Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery in Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy"

May 10, 2021 Joseph rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A well-researched and highly readable history of one of my favorite genres from its precursors (H. Rider Haggard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Lord Dunsany, Harold Lamb, etc.) to its inception by Robert E. Howard (whose presence in the book looms like Jupiter in one of those to-scale diagrams showing all of the planets; but that's also his presence in the genre itself, so that's entirely fair), his compeers (C.L. Moore, Clark Ashton Smith, Fritz Leiber et al.), his immediate successors (people like Cli ...more

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Oct 30, 2020 Oliver Brackenbury rated it it was amazing

Well structured, researched, and written, this is a great text for those who wish to write in the genre and those who've done some reading, but aren't sure about the best path to take in exploring it further. ...more

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Apr 21, 2022 Michael rated it it was amazing

Shelves: literature, science-fiction-fantasy, nonfiction, history

This book was written by a guy from Massachusetts who plays D&D, loves heavy metal, and is a huge fan of sword&sorcery. "Wait, wait," you're asking. "Did you write this book, Michael?" No I did not (nor could I since the author's knowledge of the field is encyclopedic). Apparently, though, I have a doppelganger in the form of Brian Murphy! I love all those things, too!

This is a well-written, highly comprehensive, and interesting history of sword&sorcery fantasy, which happens to be my favorite k ...more

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Jan 23, 2021 J.W. Wright rated it really liked it

Shelves: guides-nonfiction-biographies, owned

As a rabid fan of the sword and sorcery genre of fantasy, I’ve always found it rather difficult to find a complete guide and history to the genre. That is, at least, until now, with debut author Brian Murphy’s “Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery."
This is truly a well-researched book that is thoroughly engrossing and enjoyable to read. Murphy covers the authors that inspired the sword and sorcery genre and what are referred to as “proto sword and sorcery” authors such as Lord Dun As a rabid fan of the sword and sorcery genre of fantasy, I’ve always found it rather difficult to find a complete guide and history to the genre. That is, at least, until now, with debut author Brian Murphy’s “Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery."
This is truly a well-researched book that is thoroughly engrossing and enjoyable to read. Murphy covers the authors that inspired the sword and sorcery genre and what are referred to as “proto sword and sorcery” authors such as Lord Dunsany, E.R. Eddison, H. Rider Haggard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Talbot Mundy, Harold Lamb, Abraham Merritt and Clark Ashton Smith.
He then moves on to the legendary father of sword and sorcery fiction, Robert E. Howard, with his contributions of Kull of Valusia and Conan the Cimmerian that jumpstarted the genre, and also his contemporaries such as C.L. Moore with her Red Sonya-inspired Jirel of Joiry character, and Henry Kuttner with his tales of Elak of Atlantis and Price Raynor. These all compose the “first wave,” that were mainly established in the Weird Tales pulps.
Murphy then delves into the second, third and subsequent waves of sword and sorcery fiction including Poul Anderson’s “The Broken Sword,” “Three Hearts and Three Lions,” “Hrolf Kraki’s Saga,” “War of the Gods,” and his various short stories in the genre, Fritz Leiber with his “Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser,” as well as other legendary authors such as Michael Moorcock with his “Elric Saga” and Karl Edward Wagner with his “Kane Series.” Also included are the authors that helped keep this genre alive through the years such as David C. Smith with his “Oron Series,” Richard L. Tierney with his “Simon of Gitta Series,” Charles R. Saunders with his “Imaro Saga,” Keith Taylor with his “Bard Series,” Ramsey Campbell with his tales of Ryre, Tanith Lee with her myriad sagas and tales, the collaborated “Thieves’ World Stories,” Glen Cook’s “Black Company Series,” and many others, all the way up until the mid-to-latter ’80s where there was inevitably a sword and sorcery bust due to the flow of the piles of steaming garbage films such as “Conan the Destroyer,” “Red Sonja,” “The Barbarians,” “Deathstalker,” and films made by brainless, money-hungry dolts that had no clue what the essence of sword and sorcery really was, and mindless novels churned out without much thought to plot, character, or atmosphere.
After emphasizing the severity of this tragedy, he brings new hope by revealing a whole new wave of sword and sorcery authors and publishers that are flourishing in the underground, dedicated to delivering the goods in the vein of the blood-and-thunder authors of old, including DMR Books, Steven Shrewsbury & Brian Keene, Howard Andrew Jones, and also the advent of the subgenre of grimdark, that owes a lot to the genre of sword and sorcery.
This is a true gem of a book, and Brian Murphy is a stellar new author that is certainly one to watch. I give Flame and Crimson a 4.5 out of 5.

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