Books I Read in February 2024

Lots of sword & sorcery plus some historical fiction this month.

Black God’s Kiss by C.L. Moore (Paizo, 2007)

Black God’s Kiss collects six stories about Jirel of Joiry, a red-headed warrior woman in an imaginary medieval France with warlords and sorcerers. They first appeared in Weird Tales magazine from 1934 to 1937. In most of the stories she travels to other worlds. I liked the lush prose and the descriptions of Jirel and her fiery personality. A great selection of tales from the early days of sword and sorcery. 

When I was looking up background information on C.L. Moore I discovered that she and Robert E. Howard corresponded and were fans of each other’s work. He sent her his own story about a warrior woman in France to read, a historical adventure titled “Sword Woman.” She had good things to say about it and expressed hope that he would write more of her adventures. I figured I’d read the story as I have it in a collection I keep meaning to get to.

“Sword Woman” and “Blades for France” by Robert E. Howard from Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures (Ballantine Del Rey, 2011)

A young country girl in 16th century France flees an arranged marriage, sets out for a life of wandering and violence, and becomes known as Dark Agnes. The first story tells her origin and the second is an adventure with her sidekick. I enjoyed them both but especially the first one. There’s a draft for a third story but it was never completed. For whatever reason Howard didn’t get the stories sold and they weren’t published until after his death. In any case, they were good reads, and it was interesting comparing stories between the two authors. 

Conan the Barbarian: Bound in Black Stone by Jim Zub and Robert De La Torre (Titan Comics, 2024)

This collects the Free Comic Book Day 2023 issue (a great introduction to the character done in the style of a Prince Valiant comic strip) and issues 1-4 of the ongoing comic. There are also some essays and a gorgeous map of the Hyborian Age. The Bound in Black Stone storyline has lots of action and a mystery that is solved by the end while also setting things up for future stories. References to various Robert E. Howard stories and characters were a nice touch. While I enjoyed the story, I absolutely loved the artwork by De La Torre. The trade cover by Dan Panosian is great but I would have preferred something by De La Torre on the cover.

Valley of the Worm: The Weird Works of Robert E. Howard, Volume 5 (Wildside Press, 2006) 

Valley of the Worm is the fifth volume of a series that collects the fiction of Robert E. Howard as it originally appeared in Weird Tales magazine. This volume (Kindle version) has nine short stories and two poems. Six of the short stories are Conan the Barbarian stories. As with the previous volumes, it was interesting reading Robert E. Howard’s Weird Tales work in publication order. 

The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard (Del Rey Ballantine, 2003)

This was just a partial read. I had read most of this collection a few years ago and thought I had finished it, but last month I realized there were some stories I had never gotten to. I finished up by reading the ones I had skipped, stories that never made it into Weird Tales and were published after Howard’s death. This is a great collection beautifully illustrated by Mark Schultz. It also includes drafts, maps, and an essay that goes into detail on Howard’s creation of Conan, the Hyborian Age, and the individual stories. 

Conan: The Shadow of Vengeance by Scott Oden (Titan Books, 2024)

Scott Oden channels Robert E. Howard while bringing in his own voice to this sequel to Howard’s short story “The Devil in Iron.” The set up hooked my interest, the escalation of events drew me in, and the finale had me reading with excitement. There were parts towards the end where I felt like I had been transported into a Ray Harryhausen film. Also loved the quick Lovecraft reference earlier in the story. What an entertaining read. 

This novella was originally published in twelve parts as a backup in the 2019 Savage Sword of Conan v2 comic book from Marvel Comics. It’s now part of an ebook short fiction series from Heroic Signatures and Titan Books. There are a few other Conan stories out already as well as a Solomon Kane story and a Bêlit story. A Bran Mak Morn story will be released at the end of March.

Valley of the Worm: The Weird Works of Robert E. Howard, Volume 5

“He was a complex writer with many interests, and he was also a highly skilled professional with the ability to mold entertaining fast-moving stories out of many different sorts of clay.” — James Reasoner from his introduction.

Valley of the Worm is the fifth volume of a series that collects the fiction and poetry of Robert E. Howard as it originally appeared in Weird Tales magazine. This volume (Kindle version) has nine short stories, as well as two poems. Most of the short stories are Conan the Barbarian stories. The poems first appeared in Modern American Poetry as Howard had stopped submitting poetry to Weird Tales at this point. 

Black Colossus (Conan) (5/5)

(Weird Tales, June 1933)

In this story Conan is a mercenary captain and gets put in command of an army by princess Yasmela whose kingdom is in danger from a sorcerer. Howard packs a lot into this tale, an ancient evil, complex characters including a princess who makes quick decisions, and an epic battle between two large armies. I liked how Conan’s character is really fleshed out. James Reasoner explains in his introduction:

“ ‘Black Colossus’ is an important story, as well, because although in previous stories we have seen Conan as both a king and a young thief, in “Black Colossus” we see him take the first steps in metamorphosis between those two stages in his life, a change profound enough to be commented upon by his comrade in arms Amalric.”

A number of scenes stood out to me. The opening with the master thief Shevatas which sets things up really well, the humor of the scene when the princess reveals Conan to her men, Conan’s interactions with the men he winds up leading, and the climactic battle between two large forces.

Reading this story and the ones in the previous volume really hit home the difference between the general public’s perception of Conan and how he’s actually portrayed in the stories: smart, cunning, and thinking like a leader. When one of the men rushes off leading men into what Conan feels is a trap, a character points out that Conan would have probably done the same thing in his younger days. Conan's response tells us something about where he is at this stage of his life.

“You grow sober with authority,” quoth Amalric. “Such madness as that was always your particular joy.”

“Aye, when I had only my own life to consider,” answered Conan. 

As in an earlier published story “The Scarlet Citadel,” Conan wears armor in some scenes. When Yasmela meets Conan he’s wearing chain mail, a hauberk, greaves, and a helmet. Afterwards he gets suited up in full plate armor. I find it interesting that Howard wrote Conan wearing armor in some stories but it’s not a look really associated with the character.

“Black Colossus” is the first Conan story to be featured on the cover of Weird Tales. The cover by Margaret Brundage depicts a scene at the beginning where princess Yasmela asks the god Mitra for help. In the story when she plans on approaching the statue in the nude to show humbleness, her maid convinces her to keep her clothing on. It's not hard to believe that editor Farnworth Wright might have thought the maid's idea would make for a better cover and sell more copies.

 

The Man on the Ground (3/5)

(Weird Tales, July 1933)

A weird western about a shootout between two lifelong enemies with a twist ending. Short and sweet. 

The Slithering Shadow (Conan) (4/5)

Howard’s original title title: Xuthal of the Dusk

(Weird Tales, September 1933)

On the run from enemies after a large battle, Conan and a young woman named Natalia enter a mysterious city in the desert. There they encounter a Stygian woman named Thalis who explains that the people of the city spend all their time dreaming while Thog the Ancient wanders the city taking human sacrifices when it grows hungry. I liked the Lovecraftian aspect of Thog, how the story highlights one of Howard’s favorite themes of civilization vs. and barbarism, and the intense battle at the end.

This story is featured on the cover of the issue it appears in but the scene it depicts feels forced. Thalis who seemed pretty smart before this scene, puts herself in danger in order to take time to whip Natalia. In any case it got Howard another cover by Margaret Brundage. Editor Farnsworth Wright changed the title for this story. As much as I like Howard’s original title, I think “The Slithering Shadow” is actually pretty good.

The Pool of the Black One (Conan) (3/5)

(Weird Tales, October 1933)

Conan joins a pirate crew and after they stop at an island, he goes from fighting their captain to fighting strange creatures among mysterious ruins. Fast paced with lots of action. Not bad but not a favorite. 

One Who Comes at Eventide (Poem) 

(Modern American Poetry, 1933)

To a Woman (Though fathoms…) (Poem) 

(Modern American Poetry, 1933)

I enjoyed the two poems, but not nearly as much as Howard's poetry in the previous volumes.

Old Garfield’s Heart (4/5)

(Weird Tales, December 1933)

After he is injured breaking in a horse, delirious Old Jim Garfield tells the story of how a Lipan Indian chief saved his life many years ago. A weird western with some interesting references to Texas history and geography. 

Rogues in the House (Conan) (4/5)

(Weird Tales, January 1934)

A tale from a time when Conan was a thief. After the corrupt aristocrat Murilo is threatened by Nabonidis, known as the Red Priest and actually the shadow ruler of the city, Murilo turns to Conan for help. Things don’t go as planned. Not only do all three wind up in the Red Priest’s dungeon, they have to deal with a creature that the Red Priest trained but is now on the loose. Intriguing adventure ensues. 

I liked the character of Murilo. In the beginning of the story Howard tells us:

“But Murillo, for all his scented black curls and foppish apparel, was no weakling to bend his neck to the knife without a struggle.” 

Howard then spends the rest of the story backing up the description by showing us Murilo’s actions. I also liked how Howard once again brings up the theme of civilization vs. barbarism. Howard does this after the final battle but also in an earlier scene. My favorite exchange is when Nabonidis tells Murilo he should be ashamed for his corruption and Murilo responds: 

“I have no more cause for shame than you, you vulture-hearted plunderer,” answered Murilo promptly. “You exploit a whole kingdom for your personal greed, and, under the guise of disinterested statesmanship, you swindle the king, beggar the rich, oppress the poor, and sacrifice the whole future of the nation for your ruthless ambition. You are no more than a fat hog with his snout in the trough. You are a greater thief than I am. This Cimmerian is the most honest man of the three of us, because he steals and murders openly.” 

Powerful stuff.

The Valley of the Worm (James Allison) (4/5)

(Weird Tales, February 1934)

James Allison narrates a tale of one his past lives.  After fighting with a group of Picts, he hunts a mysterious creature, a god of The Old Ones, that wiped out a group of his people. The battles and the Lovecraftian creature make for an exciting read. This quote from the beginning explains the story pretty well: 

“It is the adventure of Niord Wormbane of which I speak — the root stem of a whole cycle of hero-tales which has not yet reached its end, the grisly underlying reality that lurks behind time-distorted myths of dragons, fiends, and monsters.”

Gods of the North (5/5) 

(The Fantasy Fan fanzine, March 1934)

Originally an early Conan story titled “The Frost Giant’s Daughter,” it was rejected by Weird Tales editor Farnsworth Wright. Howard changed Conan’s name to Amra (a name Conan went by as a pirate) and the story was retitled and published in The Fantasy Fan. The original version of the story wasn’t published until after Howard’s death.

After a battle on a frozen tundra, Amra of Akbitana encounters the beautiful Atali. After she taunts him, Amra pursues her and she lures him into an ambush where he winds up fighting frost giants. Possibly inspired by the myths of Atalanta and Daphne and Apollo, the story has a very mythological feel with some beautiful descriptions and poetic language. 

There is debate on whether Amara/Conan acts of his own free will or has been put under a spell when he lustfully pursues Atali. I agree that there appear to be clues that point to a spell, but I can understand not everyone being convinced.

Shadows in the Moonlight (Conan) (5/5)

Howard’s original title: Iron Shadows in the Moon

(Weird Tales, April 1943)

Conan winds up protecting Olivia, the daughter of a king, encounters mysterious ruins on an island, and then has to deal with pirates. The story starts with a bang and keeps going until the end. I loved Conan’s entrance, how we observe Conan from Olivia’s perspective, and how civilization vs. barbarism comes up again. While this story has similarities to “The Pool of the Black One” (beautiful woman, pirates, mysterious island), I liked the characters, action, and obstacles, in this one much more. As for the title, I prefer Howard’s original title.

As with the previous volumes, it was interesting reading Robert E. Howard’s Weird Tales work in publication order. I’m looking forward to reading the next volume. 

Black God's Kiss by C.L. Moore

“Long, long ago I had thoughts of a belligerent dame who must have been her progenitor, and went so far as to begin a story which went something like this: “The noise of battle beating up around the walls of Arazon castle rang sweetly in the ears of Arazon’s warrior lady.” And I think it went no farther. [...] Back to her Jirel of Joiry no doubt traces her ancestry.” — C.L. Moore Echos of Valor II (1991) 

I first read Catherine Moore's Jirel of Joiry stories many years ago in the 1982 Ace paperback edition of Jirel of Joiry (pictured below) and then wound up losing my copy during various moves throughout the years. I got Black God’s Kiss (Paizo Publishing, 2007) when it was released and managed to hang on to it. I decided to re-read these stories after seeing the announcement from New Edge Sword and Sorcery magazine about a new Jirel of Joiry story being published this year. 

Black God’s Kiss collects six stories (one more than the earlier collection) about Jirel of Joiry, a red-headed warrior woman in an imaginary medieval France with warlords and sorcerers. They first appeared in Weird Tales magazine in the 1930s and in most of the stories she travels to other worlds. I liked the lush prose and the descriptions of Jirel and her fiery personality. 

This collection includes an introduction by Suzy McKee Charnas. I think she does an excellent job of describing Jirel in these two quotes:

“This warrior isn’t “Lady Jirel of Joiry” because she’s married to the “Lord” but because she is a bold leader whom fighting men will follow. Living in a terrifying world hasn’t cowed her into abject, obedient dependency and pious superstition. Her response to threat is not to turn to her knight or her god but to confront the enemy, even if she has to brave unknown and dreadful forces to find an extreme enough weapon to win.” 

“Only two things motivate her: Her fiercely aristocratic honor, and her bloodthirsty rage when she is challenged, thwarted, or even merely insulted.” 

I also liked the atmosphere in all the stories and once again Suzy McKee Charnas provides a great description: 

“In fact what the atmosphere of these stories most resembles is that of the early forms of European fairy tale, dark with menace and peopled by strangers of dubious identity and perilous intent.” 

The Stories 

Black God’s Kiss (5/5)

(Weird Tales, October 1934)

Jirel travels to another world seeking a weapon in order to get revenge on the man who conquered her kingdom, killed her men, and forced a kiss upon her. The ending has reviewers divided. While I found it surprising, I also thought that it added to the complexity of the character, something you don’t always see in sword & sorcery stories.

One final quote from Suzy McKee Charnas which touches on the complexity of this story:

“There’s a statement here about the struggle for supremacy between men and women even when — or especially when — great attraction draws them together. That’s an idea that male writers tend to handle in a very ham-fisted, or self-serving way if they touch it at all. Catherine Moore added as a sort of baseline to her stories of warlike conflict an emotional motivation that Jirel recognized in herself, too late, in 'Black God’s Kiss.' "

Black God’s Shadow (3/5)

(Weird Tales, December 1934)

In this sequel to “Black God’s Kiss,” Jirel returns to the other world from the previous story. I have mixed feelings about this one. While I liked how it continued from the previous story and I thought her motivations and the ending were interesting, I thought it took too long to get going. I found the parts where she wanders around too surreal and repetitive. 

Jirel Meets Magic (4/5)

(Weird Tales, July 1935)

While hunting down a sorcerer, Jirel winds up traveling to another world. There she meets the sorceress Jarisme. I liked the description of the world she travels to, all the beings she meets, and her rivalry with Jarisme. 

The Dark Land (4/5)

(Weird Tales, January 1936)

After being terribly wounded in battle, a powerful being brings Jirel to his world in order to make her his queen. This does not sit well with her. This time I enjoyed the surreal aspect of the story as well as the increase in conflict once a third character was introduced.

Hellsgarde (5/5)

(Weird Tales, April 1939)

Jirel enters a haunted castle in search of a treasure she needs as ransom in order to gain the release of twenty of her men. From start to finish this story is packed with a sinister and gothic atmosphere. Tied with “Black God’s Kiss” as my favorite. 

Quest of the Starstone (3.5/5)

(Weird Tales, November 1937)

A crossover story in which Jirel meets Northwest Smith, another Moore character. This story, co-written with her husband Henry Kuttner, isn’t included in the earlier collection of stories Jirel of Joiry. It has a different vibe to it and Jirel plays second fiddle to Northwest Smith. I thought it was odd that Jirel was called "Joiry" as well as "Jirel" throughout the story.

Overall, this is great selection of tales from the early days of sword & sorcery. It was a pleasure re-reading them and while it's a shame C.L. Moore didn't write any more adventures of Jirel, I'm looking forward to the upcoming new story.

Further Reading and Listening

Some links to a blog post and some podcast episodes that I found really interesting.

Here’s a link to a post that includes a number of quotes from correspondence between C.L Moore and H.P. Lovecraft as well as others:

“Black God’s Kiss” (1934) by C. L. Moore – Deep Cuts in a Lovecraftian Vein

This is link to an interview with New Edge Sword and Sorcery Editor Oliver Brakenbury and Molly Tanzer, the author of the new Jirel story, from an episode of The Rogues in the House podcast:

A New Edge for Jirel. by Rogues in the House (spotify.com)

Here’s a link to So I’m Writing Novel podcast episode 41: "Sword and Sorcery & Feminism." Oliver Brakenbury interviews Nicole Emmelhainz about her essay on feminism and sword and sorcery. Jirel of Joiry is discussed:

Ep 41 – Sword & Sorcery & Feminism, with Nicole Emmelhainz – So I'm Writing a Novel… (soimwritinganovel.com)

There’s something Nicole Emmelhainz says that really stood out to me, especially after reading various interpretations of the forced kiss at the beginning of “Black God’s Kiss.” So, while I think that those interpretations are valid whether I agree with them or not, I think it's important to keep in mind what she says here:

“Key point to always emphasize when we’re talking about these older authors. We’re looking at them through the contemporary lens and ideas and theories that they obviously had no access to. So, I’m speculating on what I think they might have been doing. I don’t ever claim that they were deliberating doing these things, right, this is all through the lens of contemporary interpretation now.” 

I’ll finish off with a link to a filk song. Filk music (the term got its start as a misspelling of folk music) is music sung or played at fan conventions and many of its songs honor science fiction and fantasy characters. This is a link to a Jirel of Joiry filk song from 1989 written by author Mercedes Lackey: 

Jirel of Jorey (Magic, Moondust, & Melancholy) (youtube.com)

Swordsmen from the Stars by Poul Anderson

“Thus “Tiger by the Tail” remains enjoyable while “Witch of the Demon Seas,” it’s running mate from the very same issue of Planet Stories, is mercifully forgotten.” — Sandra Miesel from her afterword in Agent of the Terran Empire by Poul Anderson (1980)

While I agree that the “Tiger by the Tail” (introducing Captain Flandry of the Imperial Naval Intelligence Corps) is a superior story, I’m pleased that “Witch of the Demon Seas” has not been forgotten. It’s one of the stories included in Swordsmen from the Stars and I found it quite enjoyable. (Miesel's afterword in Agent of the Terran Empire is a history of Anderson's Flandry character and is really good by the way.)

Swordsmen from the Stars (DMR Books, 2020) collects three early sword & planet stories by Poul Anderson. The cover art is by Allen Anderson who provided most of the covers for the pulp magazine Planet Stories where these tales first appeared.

Witch of the Demon Seas (4/5)

(Planet Stories, January 1951)

A sorcerer and his daughter offer a captured pirate his freedom if he leads an expedition in search of an amphibious race. I liked the characters and enjoyed the balance of world building and action. As the quote above mentions, Anderson had two stories in this issue. He used a pseudonym for this one. This story reminded me of another one of my favorite authors, Leigh Brackett. 

The Virgin of Valkarion (3/5)

(Planet Stories, July 1951)

On a dying world with dry canals a barbarian rides into a city and becomes involved with a prophecy. Lots of sword play but this one felt very generic, and I didn’t really care for any of the characters. I’m glad I read it, but I found it to be the least interesting compared to the other two. 

Swordsman of Lost Terra (5/5)

(Planet Stories, November 1951)

Earth has stopped rotating leaving half in permanent light and half in permanent darkness. After a blight hits their lands, a group of Scots-like barbarians head south. They encounter a horde from the Dark Lands and a besieged city. My favorite of the three stories, an excellent mix of action and world building that felt epic. This one felt the most like a Poul Anderson story.

The worlds from the first two stories aren’t named but based on the clues Anderson provides it seems that “Witch of the Demon Seas” is set on the oceans of Venus and “The Virgin of Valkarion” is set on a dying Mars.

As Poul Anderson is one of my favorite authors, I’m glad I got the chance to read these early stories and that they were collected under a cover by Allen Anderson. I'll finish with a link to short essay about the artist which includes an interesting story and clickable gallery of his art.

Allen Anderson: Pulp Art Legend — DMR Books