Tales of Attluma by David C. Smith

Tales of Attluma by David C. Smith (Pulp Hero Press, 2020)

Sixteen sword & sorcery tales about sorcerers, warriors, lost loves, demons, and gods on the doomed island continent of Attluma. In his introduction the author mentions that he was initially influenced by the works of Clark Ashton Smith and Robert E. Howard. I felt that clearly as I was reading. Although I enjoyed some stories more than others, as a whole this was a fantastic read. While some of the stories are standard if excellent dark sword & sorcery fare, there are others that have themes that go beyond that. 

The stories:

Descales’ Skull (4/5)

Three men bring together pieces of a sorcerer’s skull in hopes of being rewarded for their efforts. 

The Generosity of the Gods (4/5)

Two bumbling fishermen enter a temple in order to test the power of the gods. 

Feasting in Shadows (4/5)

Two people exploring a cave looking for ancient temples run into more than they bargained for.

Dark of Heart (5/5)

A soldier in prison for murder gets a second chance by leading a rescue party into a dangerous land. Absolutely thrilling. This story reminded me of the best of Robert E. Howard.

The Last Words of Imatus Istum (5/5)

A poet recounts the brutal tale of how his city was invaded by nomadic warriors on horseback. This story brought to mind the warriors of the Mongol empire and the devastation they brought when attacking cities. 

Aliastra the Sorceress (5/5)

A count who has fallen on hard times gets involved with a sorceress longing for her long dead lover. I really enjoyed the theme of choices that this story explores. 

Ithtidzik (4/5)

A student of sorcery who thinks he knows better than his master uses a demon to seek out an ancient tome. 

Rhasjud’s Destiny (4/5)

Warriors grow concerned when they reach a city they plan to invade but their leader hides in his tent instead of giving the order to attack.

Blood Ransom (4/5)

A young man gets caught up in a plot to kidnap a princess. 

Dark Goddess (5/5)

After raiding a city, the raiders find themselves attacked and haunted by something dark and deadly. Another story that reminded me of the warriors of the Mongol Empire. 

Come, Death (4/4)

A mysterious man named Akram enters a plague-ridden village and encounters a dying woman.

The Return to Hell (4/4)

Akram sets into motion his plan to lift the curse that he has been living with. 

The Passing of the Sorcerer (5/5)

After a sorcerer and a princess become lovers, the city they reside in is attacked by demons. Smith packs a lot into this story as it touches on love, sacrifice, reincarnation, and how doing something small in the present can effect change in the future. 

Patience Serves (4/5)

A lady visits a dying lord. A dark tale of vengeance. 

The Sounding of the Gong (3/5)

Thieves attempt to steal from an old sorcerer and a young sorceress. An interesting story set during the end days of Attluma, but this one didn’t grab me as much as the others. 

The End of Days (5/5)

The last survivors of Attluma race to escape the island continent as monsters and demons give chase. An epic final tale. 

In Conclusion

My one criticism is regarding the Kindle version. While there’s a contents page at the beginning (that you have to swipe a few pages to get to) that allows the reader to navigate between stories, the contents menu at the top of the screen is limited and does not allow one to navigate between the stories. 

Other sword & sorcery works by the author include a five-book series about a barbarian named Oron, a six book Red Sonja series based on the character from Marvel Comics, and the novel Sometime Lofty Towers. I have a paperback copy of the first Oron book and it’s available on Kindle. Here’s hoping the other books become available as eBooks in the future as I’ve never encountered them in the wild and online prices are pretty high. I’ve come across the Red Sonja books at one of the used bookstores I frequent but those books are pretty pricey as well. Sometime Lofty Towers was recently made available again as both a paperback and eBook from Brackenbury Books. One way or another, I’ll definitely be reading more from David C. Smith. 

Books I Read in March 2026

Just one book and one comic collection this month

Arcane Arts and Cold Steel by David C. Smith (Pulp Hero Press, 2025)

I enjoyed David C. Smith’s Tales of Attluma so much last month (and which I still plan to post a longer review of) that I read his recent book on writing sword & sorcery. It begins with what sword & sorcery fiction is and what it is not and then does a deep dive on how to write sword & sorcery fiction using numerous examples from both classic and contemporary authors. It’s a gold mine of information. I learned a lot and I discovered quite a few authors that are new to me. Highly recommended for readers of the genre as well as aspiring writers. 

Conan the Barbarian Vol. 5: Twisting Loyalties by Jim Zub, Danica Brine, and Doug Braithwaite (Titan Comics, August 2025)

This collects issues 17-20 of Titan’s Conan the Barbarian comic. The four issues cover two okay stories, one in which Conan and Belit attempt to steal a Stygian artifact and one that takes place later in which Conan is being stalked by something through the jungle. Not my favorite of the run so far but still enjoyable. It was cool to see a character show up from the original Marvel Comics Run. 

Short Stories and Novellas I Read in February 2026

 All short stories and novellas this month. All highly recommended.

“Rider in the Widow Lands” short story by Coy Hall. (The Scythian Wolf, 2026. Available as an ebook)

A dark rider on a mysterious mission in an eerie land. By the end all is revealed. A tale just brimming with sword & sorcery atmosphere with vivid prose, interesting worldbuilding, and an ending that totally sticks the landing.

“Viy” by Nikolai Gogol (From The Collected Tales of Nikolai Gogol. Vintage, 1999. Story first published in 1835)

A philosophy student holding vigil over the dead body of a beautiful young woman in a remote church is terrorized by supernatural creatures. It has a slow buildup up but the wild supernatural events that begin happening towards the end make up for it. As soon as I finished reading, I watched the film adaptation from 1967.

Viy (1967) Directed by Georgi Kropachyov and Konstantin Ershov 

A faithful and well-done adaptation with some beautiful location shooting in Ukraine. Like the novella, it has a bit of a slow beginning, but it leads into a phenomenal latter half. The set of the church interior, the lighting, the color, the direction, and the practical effects during those scenes were all amazing and creatively done, especially for a film from 1967.

The Dolphin and the Deep by Thomas Burnett Swann (Ace Books, 1968)

This collects three fantasy stories of varying length. Each story mixes history and mythology in a way that I really enjoyed. 

Where is the Bird of Fire? by Thomas Burnett Swann (Ace Books, 1970)

Three more stories that deftly mix mythology and history. Swann has become a new favorite author of mine. I’ll be looking out for more of his work, and I’ll write more details about both books in an upcoming post. 

Tales of Attluma by David C. Smith (Pulp Hero Press, 2020)

Sixteen stories about sorcerers, warriors, demons, and gods on the island continent of Attluma. Fantastic stuff. Once again, I’ll post a longer review soon.