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Robert E. Howard's Sailor Steve Costigan: The Complete Collection of Published Stories
Robert E. Howard is best known today for his "sword-and-sorcery" stories. But in the early 1930s, he was a legend in boxing circles for his humorously over-the-top adventure stories starring the sailor Steve Costigan, champ of the Sea Girl -- the toughest trading vessel on the Seven Seas.
Steve Costigan is a mariner and amateur boxer, with a heart of gold and a head of solid wood. In these 21 tales, he blows around the waterfronts of various Far East ports with his white bulldog Mike, getting swindled by clever dames, subduing the occasional underworld criminal, and getting into fistfights with anyone who can take a good punch, in and out of the ring.
Here's a taste -- the first four paragraphs of "Circus Fists":
ME AND THE Old Man had a most violent row whilst the Sea Girl was tied up at the docks of a small seaport on the West Coast. Somebody put a pole-cat in the Old Man’s bunk, and he accused me of doing it. I denied it indignantly, and asked him where he reckoned I would get a pole-cat, and he said well, it was a cinch somebody had got a pole-cat, because there it was, and it was his opinion that I was the only man of the crew which was low-down enough to do a trick like that.
This irritated me, and I told him he oughta know it wasn’t me, because I had the reputation of being kind to animals, and I wouldn’t put a decent skunk where it would have to associate with a critter like the Old Man.
This made him so mad that he busted a bottle of good rye whiskey over my head. Annoyed at such wanton waste of good licker, I grabbed the old walrus and soused him in a horse-trough—us being on the docks at the time.
The Old Man ariz like Neptune from the deep, and, with whiskers dripping, he shook his fists at me and yelled, “Don’t never darken my decks again, Steve Costigan. If you ever try to come aboard the Sea Girl, I’ll fill you fulla buckshot, you mutineerin’ pirate!”
“Go set on a marlin-spike,” I sneered. “I wouldn’t sail with you again for ten bucks a watch and plum duff every mess. I’m through with the sea, anyhow. You gimme a bad taste for the whole business. A landman’s life is the life for me, by golly. Me and Mike is goin’ to fare forth and win fame and fortune ashore.”
Steve Costigan is a mariner and amateur boxer, with a heart of gold and a head of solid wood. In these 21 tales, he blows around the waterfronts of various Far East ports with his white bulldog Mike, getting swindled by clever dames, subduing the occasional underworld criminal, and getting into fistfights with anyone who can take a good punch, in and out of the ring.
Here's a taste -- the first four paragraphs of "Circus Fists":
ME AND THE Old Man had a most violent row whilst the Sea Girl was tied up at the docks of a small seaport on the West Coast. Somebody put a pole-cat in the Old Man’s bunk, and he accused me of doing it. I denied it indignantly, and asked him where he reckoned I would get a pole-cat, and he said well, it was a cinch somebody had got a pole-cat, because there it was, and it was his opinion that I was the only man of the crew which was low-down enough to do a trick like that.
This irritated me, and I told him he oughta know it wasn’t me, because I had the reputation of being kind to animals, and I wouldn’t put a decent skunk where it would have to associate with a critter like the Old Man.
This made him so mad that he busted a bottle of good rye whiskey over my head. Annoyed at such wanton waste of good licker, I grabbed the old walrus and soused him in a horse-trough—us being on the docks at the time.
The Old Man ariz like Neptune from the deep, and, with whiskers dripping, he shook his fists at me and yelled, “Don’t never darken my decks again, Steve Costigan. If you ever try to come aboard the Sea Girl, I’ll fill you fulla buckshot, you mutineerin’ pirate!”
“Go set on a marlin-spike,” I sneered. “I wouldn’t sail with you again for ten bucks a watch and plum duff every mess. I’m through with the sea, anyhow. You gimme a bad taste for the whole business. A landman’s life is the life for me, by golly. Me and Mike is goin’ to fare forth and win fame and fortune ashore.”
- GenresShort Stories
441 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 2, 2019
18 people are currently reading
26 people want to read
About the author
Robert E. Howard
2,984 books2,650 followersRobert Ervin Howard was an American pulp writer of fantasy, horror, historical adventure, boxing, western, and detective fiction. Howard wrote "over three-hundred stories and seven-hundred poems of raw power and unbridled emotion" and is especially noted for his memorable depictions of "a sombre universe of swashbuckling adventure and darkling horror."
He is well known for having created—in the pages of the legendary Depression-era pulp magazine Weird Tales—the character Conan the Cimmerian, a.k.a. Conan the Barbarian, a literary icon whose pop-culture imprint can only be compared to such icons as Tarzan of the Apes, Count Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, and James Bond.
—Wikipedia
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
He is well known for having created—in the pages of the legendary Depression-era pulp magazine Weird Tales—the character Conan the Cimmerian, a.k.a. Conan the Barbarian, a literary icon whose pop-culture imprint can only be compared to such icons as Tarzan of the Apes, Count Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, and James Bond.
—Wikipedia
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 27, 2022
To those only familiar with Robert E Howard through his horror or sword and sorcery stories might be surprised to learn that he could be really funny when he wanted to be. Sailor Steve Costigan is one of these humorous creations, an unbeatable boxer with a heart of gold and a head full of rocks.
Like with most pulp collections featuring the same character from the same author, these get pretty repetative if you read it cover to cover. Steve gets duped by a dame, loses his dog, and punches people "just below" and/or "in their hearts" with shocking regularity.
Nonetheless, these are pretty funny and action packed stories, and a real find for someone wanting some pulp that is a bit different from the standard crime fighter or sword swinging warrior.
Like with most pulp collections featuring the same character from the same author, these get pretty repetative if you read it cover to cover. Steve gets duped by a dame, loses his dog, and punches people "just below" and/or "in their hearts" with shocking regularity.
Nonetheless, these are pretty funny and action packed stories, and a real find for someone wanting some pulp that is a bit different from the standard crime fighter or sword swinging warrior.
January 9, 2024
This is entirely lighthearted fare - and yet it is connected to such epics as Conan the Barbarian and the Cthulhu mythos. Robert R. Howard killed himself when he was just thirty years old - by then he had written over three hundred stories and reading up on his works and influences is definitely time well spent.
Because of his better known works, the light fare of the good-natured, dim-witted and hard-hitting sailor is mostly forgotten. These short stories are nothing but harmless fun - time joyously spent in the company of Steve and his dog Mike. No great literature here - just fun. And as it comes from the mind and pen of REH, it is literary history.
Because of his better known works, the light fare of the good-natured, dim-witted and hard-hitting sailor is mostly forgotten. These short stories are nothing but harmless fun - time joyously spent in the company of Steve and his dog Mike. No great literature here - just fun. And as it comes from the mind and pen of REH, it is literary history.
October 28, 2023
While his contemporary H.P. Lovecraft stuck to basically one genre and sold almost exclusively to Weird Tales, the prolific Howard submitted stories across the pulp spectrum.
This collection focuses on Sailor Steve Costigan, boxing champ of the Sea Girl, who sails the world fighting in and out of the ring in every port of call accompanied by his faithful bulldog Mike.
It abounds with the casual racism of the period, so it may be distasteful for some modern readers. Costigan's fights are described in excruciatingly brutal and bloody detail, with damage that would permanently maim or even kill a normal person.
Despite his ignorance and violent nature Costigan has a streak of chivalry that usually ends up with him being outsmarted by a criminally minded woman.
The fight sequences become a bit tedious, especially if you read one story after another. You have to figure these were published at least a month or more apart, so they would be a bit more unique as stand-alone stories.
A lesser-known though no less colorful character than his much more famous Conan.
This collection focuses on Sailor Steve Costigan, boxing champ of the Sea Girl, who sails the world fighting in and out of the ring in every port of call accompanied by his faithful bulldog Mike.
It abounds with the casual racism of the period, so it may be distasteful for some modern readers. Costigan's fights are described in excruciatingly brutal and bloody detail, with damage that would permanently maim or even kill a normal person.
Despite his ignorance and violent nature Costigan has a streak of chivalry that usually ends up with him being outsmarted by a criminally minded woman.
The fight sequences become a bit tedious, especially if you read one story after another. You have to figure these were published at least a month or more apart, so they would be a bit more unique as stand-alone stories.
A lesser-known though no less colorful character than his much more famous Conan.
August 19, 2025
Fun, but terribly dated and a tad repetitive
The tales of Steve Costigan are as light-hearted and zany as they are, there's no other way to put it, racist (an aspect that, despite being understandable given their age, still begets caution on possible readers). If you can stomach the casual bigoted remarks (and a particular colonialist tale involving SEA natives), you will be greeted with some very funny stories of an oaf of a sailor, down on his luck in regards to women and money (deservedly, I might add). A little repetitive towards the latter stories, since there's only so many ways to narrate a drawn out fistfight. A shame that you hardly find stories like these nowadays.
The tales of Steve Costigan are as light-hearted and zany as they are, there's no other way to put it, racist (an aspect that, despite being understandable given their age, still begets caution on possible readers). If you can stomach the casual bigoted remarks (and a particular colonialist tale involving SEA natives), you will be greeted with some very funny stories of an oaf of a sailor, down on his luck in regards to women and money (deservedly, I might add). A little repetitive towards the latter stories, since there's only so many ways to narrate a drawn out fistfight. A shame that you hardly find stories like these nowadays.
May 21, 2023
Funny and really enjoyable read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews