The Horror Stories of Robert E. Howard by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Mario Guslandi
Robert E. Howard, creator of Conan the Barbarian, Solomon Kane and other memorable characters, has such a reputation
as a master of heroic fantasy that it's easy to forget that his huge production
includes a number of strong, colourful horror pieces. Never a refined stylist, he
displayed an energetic and vivid type of storytelling also in his horror fiction which tends to feature brave,
strong-willed men fearlessly facing alien forces and evil creatures.
The Complete Chronicles of Conan by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Steven H Silver
If you only know Conan the Barbarian from the dreary Arnold Schwarzenegger films or from the colorful Marvel Comics
version, you don't know Conan. The character created by Robert E. Howard to traverse the breadth of lands during the
Hyborian Age is much more complex and nuanced than either of those versions, or of the popular image. All of the stories
Howard managed to finish about Conan appear in this edition, published to recognize the hundredth anniversary of Howard's birth.
The Riot at Bucksnort by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
Along with historical tales of the East, American Western tall tales were the other
form that Robert E. Howard was increasingly exploring. In particular his humourous adventures of Breckenridge Elkins the big,
two-fisted, gun-slinging, good-hearted but naive galoot from Bear Creek and
similar tales of Pike Bearfield and Buckner J. Grimes were the complete antithesis of his dark tales.
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The Lord of Samarcand by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
In The Lord of Samarcand we are presented with all of Robert E. Howard's historical tales of the Orient. Howard was drawn to this
form by his interest in history, but also through his admiration for the historical and adventure works
of Harold Lamb (1892-1962), an author who, unlike Howard, had been widely published
in the prestigious pulp magazine Adventure.
The Black Stranger by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
In The Black Stranger editor Steven Tompkins collects a number of Robert E. Howard's tales set in the United States, albeit
some occurring in far remote times. In his informative introduction, he introduces the works selected and how they relate
to Howard's development as a writer.
Boxing Stories by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
For many of the stories, some never reprinted before, the editor has gone back to the original typescripts or
magazine appearances: restoring 10,000 words to "The Iron Man" cut by the editors of Fight Stories; restoring Sailor Steve
Costigan as the protagonist of Dennis Dorgan stories, a name change brought on by Howard having to disguise his
authorship to avoid having two stories under the same by-line in a single magazine issue.
The People of the Black Circle by Robert E. Howard
reviewed by Georges T. Dodds
To many people the character of Conan is the one they know from two films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, for
others Conan is the barbarian character of comic book fame, for others still the literary character written of by a
host of modern would-be sword and sorcery authors. What is presented in in this collection
are the original unadulterated Robert E. Howard Conan tales, directly from the pages of
Weird Tales and original manuscripts.
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