are pretty much tropes, but they fit the story just fine.
There was a bit of, well, cheesecake, I guess.. during one fight Sonja ends up naked, and she's tied up for a while, but it made sense in the story, and was almost there to make fun of that sorta thing, rather than exploit it.
Quite an enjoyable light read...looking forward to reading the other one I have
Sonja is on a boat that crashes into a prison island, and the prisoners attack. Meanwhile, a Shemita named Athu makes a deal with an ancient god to try to become powerful enough to get revenge on the world.
There's some nice sub plots, a judge travelling with Sonja who can't fight because he's been an aristocrat too long, and whose brother is a prisoner on the island... the female prisoner trying to back the right horse, etc. The bad guys are pretty much tropes, but they fit the story just fine.
There was a bit of, well, cheesecake, I guess.. during one fight Sonja ends up naked, and she's tied up for a while, but it made sense in the story, and was almost there to make fun of that sorta thing, rather than exploit it.
Quite an enjoyable light read...looking forward to reading the other one I have
October 4, 2014
The first 60 pages or so are a very quick read filled with pretty constant action but then drops off for a dozen pages as we see the characters thrown right back where they started.
There were a few contradictions and points in this book that seemed out of place in my opinion. While several of the names are so similar to each other that you'll have to make sure not to mix them up.
3.5 rating in my opinion.
There were a few contradictions and points in this book that seemed out of place in my opinion. While several of the names are so similar to each other that you'll have to make sure not to mix them up.
3.5 rating in my opinion.
November 29, 2021
This was my first Red Sonja novel. I was a little surprised that she was more of a side character in this story. The story itself was ok. Nothing too weighty, and made for some light reading to pass the time. I have a couple more RS novels on my shelf and I hope they feature her more significantly in the plot.
July 26, 2010
One of my favorites of the Sonja series by Smith. I'm going to give it four stars.
April 27, 2013
Okay, nothing special but not terrible.
February 22, 2020
Definitely a book full of tropes and fantasy cliches (Sonja is literally wearing a chain mail bikini), but it’s still a light, fun read. Probably worth a reread or two someday.
September 12, 2021
Not bad but the end could have been a little more drawn out and final.
November 5, 2018
The third book in the series, but the first one where Sonja is the hero of her own story. A solid read. Here’s hoping this sets the stage for the rest of the series.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews