Conan der Söldner

Conan the Barbarian

by Andrew J. Offutt, Lore Straßl (Translator)

Conan the mighty barbarian launches into battle-to-the-death - and beyond - with the deadly Keep of Hisarr Zul!

In the evil city of Arenjun in Zamora the mighty Cimmerian turns master thief in a perilous quest to snatch the fabulous Eye of Erlik from the Keep of Hisarr Zul. But before Conan can return the amulet to its rightful owner, he must face the fiendish wizard in lethal contest where the price of failure is his very soul!

Conan is the superman... a true hero of Valhalla, battling and suffering great wounds by day, carousing and wenching by night, and plunging into fresh adventures tomorrow. - Fritz Leiber

Genres: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Fiction, Pulp, Adventure, Action, Novels

167 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1981

About the author

Andrew Jefferson Offutt was an American science fiction and fantasy author. He wrote as Andrew J. Offutt, A.J. Offutt, and Andy Offut. His normal byline, andrew j. offutt, had his name in all lower-case letters. His son is the author Chris Offutt.

Offutt began publishing in 1954 with the story And Gone Tomorrow in If. Despite this early sale, he didn't consider his professional life to have begun until he sold the story Blacksword to Galaxy in 1959. His first novel was Evil Is Live Spelled Backwards in 1970.

Offutt published numerous novels and short stories, including many in the Thieves World series edited by Robert Lynn Asprin and Lynn Abbey, which featured his best known character, the thief Hanse, also known as Shadowspawn (and, later, Chance). His Iron Lords series likewise was popular. He also wrote two series of books based on characters by Robert E. Howard, one on Howard's best known character, Conan, and one on a lesser known character, Cormac mac Art.

As an editor Offutt produced a series of five anthologies entitled Swords Against Darkness, which included the first professional sale by Charles de Lint.

Offutt also wrote a large number of pornographic works under twelve different pseudonyms, not all of them identified. Those known include John Cleve, J.X. Williams, and Jeff Douglas. His main works in this area are the science fiction Spaceways series, most of whose volumes were written in collaboration, and the historical Crusader series.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third and last of offutt's Conan novels, but I thought it felt more a sequel to the first, Conan and the Sorcerer, which was set shortly after Howard's The Tower of the Elephant. In this one Conan finds himself moving from the profession of thief to mercenary. Lots of well written savage swordplay and lusty adventure, both amorous and swashbuckly, ensue, of course. There have been many, many writers to produce Conan books, and I always thought andrew j. offutt was one of the most successful in capturing the tone of the originals. This edition appeared with many lush and lovely illustrations from the terrifically talented Esteban Maroto.

[Jason Ray Carney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second in a trilogy of Conan novels written by Offutt that begins with *Conan and the Sorcerer* and that ends with *The Sword of Skelos.* It treats Conan's first visit to Khauran, the small queendom that is the setting of the Robert E. Howard story, "A Witch Shall Be Born." You don't need to know the details of that story to enjoy this but knowing the story makes certain easter eggs satisfying. The plot of this one is very slow-paced, more atmospheric and less conflict driven. In terms of the Offutt trilogy, this is mostly a contained episode and doesn't move the story of the first novel forward. A lot of this is less about plot and more about characterizing a young and maturing Conan, i.e. showing him reacting to and preventing the sinister plot of the villain: the decrepit Lord Sabinius who is sorcerously disguised as a young man to gain the favor of Ialamis, the woe begone Queen of Khauran. This is more skillfully written than some of the later pastiches in the 80s and 90s. It's light S&S fare maybe worth a few afternoons' distraction.

[FK_THIS_SITE · Rating 2 out of 5]

Разочароваща втора книга от Конан-трилогията на Андрю Офът. Първата, Conan and the Sorcerer, беше непретенциозно, но много приятно забавление. Тук обаче сякаш всичките идеи на автора са пресъхнали отведнъж и той се чуди какво да си изсмуче от пръстите. В крайна сметка ни сервира някаква недоварена манджа от клиширани до болка елементи, обилно поръсена с ненужни препратки към класическия разказ на Хауърд "И вещица ще се роди", които са на ВСЯКА ВТОРА СТРАНИЦА, ЗАКЛЕ'АМ СЕ! И сякаш това не е достатъчно дразнещо, ами от време на време героите услужливо минават в режим "идиот", за да не провалят замисления от автора сюжет. Е, все пак имаше една-две нелоши бойни сцени, така че ще бъда щедър - 2 звезди.

[East Bay J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps not quite as good as Offutt's other illustrated Conan tale, Conan And The Sorcerer, Conan The Mercenary nonetheless kicks butt all over pastiches by the likes of Leonard Carpenter, John Maddox Roberts and especially De Camp, Carter and Nyberg. The Mercenary picks up right where And The Sorcerer left off, finishing loose threads from the earlier book. It's a pleasure to read a Conan novel that is unequivocally about Conan. So many of the pastiches could be about any hero but Conan.

Sanjulian's cover art is cool but, like Conan And The Sorcerer, has only peripherally to do with any action in the book. Esteban Maroto's interior illustrations are dynamite. His work previous to this included Warner's Eerie, Creepy and Vampirella, as well as some work for Marvel, including Savage Sword Of Conan. Maroto rules.

I'm happy I have one more Offutt penned Conan pastiche to read (The Sword Of Skelos) and that I saved these three for last. Once I'm done here, I probably won't bother with any of the other Conan pastiches. Why would I? Why would anyone?

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 1 out of 5]

Läsning 2: OK, så jag var hårdare än nödvändigt förra gången. Boken är inte bra, men inte riktigt så dålig som jag tyckte. Det finns ett parti på någonstans kring 20 sidor i början av boken som visserligen är kopierat från Elefanttornet men i alla fall är ganska acceptabelt, medan de sista fem sidorna inte är logiska eller välfungerande, men i alla fall inte usla.

Läsning 1: Conan-pastischer kommer i allmänhet i tre smaker; ok, halvkass och usel. Denna tillhör kategori 3; den saknar all rimlighet och all karaktärisering. I någon mån är det en fräckhet att den alls publicerades.

[Wes · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read a LOT of Conan. Some of it is REALLY good, most of it is just okay, but then there is some of it that is just BAD. I don't want to classify this one as bad, and indeed, I don't think it deserves it. The story, what little there actually is, is fine, the portrayal of Conan is adequate, and the side characters work just as well, but there is a lot that seems poorly done, even for a Conan book.
First off, this is really a short story, with larger than normal font, and overly long descriptions on nearly every page.
It's beefed up yet again with 30 or so illustrations to give you something just under 200 pages. Aside from being overly descriptive, there are more than a couple of grammatically odd spots that just BEGGED for an editor to untangle. All of which make the book feel careless as a whole.
As mentioned, there isn't much to the story, not even for a Conan book, which are classically thin on plot. What there is, is a very strange perception of age in this book. I get that it's set in a time that is much more "primitive" and life is much more fleeting, but author is describing a 40 year old lord as if he were 70. Conan is overly grown at just 16 or 17, and women are considered old in their 20's. Do with that what you will, but that perception just doesn't jive with much.
The illustrations, to be honest, are pretty cool, but they really do make this book MUCH shorter than it seems and aren't really enough to make me want to even keep the book in my collection. On a side note, I'm not sure if the book arose from the repurposing of this set of illustrations, or if the illustrations were specially made for this book. I have a strange feeling that this started as a movie script with a set of illustrations to entice a producer, got passed on and then just converted into a book. I could be wrong, but wrong or not, it says a lot about the people who decided to publish this book.

[Stuart Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Conan is in Shadizar pursuing his career as a thief when he stumbles across a noble woman being robbed. He saves her life and she decides to hire him as a bodyguard, which pays much better than thievery. Conan is thrilled to find that she is cousin to a foreign queen, for he needs a crowned noble to break the curse which traps his soul. He follows her to Khauran and finds that the queen is cavorting with a suspicious young nobleman of questionable lineage. He also finds that his first foray into life as a palace guard is not to his liking. There is too much palace intrigue and not enough assassins. It's boring. His boredom is broken when he is drugged and betrayed, then he comes up with one his most clever plans to reveal the culprit. He kills a bunch of bandits, argues theology with some drunks, and engages in a bit of pedophilia.

A short novel with 50 pages of illustrations. Much of the book is spent describing the elaborate clothing of rich noble women. And people are once again subject to horripilation. Entertaining but lacking the amount of action normally found in a Conan novel.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Conan the Mercenary by Andrew K. Offutt.

While seeking his fortune as a thief, Conan runs afoul of the powerful sorcerer Hisarr Zul while trying to steal the valuable Eye of Erlik. Zul traps Conan and seals his soul in a mirror, forcing Conan to be his unwilling agent in chasing down another thief across the desert.

The second part of the book deals with Conan joining a travelling noblewoman as a guard and stumbles across a plot to steal the throne of Khauran through sorceress deception by the Queen's young and handsome suitor.

The first half was definitely better than the second. The writing often felt flat and out of place for the tone and style I was expecting. I have a couple more of his Conan books to read but I won't be seeking out more of his work any time soon.

[Steventhesteve · Rating 2 out of 5]

My first foray with the steely thewed barbarian under the guidance of Andrew Offutt. Alas, very similar to the mediocre work of Messrs De Camp & Carter. Not a lot of story on the pages, unless you count the whole pages given over to describing women's scanty outfits.

[Jeff Mayo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This 1981 Conan book was good enough that Marvel Comics adapted it into a two issue run late in the original run of that series. For a swords and sandals book, this was slow moving, but at least somewhat innovative.

[Ronald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice wrap up to the trilogy(the other 2 being Conan and the Sorceror and The Sword of Skelos.)

[Anthony Tynan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert E Howard's wonderful hero, with a different author's slant.
Worth reading.

[Duane Gosser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Offutt does a great job with Howard's classic barbarian. I love getting more stories of the young Conan as a rogue/thief.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't been a big reader of Robert e Howard's Conan series but I have read a couple as such it is difficult for me to compare this conclusively to the original Canon..however as a book within its own right I enjoyed it.
In some ways it seemed more plot driven than the Howard books I have read with slightly less emphasis on slash and Gore...however this being a Conan novel you still get a fair bit of that.
I found this a quick read and it was engaging yet ultimately insubstantial..which made it perfect late night reading or one to pick up at intervals.
If you are someone who enjoys sword and sorcery style fantasy novels I think you would enjoy this..certainly I enjoyed it enough to look out for further episodic adventures featuring Conan.

[Ronald Wilcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written well in the style of Howard, this Conan novel takes place early in the barbarian's life and gives the story of how he gets his soul back after it had been imprisoned in a mirror. Conan meets a royal woman and her bodyguard and helps defend them against a gang who try to kill them. In gratitude, he is hired also on as a bodyguard and returns to the woman's hometown where he meets the queen. There, as usual, he rights a wrongful situation. Good easy read although not the best Conan adventure I have read.

[Stuart Rimmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the earlier pastiches, and one of the better ones, CTM is two stories by Offutt presented in one volume, 'Conan and the Sorcerer', and 'Conan the Mercenary'. Offutt tries hard to stay true to the spirit and style of Howard and mostly succeeds. Far better than some of the later pastiches by other authors which began to dilute the Conan legacy.

[Phil Syphe · Rating 3 out of 5]

No one can write Conan like Robert E. Howard can, but Mr Offutt does a pretty good job with his contribution towards "filling in the gaps" of the Conan saga.

First read this when I was about 12 or 13. Returned to is a second time when in my early twenties and a third time in my late thirties.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm thinking 2 and a half stars for this one.

[Antonio · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE SEQUEL TO CONAN AND THE SORCERER. ANOTHER WINNER!

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy Conan novels

[Dch3jac1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of action. Pretty good Conan romp.