Books I Read in July 2022

 Six books this month.

Black Wings Has My Angel (1953) by Elliot Chaze

An escaped convict who served in WWII teams up with a woman on the run for the ultimate heist. The characters are flawed but fascinating. The prose is clear and elegant, the dialogue is sharp, and the story is haunting. One of the best crime noir novels I’ve ever read. 

The Runestaff (1969) by Michael Moorcock

An exciting conclusion to the History of the Runestaff. As with the previous volumes the story is very fast paced. The book is divided into three parts and everything is set up for the final confrontation by the end of part two. 

If I have a criticism, it’s that so many things happen and get wrapped up really, and I mean really quickly, in the last few chapters. On the other hand, it was a heck of a wild ride. I’m looking forward to reading more of Moorcock’s work. 

Far Away and Never (1996) by Ramsey Campbell 

This is a collection of sword and sorcery and fantasy stories by Ramsey Campbell, an author more well known for his horror stories.

One of the stories, “The Ways of Chaos,” is actually Campbell’s chapter of a round-robin novel based on a Robert E. Howard fragment. It didn’t do anything for me, probably because it’s part of a longer work. Three of the other stories are fantasy stories in the vein of Clark Ashton Smith. I found them to be a little wordy and obscure. 

My favorite stories are the first four sword and sorcery stories featuring a wandering swordsman named Ryre. In each story Ryre has to use his wits to deal with something monstrous. These stories first appeared in the Swords Against Darkness paperback anthology series in the 70s. They were creepy and creative. 

Night Winds (1978) by Karl Edward Wagner

This is a collection of stories about Kane, a wandering swordsman cursed with immortality. One of the things I really like about these stories is that they are all different. The first story kept me guessing until the very end, the second story begins with an interesting conversation which leads to all out adventure, the next two have different elements of gothic horror, the story after that is epic, and the last is a great example of travelers telling stories at an isolated inn. Another thing I liked is that all the stories have layers and interesting themes that become apparent once you get to the end. It’s all very well done. Every story is a standout.

My full review can be found here:

We Learn by Writing: Night Winds by Karl Edward Wagner

Bloodstone (1975) by Karl Edward Wagner

Kane the immortal swordsman comes across a mysterious ring. He learns that it’s part of a giant gemstone called Bloodstone, which controls a lost city from the stars. The city is now overrun by the Rillyti, devolved lizard men descendants of the original builders. Kane plays two sides against each other in an attempt to take control of the city. This was a wild mix of fantasy and science fiction with some great characters. I loved it. 

Dark Crusade (1976) by Karl Edward Wagner 

Kane deals with a deadly cult that has come to power and is storming the land. As in Bloodstone, Kane is manipulating various groups in order to come out on top. The book is well titled. Wagner was doing Games of Thrones-like grimdark stories in the 70s, folks. I learned from the Dark Crusade podcast that Wagner spent six months researching pre-firearm cavalry battles and it shows. The battles were thrilling. I enjoyed it but Night Winds is my favorite.

Night Winds by Karl Edward Wagner

“Who won the war Kane?”
“I did.”
“You didn’t win a thing, Kane. You only survived.”
“It means the same thing.”
— From “Lynortis Reprise” by Karl Edward Wagner

                                                        

This is a collection of stories about Kane, a wandering swordsman cursed with immortality. While they can be described as sword and sorcery stories (I’ve read that Wagner preferred the terms epic fantasy, dark fantasy, or gothic fantasy) they also have elements of gothic horror. Kane is far from your typical heroic adventurer. At times Kane is a sorcerer, a crime lord, a leader of bandits, and a leader of armies. At all times Kane looks out for Kane. Not really an anti-hero, sometimes a villain, but just sympathetic enough to keep me interested in the outcome of each story.

“Did you ever wonder at the loneliness of immortality? Have you ever wondered what must be the thoughts of a man cursed to wander through the centuries? A man doomed to a desolate, unending existence — feared and hated wherever men speak his name. A man who can never know peace, whose shadow leaves ruin wherever he passes. A man who has learned that every triumph is fleeting, that every joy is transient. All that he seeks to possess is stolen away from him by the years. His empires will fall, his songs will be forgotten, his loves will turn to dust. Only the emptiness of eternity will remain with him, a laughing skeleton cloaked in memories to haunt his days and nights.”
— From “Undertow” by Karl Edward Wagner

One of the things I really like about this collection is that all stories are so different. They also have layers to them and strong themes that become apparent once you get to the end. Every story is a standout.

In “Undertow,” a mysterious woman seeks help from a sea captain. We don’t meet Kane right away; we just hear people talking about him. Some describe him with fear and wonder while another character mocks him. We’re not sure how the characters are connected to each other until the end. The story is built up really well and has a chilling ending.

In “Two Suns Setting,” Kane meets a giant and winds up helping him search for a lost crown. When they first meet, they sit by a fire and debate the progress of civilization versus living closer to the natural environment. I loved this conversation. It reminded me of the themes of barbarism versus civilization that come up in many of Robert E. Howard’s stories. The action that follows is well done and it flows so well from the previous campfire discussion.

In “The Dark Muse,” Kane helps the mad poet Opyros summon Klinure, the dark muse of the title. Dark and lyrical, parts of the story reminded me of Clark Ashton Smith.

In “Raven’s Eyrie,” Kane and his bandit group are being hunted by mercenaries. They seek refuge at a mountain inn. Besides the mercenaries that are hunting them and someone at the inn from Kane’s past, they also have to contend with a supernatural threat. This story and the previous one both have elements of gothic horror.

At the beginning of “Lynortis Reprise,” Kane rescues a woman being hunted by mercenaries. It turns out they are looking for a hidden treasure underneath the ruins of a city destroyed after a great war years ago. The setting is a dangerous wasteland in which scavengers search for loot among leftover weapons and crippled survivors. In this story we get legends of a devastating siege, legends of a treasure, and a statement on the savagery and brutality of war. This story and “Undertow” are tied as my favorite.

In “Sing a Last Song of Valdese” travelers at an isolated inn discuss some legends. Short and sweet with another chilling ending.

I read two of the Kane novels, Bloodstone and Dark Crusade, after finishing Night Winds. I liked them both a lot, especially Bloodstone, but so far Night Winds is my favorite.

My story ratings:

"Undertow" (5/5)
"Two Suns Setting" (5/5)
"The Dark Muse" (4/5)
"Raven’s Eyrie" (4/5)
"Lynortis Reprise" (5/5)
"Sing a Last Song of Valdese" (5/5)

Night Winds and the other Kane books are available on Kindle minus the cool Frazetta cover art. The paperbacks and hardcovers are out of print and pretty expensive now. I was lucky enough to come across one of the books, Death Angel's Shadow, in a local used bookstore for a reasonable price a while ago. 

It's great to have them available on Kindle even with the cheesy covers and the weird numbering (Amazon lists it as a five-book series, there are actually six books, Darkness Weaves is listed as book 7, and Night Winds is listed as book 468...) but they really deserve to be re-released as affordable and in print hardcovers and paperbacks. It was announced in February of 2022 that the movie rights to the Kane books have been optioned so here's hoping that leads to something. 

Using the information I found online I made the following list of the six Kane books on Kindle to try and make sense of them.

Night Winds (1978)
(Book 1&3 - six stories - numbering taken from Goodreads)
First two stories take place before book 2, remaining stories take place after book 2.
“Undertow”
“Two Suns Setting”
“The Dark Muse”
“Raven’s Eyrie”
“Lynortis Reprise”
“Sing a Last Song of Valdese”

Bloodstone (1975)
(Book 2 - novel)

The Book of Kane (1985)
(Book 4 - five stories)
“Reflections for the Winter of My Soul” from Death Angel’s Shadow
“Sing a Last Song of Valdese” from Night Winds
“Raven’s Eyrie” from Night Winds
“Misericorde”
“The Other One”

Dark Crusade (1976)
(Book 5 - novel)

Death Angel’s Shadow (1973)

(Book 6 - three stories)
“Reflections for the Winter of my Soul” (Takes place right after the events of Dark Crusade)
“Cold Light”
“Mirage”

Darkness Weaves (1978) 
(Book 7 - novel)