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Mortu and Kyrus in the White City
This thrilling novella is the first installment in the adventures of Mortu and Kyrus, a warrior and a monk embarked on a grand quest across a strange and dangerous world. With bloody action and dry wit, this story aims to revisit the fantasy fiction of old. Touches of Robert E. Howard, Fritz Leiber, and Jack Vance shine in this thought provoking tale of adventure. At turns humorous and dark, this is a classic epic adventure in novella form. If new fiction generally leaves you lukewarm, get ready to be excited for great characters, bold action, and weird spectacle. Sword and sorcery is back!
- GenresPost ApocalypticFantasy
83 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2018
4 people are currently reading
29 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
September 10, 2020
This has so many great elements. Mix in a little Mad Max, some Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, and for meaningful depth a bit of the great Ursula K. Le Guin's The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. Yet, I find myself liking, not loving it. Mostly I think because the characters lack real flavor, especially Mortu, half of the barbarian - monk/monkey protagonist duo that felt like it had so much promise for great, wacky adventure but never realized it.
August 6, 2018
Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser meet Mad Max.
I can pretty much end the review right there.
Take your classic, mismatched sword and sorcery pair, put them on a motorcycle in a post-apocalyptic land recovering from throwing off an alien invasion, mix high-tech weirdness and magic, add a clever reference to a famous sci-fi-ish short, and you get some idea of what Herstrom's got here.
Write more. Now.
I can pretty much end the review right there.
Take your classic, mismatched sword and sorcery pair, put them on a motorcycle in a post-apocalyptic land recovering from throwing off an alien invasion, mix high-tech weirdness and magic, add a clever reference to a famous sci-fi-ish short, and you get some idea of what Herstrom's got here.
Write more. Now.
April 20, 2021
Ok, the concept grabbed me. Schuyler Hernstrom's name grabbed me. His characters, Mortu and Kyrus, grabbed me.
An 'iron horse' riding barbarian from the frozen north travelling with his ensorcelled monk friend who has been turned into a talking monkey... A far future, post-apocalyptic landscape set thousands of years after alien conquerors have departed the earth. It reads like something out of the pages of a Jack Kirby comic. I didn't see the Fritz Leiber or Jack Vance influences claimed in the blurb, but I was reminded of the PLANET STORIES era inventiveness of Leigh Brackett. The Mad Max meets Conan comparisons are inevitable but the collision of all these ideas make for a grand mash-up of old style pulp SF and sword-&-sorcery.
My only niggle is that, due to the intriguing backstory of the characters, this did not feel like the first story in a series but maybe the second or third. A minor complaint. I had major fun with this. Add me to the list of those who want more.
An 'iron horse' riding barbarian from the frozen north travelling with his ensorcelled monk friend who has been turned into a talking monkey... A far future, post-apocalyptic landscape set thousands of years after alien conquerors have departed the earth. It reads like something out of the pages of a Jack Kirby comic. I didn't see the Fritz Leiber or Jack Vance influences claimed in the blurb, but I was reminded of the PLANET STORIES era inventiveness of Leigh Brackett. The Mad Max meets Conan comparisons are inevitable but the collision of all these ideas make for a grand mash-up of old style pulp SF and sword-&-sorcery.
My only niggle is that, due to the intriguing backstory of the characters, this did not feel like the first story in a series but maybe the second or third. A minor complaint. I had major fun with this. Add me to the list of those who want more.
April 4, 2019
Ax-wielding barbarian motorcycling through a ruin-filled post-apocalyptic wasteland with a monk-monkey on his shoulder. Your argument is invalid.
Unfortunately, this particular adventure doesn't give the awesomely Thundarr setting the breathing room it requires. Which makes me ask: will there be more?
Unfortunately, this particular adventure doesn't give the awesomely Thundarr setting the breathing room it requires. Which makes me ask: will there be more?
August 12, 2018
Proper fantasy!
A great blending of the old and the new, interesting characters and a plot that fairly clips along. Very enjoyable and I look forward to the further adventures of this pair.
Read courtesy of Kindle Unlimited.
A great blending of the old and the new, interesting characters and a plot that fairly clips along. Very enjoyable and I look forward to the further adventures of this pair.
Read courtesy of Kindle Unlimited.
October 21, 2018
“You may talk of cities and justice all you wish. Tonight, the pagan wins. My anger will be sated and these wicked people brought to ruin.”
Mortu and Kyrus in the White City is a new novella out from Cirsova standout Schuyler Hernstrom, the first in a planned series equally sword and sorcery and far future post-apocalyptic.
Mortu and Kyrus in the White City is a classic barbarian and trickster story, with Mortu playing the role of barbarian and Kyrus the trickster. Only Mortu is the sort of barbarian who rides an iron steed and the trickster is a monk-magically-turned-into-a-monkey.
Hernstrom is coy about the setting, but it draws heavily from the post-apocalyptic tradition, with recognizable elements mixed in with fantastical creatures and references to space travel (this is definitely an everything-in-the-pot story in the pulp tradition). E.g., Mortu’s “iron horse” is pretty clearly a motorcycle.
Hernstrom almost gives us both too much and too little worldbuilding. It slows the story down at time, with elements likely aimed at the future, but it also left me wanting more, which is a good thing for the opening salvo in a planned series. There are lots of little touches like armor fashioned from the chitin of giant centipedes and drakes wheeling overhead.
Mortu and Kyrus save a caravan from nomads. That caravan leads them to a settlement in the abandoned, alien city. The mysteries of the city provide the heart of the story.
Mortu and Kyrus in the White City is a reaction to a very famous short story. If you’ve read it or read about it, you will probably recognize what Hernstrom is doing by the end. I had not, so I missed out on a key element of the story.
This isn’t his best work, but I’m not sure Hernstrom can write anything that I won’t at least like. And I am very much looking forward to the next volume in the adventures of Mortu and Kyrus.
Mortu and Kyrus in the White City is a new novella out from Cirsova standout Schuyler Hernstrom, the first in a planned series equally sword and sorcery and far future post-apocalyptic.
Mortu and Kyrus in the White City is a classic barbarian and trickster story, with Mortu playing the role of barbarian and Kyrus the trickster. Only Mortu is the sort of barbarian who rides an iron steed and the trickster is a monk-magically-turned-into-a-monkey.
Hernstrom is coy about the setting, but it draws heavily from the post-apocalyptic tradition, with recognizable elements mixed in with fantastical creatures and references to space travel (this is definitely an everything-in-the-pot story in the pulp tradition). E.g., Mortu’s “iron horse” is pretty clearly a motorcycle.
Hernstrom almost gives us both too much and too little worldbuilding. It slows the story down at time, with elements likely aimed at the future, but it also left me wanting more, which is a good thing for the opening salvo in a planned series. There are lots of little touches like armor fashioned from the chitin of giant centipedes and drakes wheeling overhead.
Mortu and Kyrus save a caravan from nomads. That caravan leads them to a settlement in the abandoned, alien city. The mysteries of the city provide the heart of the story.
Mortu and Kyrus in the White City is a reaction to a very famous short story. If you’ve read it or read about it, you will probably recognize what Hernstrom is doing by the end. I had not, so I missed out on a key element of the story.
This isn’t his best work, but I’m not sure Hernstrom can write anything that I won’t at least like. And I am very much looking forward to the next volume in the adventures of Mortu and Kyrus.
March 16, 2020
Excellent post-apocalyptic tale
Magic and mayhem mix with remnants of technology and alien science in this short adventure. Well written, filled with action, drama, and glimpses into a fascinating world. Very enjoyable.
Magic and mayhem mix with remnants of technology and alien science in this short adventure. Well written, filled with action, drama, and glimpses into a fascinating world. Very enjoyable.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews