Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy" discussion

Joseph wrote: "I picked up Crystal Shard back when it first came out as part of the initial run of Forgotten Realms books (along with Darkwalker on Moonshae) and just wasn't impressed enough to continue. I've thought about trying the Exile/Homeland/Sojourn trilogy, but just haven't ever been able to get into them.

Sorry for my tardiness in replying to your post as well, Joseph.

I bought a copy of Darkwalker on Moonshae many, many moons ago and it remains unread on my shelves. Since I have a copy, I should give it a read and get some return on my money at least! LOL I suspect it might be better than The crystal shard but that remains to be seen.

Joseph wrote: "As for myself, I'm currently getting too excited about Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and reading Star Wars: The Rise of the Empire. It has (laser) swords and (space) sorcery, right?"

I think I'd like to see the new movie but I'm wary of Disney having made it. The Phantom Menace was unforgiveable (even though this was Lucasfilm's fault) and I don't want to be disappointed again. That said, the trailers look promising.

I am currently reading the entire collection of Robert E. Howard's Conan series. I'm blown away by how powerful and dense his writing is. It's eloquent in the old-timey way he describes things, yet there is a strong efficiency to his style. There are no wasted words, and every word matters.

Still reading Star Wars books (currently Dark Disciple), but I did get the copy of Savage Heroes: Tales of Sorcery and Black Magic that I ordered based, I think, on a discussion in this group.

This Jan-Feb I plan to read a couple of anthologies... but before then I am trying to squeeze in a non-S&S book, Immortal Muse by Stephen Leigh which is mix of historical and contemporary fantasy based on alchemy and art.

I just finished The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss and picked up Swords Against Darkness IV for a quick interim read between novels (thinking I'll go on to Before They Were Hanged by Joe Abercrombie next). Just finished the Charles Saunders story, Mai-Kulala and started At The Sign of the Brass Breast by Jeff P. Swycaffer on the bus to work today. Saunders is amazing, great imagery and a very original story and setting. Loved it. At The Sign started off quite fun too, nothing mind blowing, but it's moving a steady clip.

Dan wrote: "I just finished The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss and picked up Swords Against Darkness IV for a quick interim read between novels (thinking I'll go on to Before They Were Hanged by Joe Aberc..."

Dan, wow that's a nice list. Be sure to stop by the Antholoy group read to share perspective on Swords Against Darkness IV.

I'm currently weaving my reading between two anthologies (one horror, the other fantasy) - Masques Two and The Mammoth Book of Fantasy All-time Greats. The first two stories in the latter are short horror tales by Edgar Allen Poe and Ambrose Bierce, respectively ('The masque of the Red Death' and 'An inhabitant of Carcosa') both of which I thought were meh. However, the third story - 'The Sword of Welleran' by Lord Dunsany - was a good sword-and-sorcery tale. I'm enjoying the stories in Masques Two as well but none could be considered S&S so I won't mention them individually here.

Greg wrote: "I'm currently weaving my reading between two anthologies (one horror, the other fantasy) - Masques Two and The Mammoth Book of Fantasy All-time Greats. The first two s..."

The Mammoth Book of Fantasy All-time Greats looks like a fine collection. Masque of the Red Death is my favorite Poe story--all its references to color appealed to me. .I need to add Lord Dunsany to the "group read" list/polls again; his The King of Elfland's Daughter was nominated before but didn't rise to the top. Be sure to chime in in the Anthology section: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

S.E. wrote: "Masque of the Red Death is my favorite Poe story--all its references to color appealed to me."

Oops! Sorry that I didn't like 'The masque of the Red Death' more! :P I can understand where you're coming from about colours, though, as that was an element of the story. It's also interesting from the point of view of what the Red Death actually is (view spoiler)[(a form of hemorrhagic fever - topical these days because of ebola) (hide spoiler)] but as both horror and fantasy I didn't think the story was great.

S.E. wrote: "I need to add Lord Dunsany to the "group read" list/polls again; his The King of Elfland's Daughter was nominated before but didn't rise to the top. Be sure to chime in in the Anthology section: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... "

Incidentally, that was my first Dunsany read so I'll be interested to see what his other stories/novels are like in due course. I'll drop by the anthology section in due course. I guess some of what I've said here probably should've gone there already!

I also loved Masque of the Red Death, not specifically my favourite Poe, that's probably Morella or Ligeia, but it's right near the top. Roger Corman's film adaptation is fantastic too, just as colourful as one could hope from such a tale. Not familiar with that specific Bierce tale off the top of my head, though I do enjoy his works in general. I never really considered either author fantasists.

Lord Dunsany on the other hand... He's an author that I need to explore more. I read my first of his works earlier this year, The King of Elfland's Daughter, and really enjoyed it, very imaginative and original (I think I wrote a review for it). I'd love to pick up another of his works, maybe The Charwoman's Shadow or one of his collections... but I don't think I'd be ready to tackle The King of Elfland's Daughter again so soon.

As for Swords Against Darkness IV, I'm quite liking it. Been giving brief alliterate updates as I go, but I'll write a more comprehensive review of the stories once I am done.

I'll have to read The King of Elfland's Daughter as I keep hearing good things about it!

Wrapped up Star Wars: The Force Awakens and decided to go to a different long, long ago: Aztec by Gary Jennings. Which doesn't have sorcery, but does have swords. If you count wooden clubs edged with obsidian shards as swords, that is.

AlamoJack wrote: "Finally getting around to We Are All Legends. Better late than never.

Joseph: Star Wars Battlefront: Twilight Company is a good read so far. It's my first SW novel."

I have Twilight Company waiting -- it's just that after 4-6 weeks of nonstop Star Wars it was time for a change. Glad to hear it's good, though.

Greg wrote: "I'll have to read The King of Elfland's Daughter as I keep hearing good things about it!"

TKoED is my all-time favourite Dunsany story - uncharacteristically book length for Edward Drax Morton Plunkett, but no worse for that. Having a liking for language as much as plot I literally (pun intended) was 'entranced' from beginning to end.

Indeed! Lord Dunsany's prose is fantastic, different than many other authors of the time, and very captivating.

I finished off Swords Against Darkness IV and wrote a comprehensive review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

overall a fantastic read. It was nice to re-visit some S&S and heroic fantasy after being away for a while.

Dan wrote: "Indeed! Lord Dunsany's prose is fantastic, different than many other authors of the time, and very captivating. I finished off Swords Against Darkness IV and wrote a comprehensive review:
https://..."

Awesome Dan, please repost in the "Anthology" group read area too!
Link=
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Aye, aye!

AlamoJack wrote: "Finally getting around to We Are All Legends. Better late than never."

Never heard of this before, but if it's anything like Wagner and Howard I am very interested. Added to the TBR list.

Dan wrote: "Aye, aye!

AlamoJack wrote: "Finally getting around to We Are All Legends. Better late than never." Never heard of this before, but if it's anything like Wagner and Howard I am very..."

Based on your insightful review of Swords Against Darkness IV, I am pretty sure you will enjoy We Are All Legends. It is full of prose that elevates the weird story of an apostate crusader.

Thanks for the recommendation, I'll have to track down a copy. I've also been wanting to read the second book in Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy, but I have to pick up a copy. Started up the medieval epic The Song of Roland in the interim, just finished the long but informative intro and am about to start the story itself.

AlamoJack wrote: "Finally getting around to We Are All Legends. Better late than never.

Joseph: Star Wars Battlefront: Twilight Company is a good read so far. It's my first SW novel."

Didn't know there was already a novel out based on the game. I like that the main character portrayed on the cover of Battlefront: Twilight Company is left-handed for a change.

Well I finished off The Song of Roland, and I was greatly impressed. Not Sword & Sorcery, per se, but very likely an influence on its development. I could see parallels to some of Howard's works, Hawks of Outremer would be the most obvious example, as well as perhaps Poul Anderson's Broken Sword (though this is a Christian tale, it is theorized by some to have Pagan roots). Also it featured an Afterword by one of my favourite high fantasy authors, a local by the name of Guy Gavriel Kay. Very violent with vivid visual verse. It's bold, beautiful, blunt and brutish. Loved it.

Still haven't been able to get my hands on a copy of Before They Are Hanged, so I decided to pick up David Gemmell's Legend, a book that's been on my TBR shelf for years.

Dan wrote: "Well I finished off The Song of Roland, and I was greatly impressed. Not Sword & Sorcery, per se, but very likely an influence on its development. I could see parallels to some of Howard's works, H..."

Which edition of Song of Roland? I read Ariosto's Orlando Furioso (an English prose translation) a few months ago, which I think is part of the same cycle.

I read this one: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Robert Harrison translation and introduction with Guy Gavriel Kay Afterword.

Never heard of Orlando Furioso (though I will now look into it). What do you mean by cycle? So far as I know The Song of Roland is a stand alone story, though I'm sure throughout time it has been interwoven with other similar epics. Did you enjoy it?

Edit: Nevermind, I understand what you mean, both are about Charlemagne's conquests and have Roland in them. The Song of Roland predates it by about 300 or so years (hard to actually pinpoint as the date of origin in unknown, just like the author). And it seems Orlando Furioso is somewhat of a parody based on it and other "chanson de geste".

Dan wrote: "I read this one: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Robert Harrison translation and introduction with Guy Gavriel Kay Afterword.

Never heard of Orlando Furioso (thoug..."

Yeah, I enjoyed Orlando Furioso -- my review -- although it was long and a bit of a slog.

Solid review! Sounds pretty interesting. Seems like there's a lot more magick and myth involved than in The Song of Roland, which has one vague statement about a sorcerer, but is otherwise mostly earth bound, though with a very real Christian view, with angels visiting men through visions and aiding their ascension to heaven, and highly exaggerated battles (hundreds of thousands of men, all on horse back).

The Song of Roland is actually pretty short, maybe 100 pages or so of non rhyming verse. And it keeps a brisk pace.

Got 4 or 5 Fox S&S books, but yet to read them! :)

I've only read one Kothar. Was not impressed.

I just picked up 'The Darkslayer' book 1 by Craig Halloran. It is the free offering for the beginning of the series. It has good reviews, but I find the prose to be a little clumsy with a great deal of exposition. There is so much disembodied description that the action scenes seem shoe horned into the story to keep the pace going. If this is one of Halloran's early books, I can understand that it's hard to get a feel for what you are doing (my first book has some similar issues), but can anyone tell me if this series gets any better as you go along? I would love some to hear what S&S fans think before I spend actual money on the rest of the series.

Jack wrote: "I picked up a copy of Kothar and the Wizard Slayer by Gardner F. Fox for 50 cents. I haven't read any Fox. Short book; 156 pages. Review when I'm done. Classic 1970 SF..."

Always wanted to check out these books. Fox's influence in the comic world cannot be overstated, if there were no Fox, the DC universe would be a sad and disappointing farce. He invented one of my all time favourite characters (among many others that are solid, he even penned Batman's origin) Dr. Fate.

I think the only Fox novels I've actually read were Warrior of Llarn and Thief of Llarn. I'm pretty sure I enjoyed them, but if you put a gun to my head I'd have trouble telling you anything about them other than they were set on a planet called Llarn.

Did Fox write any of the classic Adam Strange run?

Honestly I'm not certain, but it wouldn't surprise me. He had a hand in almost all of the early DC runs, sometimes writing under a pseudonym or another.

It's not S&S but, I started reading The Enemy yesterday. Read close to 100 pages after only a couple of hours' reading (in two sittings). It's a very fast-paced, gritty and violent YA horror and I'm loving it!

Finished reading The Enemy yesterday. Great read!

Currently reading The Scroll of Thoth: Simon Magus and the Great Old Ones: Twelve Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos, a great mix of S&S and mythos fiction, featuring Simon Magus/Simon of Gitta from the bible and apocrypha.

Richard wrote: "Currently reading The Scroll of Thoth: Simon Magus and the Great Old Ones: Twelve Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos, a great mix of S&S and mythos fiction, featuring Simon Magus/Simon of Gi..."

Ooo, I'm jealous! I need to acquire this book some day. I love the Simon Magus works that had been included in anthologies (I think it was Swords Against Darkness, and maybe some later Flashing Swords). I still have yet to read his Red Sonja works with David C. Smith, but the The Witch of the Mists was quite good, especially his segments, which are actually pretty evident as he has a drastically different tone than Smith.

Finished Aztec and read a couple of possible interest to the group -- The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps by Kai Ashante Wilson, which is definitely playing with and informed by sword & sorcery tropes, and The Builders by Daniel Polansky, which is like a Sergio Leone film starring talking animals. Both are Tor.com novellas -- I think I'll have to read at least a few more of them before I pick out an anthology for the group read.

Joseph wrote: "Finished Aztec and read a couple of possible interest to the group -- The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps by Kai Ashante Wilson, which is definitely playing ..."

I enjoyed The Builders quite a bit. The Tor.com novella series has produced a number of great books that would otherwise never have been published given their length.

Never heard of that series from Tor. Nice to hear that some shorter fantasy works are still being published by major publishers.

I finished off David Gemmell's Legend last night (review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...) and just started Joe Abercrombie's Before They Are Hanged this morning. I'd been really excited to start this book, and was happy to finally find it at my local bookstore.

Finished Sunset Mantle, another TOR novella that I'd recommend unreservedly -- I think it'd be a very interesting companion to Gemmel's Legend -- and am starting Blackguards: Tales of Assassins, Mercenaries, and Rogues for the anthology group read.

totally enjoyed Sunset Mantle, really like Reiss' writing.

Jason M wrote: "totally enjoyed Sunset Mantle, really like Reiss' writing."

It's the best of the TOR novellas that I've read so far, and that's saying quite a bit. Has Reiss written anything else?

only a few short stories I'm aware of, one of which would have been published by yours truly if his Assassins anthology ever was completed...

Joseph wrote: "Finished Sunset Mantle, another TOR novella that I'd recommend unreservedly -- I think it'd be a very interesting companion to Gemmel's Legend -- and am starting [book:Blackguards: ..."

Noted! and added to the TBR.

Jack wrote: "Dan wrote: "Never heard of that series from Tor. Nice to hear that some shorter fantasy works are still being published by major publishers.

I finished off David Gemmell's Legend last night (revie..."

That Swords of Good Men has been stirring up quite a bit of interest recently. I may have to look into it.

I hope you like Legend as much as I did. Not a flawless book by any means, but damn enjoyable nonetheless.

Someone had mentioned Darrell Schweitzer somewhere on here and I remembered that I had a couple unread books of his on the shelf so now is a good time as any! Transients and Other Disqueting Stories is the first book I grabbed and just thumbing through it I am happy with all the cool pieces of artwork peppered throughout the book. I wish they made more books like this.

Looks like a fun read. I really need to tackle his work. The more I see the name Schweitzer pop-up here, the more intrigued I get.

I had actually gotten a few of his books from him when he was selling on eBay. Not sure if he still is or not, but the nice thing was every book I had gotten from him he autographed. Definitely a nice touch.

Aaron wrote: "I had actually gotten a few of his books from him when he was selling on eBay. Not sure if he still is or not, but the nice thing was every book I had gotten from him he autographed. Definitely a n..."

I'm sure he's still selling on eBay. He's also pretty active on Facebook.

^Great review Jack, I am glad you enjoyed it!

Aaron wrote: "I had actually gotten a few of his books from him when he was selling on eBay. Not sure if he still is or not, but the nice thing was every book I had gotten from him he autographed. Definitely a n..."

Do you recall his username on eBay?

So I finally picked up Swords & Dark Magic to read while at home, it'll be a slow slog, as I get most of my reading done on the bus, but I'm sure I will get it done for the end of February at latest. Just read the intro, which was quite nice, and a few pages into the Erikson story last night before bed. Seems promising to me.

I don't remember exactly but I believe it had his full name in it