Release the FURY

Its that Day! Book 6 in the BRUTAL Saga FURY is live here! Grab it and leave a review!

We follow Gathelaus on his way to reclaim his kingdom, and along the way he finds a out of the way territory plagued by a terrible monster named Fiendal.

This is a twist on Beowulf and I've wanted to do this for a long time, Beowulf was something I read in the first grade (I'm sure it was a watered down version but all the important elements were there) and obviously I've been hooked on Heroic fantasy ever since.

Love the cover by J Caleb Design, the man is amazing.

Below is the amazon blurb.

When you face a dragon, better a stout heart than a sharp sword… 

Gathelaus the Sellsword returns to his stolen kingdom, only to find himself on a bleak and barren shore, far from the capitol. Rumors abound of a dragon terrorizing the land and he is determined to deal with the legendary monster.

But after assassins waylay him, he is forced off course through a haunted wood, where more monsters haunt in the dark places. To save the noble few, spells, blades and dragons won’t stop the Sellsword from leaving a swath of righteous carnage in his wake…

FURY is an action-packed heroic fantasy in the vein of classic pulp fiction meets Ragnarok. If you like dragons, larger-than-life characters, and witty humor, then you’ll love James Alderdice’s gritty tale.

Buy FURY to get lost in a bloody sword and sorcery adventure today!

The Brutal Saga and more moving on...

I've been remiss in keeping up with things, ah life.

Last time I was here, I meant to tell you all about how I went to Howard Days for the first time, then I released another book, FIERCE, then Savage, then I took it down cuz it sucked, then I went canoeing down the Green River with my sons - that was awesome and I think I will revisit some of those times and post more here later to fill in the gaps and have a sort of a live journal, but for now I'm playing catch up so here is the deal.

I released FIERCE in July of last year, rewrote SAVAGE and released that in April of this year, and then adjusted an older story - Whispers of the Goddess and added a little bit to make a new novella in the BRUTAL saga - VICIOUS.

The next one WRATH is coming along - I hope to have it out in a month or two.

Sharp Ends: Book Review

Sharp Ends, by Joe Abercrombie

I am a huge fan of Abercrombie, and short of getting a new novel set in the world of the First Law, this was a very welcome appetizer. With over a dozen short stories, you get a taste of the bloody action and wry humor and wonderful twists Abercrombie is so adept at.

The tales splash all over the timeline of the First Law world, from the imagery of what Glokta is doing right before his fateful attack on the Ghurkish to how Logen "The Bloody Nine" ended up at odds with Bethod King of the North. While I do think anyone picking up the book could enjoy the hell of out of them - you would definitely be enriched by already being familiar with the world and characters. I'm not saying its an absolute must for enjoyment but it would help.

I think my favorite tale was "Tough Times All Over" relating how an item is being transported/stolen etc all over the city one night. The dar humor is what gets me and what I think Abercrombie s such a master at - along with his surprises.

I highly recomend this for the sake of quick witty tales set in a fantasy world I get such a kick out of. And if you haven't read the previous books, there is still a lot to enjoy here - the impact is simply greater if you have read at least some of them.

And as I always do for Joe's books, I have opted to show the superior UK cover instead of the US cover which is always lame by comparison.

The Mad Song is LIVE!

My latest collection of Sword & Sorcery is live! and today only I'm pushing the kindle version like a street hustler for .99
tomorrow I'm getting it bumped up to 2.99. Get it here!

Yes, its all about those rankings.

A few of these are previously published stories that some of you may have read, but a lot of them are new that I hope you enjoy - including the first 3 chapters of my Walking Through Walls which is currently running in UGEEK magazine.

Check it out!

BLESS THE CHILD: This ones for the children

Few things feel as good as finishing a book. I'm talking as the one having written that book. You have accomplished something that so many others give up on. You have given birth to your own creativity and now its out there to share with the world.

One of the other things that feels so good in life is doing something for someone else. When I first heard about the G.A.N. Warriors I was floored. Here are some young little guys with a horribly rare disease, but they always smile and keep their chins up (good parents) and the whole community we lived in - in Montana and elsewhere, have rallied around them. So many people have donated to their cause and still are, this is an ongoing battle.
I was very tight on cash, tight on time away from home and so much other drama heaped on my shoulders, but I thought about a book that wasn't quite ready for anywhere else yet, a book that needed some polish and perhaps had just the right title to be a good donation toward their cause.

Bless The Child was begun in Primary Childrens hospital when my daughter Maddie was a month old. She had severe RSV and I truly thought I would lose her. I spent a lot of nights there, couldn't sleep, but I did start Bless The Child. The elements of loss were very real in my mind - I suspect you read the first few chapters and you'll know exactly what I was channeling for the Spartan.

Back to the ranch - this seemed like the right time and the right book to donate 100% of the proceeds toward Hannah's Hope Fund, the official arm of the G.A.N. Warriors and the handful of kids like them. GAN is an incredibly rare disease and these kids need all the help they can get.

So I am very pleased to release my sword and sandals historical epic: Bless The Child on their behalf. The kindle edition is available right now and I will have the print version up shortly as well.

The back cover description:
Impelled by a quest for redemption, the man known only as The Spartan finds unholy work in The Holy Land. And work is good, there is no end of service amongst kings and robber barons for a man who sells his sword so well. But blood won’t wash away blood and The Spartan finds himself compelled toward something greater than himself. 
Bless The Child is a romance of redemption and glory. Numerous historical personages cross paths with The Spartan, including Solon, Nebuchadnezzar, the prophets Lehi, Jeremiah and Daniel, King Zedekiah and the poetess Sappho. 
Come back to 586 B.C. when Jerusalem burned and the life of a prince rested in the hands of the exiled Spartan. Can a mercenary trained only for war become an instrument of peace?

47 RONIN

47 Ronin, directed by Carl Rinsch


and

47 Ronin, translated by A.B. Mitford

I watched the movie a couple weeks ago and meant to post a review sooner, but I also just finished reading the original translation this morning and I suppose appreciation for one is stronger with the other.

The premise for the movie remains the same as the original, though Hollywood turned the film into a mythic-fantasy. I will say that at least the theme was overall Japanese = the shape shifting witch, the Tengu, and some psuedo-Oni type beast. I was glad that the film had overall a Japanese cast (excepting Keanu) and that it did remain true to the honor code of the Ronin by keeping the Seppuku (ritual suicide) intact for all necessary characters.

My favorite character was played by Hiroyuki Sanada (The Last Samurai, The Wolverine) as Oishi,

who was the lead Samurai of Lord Asano Naganori. After sorcerous treachery forces Lord Asano to commit Seppuku - Oishi regroups Asano's exiled Samurai - now become masterless Samurai or Ronin, including Kai (Keanu Reeves) who is a strange half-breed loyal to the betrayed Lord Asano.

Kai is a runaway from the Tengu (one of my all time most visited blog posts) and as such is capable of bringing some extra special presence to the Ronin's cause. I found Keanu the weakest thing about the movie but I digress, I did honestly really enjoy the film. There is a slight romance between Kai and Lord Asano's daughter but everything - including the sorcery and spectacular fight scenes take a back seat to this being about honor.

 -

For the Samurai honor is everything and this movie didn't wimp out with a non-traditional ending to the original tale, it stayed true enough to that vision of the sacred 47 Ronin. I kinda wish that they had kept the original method of Oishi fooling the enemy Lord, but that might not have translated very well to an American audience.



Either way, this was one of my favorite films I've seen in the theater in a long time. Oh and one more thing I got a kick out of as I watched the closing credits. There was a massive bad Samurai champion, (he never spoke but was simply a juggernaut facing the Ronin) he was credited as the Lovecraftian Samurai I had to check out the actor on imdb.com turns out the guy is the U.K.'s tallest man. He is 7 foot seven and a half. He was sorcerous in nature in the film but I couldn't really say what made him Lovecraftian.

Read Somewhat Lately

As you loyal readers know I've had a down and out year of gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth (love) in any case I'm putting forth a renewed effort to be around and keep up some useful if not entertaining content.



The Hammer and the Blade, by Paul S. Kemp


I thought this was great and am very pleased to note that Mr. Kemp has recently announced here that he will be doing at least 2 more collections of Egil and Nix.

This harkens back to the days of Sword and Sorcery novels being quick action romps before the days of the long convoluted multi-character epic fantasy phone books.

In any case, Egil and Nix are out for that big score, and what happens next has repercussions throughout the novel with sinister sorceries nipping at their heels for revenge.

I liked the magic in this (powerful but at a terrible cost) and I enjoy Kemp's action prose. I will get the next in the series reasonably soon.

Gardens of the Moon, by Steven Erickson

 And just as I finish singing the praises of the standalone small roster of character novels I begin on one of the BIG ONES! Steven Erikson (and Ian C. Esselmont's) Malazan Books of the Fallen.
This has a ridiculously huge cast of characters with enormous far reaching points of view and plotlines spanning the globe. Like the Illiad and Odyssey we have some Gods or at least Demi-gods interfering with human plans and wars, we see the two sides of warring nations and even the intersecting allegiances within one army.

It seems that Erkison has a flair for many characters and I applaud him for it, they all have depth and feeling and even a small aside is important. It can fly in the face of the reader who always wants to be with their favorite and I can't recommend this for those readers who need the intimacy of a small cast but if you are in the mood for such I truly enjoyed this. Much more so than Jordan's Wheel of Time, and almost on par with Martin's Song of Fire and Ice.

I will start on the next in the cycle (or even a prequel of Esselmont's) soon.
 
Savage Wolverine: Kill Island, by Frank Cho

I've been a big fan of Wolverine since day one, and a fan of Frank Cho's art for ages as well, though this is the first time I've actually read one of his stories.

Let me start by saying Cho's art is fantastic as usual, always visceral and sensual he really mixes what is so appealing about the comic as medium. When it comes to storytelling I can't say he is as strong, I was lost a few times with one of the POV characters within the arc, but that could be my own fault for falling out with regular Marvel reading the last few years.

I did enjoy the idea of a savage new island within the Savage Land, a Cthulhu type alien held in stasis, and the revolving story of Wolverine and Shanna therein. It did open up for a continuing storyline and I'll have to look for that to see how things continue. So I suppose it did hold me enough to continue with Cho's writing as well.

 
 Avengers Prime, by Brian Michael Bendis, Alan Davis


Bendis got me back into the Avengers back when Marvel relaunched New Avengers around 10 years ago. Since then the team had some great story-lines and even a Civil War that really tore at the Iron Man/Captain America bond.
Avengers Prime is largely about them getting that bond back via becoming powerless in a shattered Asgard with Thor.

If there is one kind of storyline that appeals to me in comics it is when your super hero loses his superpower - for example best run of Wolverine ever???
{When Magneto pulled out his adamantium and he lost his healing factor and all his enemies came gunning for him. Wolverine #75 - #100+ by Larry Hama}

So I loved seeing Iron Man doing his best smart alecky self without the suit, Thor without his hammer, and Cap with a sword AND shield!
Nothing brings a team back together like something so desperate and perilous.
And its neat to see even old foes like Enchantress lending a helping hand against the forces of Hel. Great book.

Artifacts and Relics: Extreme Sorcery

 Artifacts and Relics: Extreme Sorcery


is now available here. This promises to be quite the sword and sorcery collection. I'm honored to be included in these ranks.

Inside the table of contents...
Fred C. Adams
Colleen Anderson
James Beaman
Joe Bonadonna
Steve Goble
Jonah Lissner
David C. Smith
Bill Ward
David J. West
John M. Whalen

as well as a tale by Clark Ashton Smith!

The Thunder Rolls...

I didn't have a table of contents until a day or so ago and now that the ebook for both volumes of  Thunder on the Battlefield are available here it is.

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword
Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW”

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS”

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY”

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE”

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”
 
Thunder on the Battlefield: Sorcery
Featuring

Jeffe Kennedy: “NEGOTIATION”

Alex Hughes: “THE FOURTH RULE”

Selah Janel: “THE RUINS OF ST. LOUIS”

Steve Grassie: “MARK OF THE WARRIOR”

James R. Tuck: “ANGELS OF SCRAWL”

M.B Weston: “THE CHERUBIAN, THE LINDWORM, AND THE PORTAL”

Brady Allen: “GRINDING THE GEARS”

S.H. Roddey “BLACK ICE”

Steven S. Long: “THE TWO FIRES”

D.A. Adams: “ACROSS THE WILDS”

Mark Taverna “DARK GENESIS”

Steven L. Shrewsbury “WHORE OF JERICHO”

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword

Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword

Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword

Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword

Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword

Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword

Featuring

G. Jerome Henson: “THE HORDE”

Jay Requard: “PAPER DEMONS”

D.T. Neal: “THE WOLF & THE CROW” 

John F. Allen: “FOREST OF SHADOWS” 

Marcella Burnard “EMISSARY” 

David J. West: “THE DOGS OF WAR”

Alexis A. Hunter: “THE RED HAND”

James R. Tuck “WHERE THE RED BLOSSOMS WEEP”

Loriane Parker: “THIEF OF SOULS”

W. E. Wertenberger: “THE GNAWED BONE” 

Stephen Zimmer “ALL THE LANDS, NOWHERE A HOME”

J.S. Veter “THE WITCH OF RYMAL PASS”

- See more at: http://seventhstarpress.blogspot.com/2013/08/full-list-of-authors-for-both-thunder.html#sthash.72Z2d87q.dpuf

Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword & Sorcery

“HARK! to the sounds of battle. Mighty men and women who take their destinies with the strength of their arm and the sharpness of their blades. These are tales of warriors, reavers, barbarians, and kings. Lands of wonder populated with monsters, black-hearted sorcerors of Stygian power, and heroes who have blood on their hands and on their steel.

This is SWORD AND SORCERY.”

Available this Thursday in eBook formats, and mid August in print, SSP is proud to offer a 2 volume anthology edited by James R. Tuck, author of the Deacon Chalk Novels. Introducing Thunder on the Battlefield: Sword, and Thunder on the Battlefield: Sorcery, featuring two dozen brand new, hard-hitting sword and sorcery tales!  My tale The Dogs of War features Tyr, a viking mercenary and the Templat poet - Wolfram Von Eschenbach - more of them will be available soon in a sequel of sorts Whispers of the Goddess.
Here are the two covers from artist Enggar Adirasa!  Stay tuned for more information on this exciting release week! I was hoping for a table of contents list but I don't have one just yet. I'm excited to see who else is in the books.

On Top of the World: 80 Years of CONAN

"Know, oh prince, that between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities, and the years of the rise of the Sons of Aryas, there was an Age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars - Nemedia, Ophir, Brythunia, Hyberborea, Zamora with its dark-haired women and towers of spider-haunted mystery, Zingara with its chivalry, Koth that bordered on the pastoral lands of Shem, Stygia with its shadow-guarded tombs, Hyrkania whose riders wore steel and silk and gold. But the proudest kingdom of the world was Aquilonia, reigning supreme in the dreaming west. Hither came Conan the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand, a thief, a reaver, a slayer, with gigantic melancholies and gigantic mirth, to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A whole lot of things have contributed to my writing inspiration and drive, my own poetry expanding into prose, the sheer love of reading-especially myth and legend, a love of history and lost mysteries, Tolkien is absolutely huge, Hemingway and more as well, but I must give credit that the biggest factor that literally kicked me in the face and said I HAVE TO START WRITING - instead of just talking about it, was Robert E. Howard's creation CONAN, who turns 80 today since his first appearance in Weird Tales.

The first tale of Howard's I read was People of the Black Circle but I know The Phoenix on the Sword (the first Conan tale with the familiar opening above, was soon to follow) I devoured the tales and harassed used book shops to acquire all the beat-up old dog-eared copies I could find, usually the lamentable DeCamp series. This was before the Del-Rey releases. I hardly read anything else that summer, and soon enough  I read most of the rest of REH's catalog and then got to work on my own.

If I can someday engender that same fascination with a reader, the sheer excitement and thrill that I felt reading these stories, I will have truly succeeded. I can think of no other praise or reward so high as sharing that feeling with another person when it comes to writing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie?
I, who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky.
The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing;
Rush in and die, dogs—I was a man before I was a king.”

Black Friday ~ RED COUNTRY

"A choice between killing and dying ain't no choice at all."

Red Country, by Joe Abercrombie
is likely my favorite fantasy fiction read to come out of the Big publishers this year (Orbit) I still mean to read a few more from TOR and PYR, but this will be pretty tough to beat.
Anyone else I really liked (published this year) is almost certainly indie.

I don't like giving away spoilers, but there are a few caveats to Abercombies books. The three standalone novels, Best Served Cold, The Heroes and Red Country could be read without having read the First Law Trilogy, but would be much better appreciated IF you have read them. A lot of back-story could be understood, but the true appreciation and context just won't be there.

They are rough, called Grim Dark by some, but I never felt like it was as nihilistic as others have claimed. Brutal perhaps, but in my mind no more so than Unforgiven and not even as terrible and gut wrenching as another favorite of mine =Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian.

In any case, Red Country is absolutely a western set within Abercrombies fantasy world. It works as any western should, minus the gunpowder. Every scene and confrontation on the plains or saloon easily felt like it belonged in that American tradition.
Living in the Inter-mountain west, I caught quite a few nuances showing Abercrombies research and attention to detail that I think could have easily been passed over by other storytellers, but for me - it fit. It showed how close and true he worked to make this a great western with realistic touches ~ you have to be realistic.

Without spoiling too much, anyone that has read the books knows that the character laying the biggest mark in Abercrombies universe is Logen, 'The Bloody Nine' Ninefingers, and we've been missing him and wondering what happened to him for the last couple books.

He is back-anyone with any sense will know it is him in the first couple pages, so that's no spoiler. But he has tried to put his past behind him and everyone knows him now as "Lamb" the coward.
But when his step son and daughter are kidnapped, there is gonna be hell to pay and the sleeping giant is awakened.

It was just a little slow going in the beginning (not unlike The Heroes) but once things started to happen-Did they ever.
So many scenes and chapters erupting in my head that I'd love to mention but just can't yet, so many that made me want to cheer and laugh. Abercrombie has a wonderful knack for setting things up that make you so sure on how they will turn out and then turning them on its ear and twisting it upside down. Highly, highly recommended.

I so wish I could get my hands on the UK cover (above) these US covers are seriously lame, I wish a marketing rep could see that, all three of the US stand-alones have terrible covers, why is it so hard to just keep the brilliant UK ones? This US cover tells you nothing, shows nothing, and a basket-hilt rapier swung two-handed? Give me a break.

Abercrombie is a little slower on getting books out, The Heroes was released in February of last year, but I am so anticipating the next one already even if it will likely be 2014.

Unlike some of Abercrombies other books, this had a map-that only made me anticipate a wider travelogue than we  received, not a big deal except for the tantalization of what might occur where - I kept expecting something to go on in the rock formation (canyon lands) The Three Emperors, but nothing did, just my being map happy I guess.

Now I've got a hankering to watch some of my favorite westerns while finishing up my Thanksgiving pie and turkey.

Read Just Lately

The Necronomicon, The Book of Dead Names, edited by George Hay

I reread books I enjoy all the time, whether for research or pleasure, this is a little of both. I am working on something for the Swords & Mythos anthology and decided on a Abdul Alhazerd story. Abdul Alhazerd supposedly wrote the Necronomicon, well Al Azif anyway.
In any case, when I first purchased this book, I was only loosely aware of H.P. Lovecraft and his Mythos at all, I relatively knew nothing.
So of course I start reading the Necronomicon late at night in my grandfathers basement, yes I was very creeped out.
But it started a weird tales fascination that has never gone away. Unfortunately it took some number of years before I realized that DeCamp, Hays, Wilson and other contributors were all having a laugh-while the Lovecraftian analysis is as spot on as anything, all the essays contained purporting to be the authentic truth of the Necronomicon are the literary equivalent of a Mockumentary, and I ate it up a good dozen years ago.
Still, its good for rereading and preparing my own fiction.

Conan: Throne of Aquilonia, by Roy Thomas, Mike Hawthorne, Dan Panosian

Continuing on with the year long run of Roy Thomas and Conan's journey down the Road of Kings, most of this collection takes place in Tarantia, capitol of Aquilonia - hence the title.
We get some interesting side characters, and some nice teases for things that Conan fans know is coning years into the future. I did like the catacombs sequence though it had a few weakness's, and I thought the dragon was dispatched a bit too easily/quickly, but overall it was a decent spot.
Afterward Conan journey's on to Argos and we are given a great set up for Queen of the Black Coast - too bad I already know that arc is seriously bungled and I think I'll be skipping it. For a 1*-5* slot, I'd rate this a strong 3*+.

IRONWOLF: Fires of the Revolution, by Howard Chaykin and Mike Mignola

Thanks to Paul Macnamee for this copy.
I love Mignola's artwork, this had a futuristic steampunk thing going before steampunk was a household word. Granted this is by no means Mignola's best work, but it's still great, depth and shading all his wonderful hallmarks.
Chaykin's tale is interesting with flavors of the age of revolution mixed with somewhat current type drug and crime ridden conspiracies, yet it never really engaged me. I never found myself really drawn into the characters for good or bad, though not for lack of trying. There were a number of writerly tricks to get us interested but they didn't convince me. Good, but certainly not great. If I recall Paul, you said roughly the same thing, right?



By The Sword, by Richard Cohen 

This was an in depth review of all things relating to the history of the sword, from gladiators to musketeers to samurai to fencers and beyond. Cohen speaks from experience as an award winning Olympic fencer himself and the book is full of valuable anecdotes relating to what is truly a warriors art. Highly recommended for those researching more about the use of the sword and the history of great swordsmen.

Freakonomics, by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

The header also reads, A Rogue Economist Explore the Hidden Side of Everything.
This was a fascinating book, dwelling on why people do the things they do and how crunching the numbers gives a bigger picture over what people might answer makes them do what they do.
It can be two very different things and they don't even realize.
I sense I can't express this very well in a quick book review, but this is highly recommended.
The insights to life are well worth your time. I will be looking for follow up books by the authors.

The Bloody White Baron

Though I now live in a fairly small town in Montana, I thankfully have a good little book store nearby where I can order books I want (to support them instead of the internet) and this is important, browse for books I never knew existed. One of my recent most excellent acquisitions is...

The Bloody White Baron, by James Palmer

Baron Romanov Ungern von Sternberg was essentially the last warlord of Mongolia and this was still less than a hundred years ago-we are talking serious The Man Who Would Be King kinda stuff.

Palmer goes out of his way to make sure you understand what an awful bastard the Baron is-and I would hope nothing I say in the next couple paragraphs is taken out of context, but damn you have to admire the man that can go assimilate himself into another country and become a Mongol warlord!

Born in the border kingdoms of Russia, Sternberg had a semi-privileged youth, only excelling in school at militaristic recreations. Once old enough he went to war in the Trans-Baikal regions and soon enough became associated (and I am sure grew to love) the Mongolian nomad way of life.
A regular "What is best in life?" scenario.

I realized earlier just today that I had read a small review about the Baron on the old Cimmerian website (may Crom grant it peace) a couple years ago, and while Jim Cornelius goes on about what a great pulp villain the Baron would be (and I believe was in a couple novels) I couldn't help but feel that Palmer's presentation was overly harsh and that in so many ways, the Baron could be looked at in some respects (only some-I'm not going completely crazy here) as a barbaric hero, or at least anti-hero.

By no means am I excusing any of the horrible things the man did (and there were many) but I must admit that in numerous respects I saw Conan riding at the head of the Kozaki more than I saw Thulsa Doom. Dedicated to a militant Buddhism and the overthrowing of the Soviets, Baron Sternberg was a godlike figure to Mongolians. Fearless and brave, myths grew about him like clutching ivy. From the land of Genghis Khan, the Baron waged war on the Soviets and Chinese.

While I would say Palmer has written one of the best historical books I have read in a long time, I did feel like it was slightly tainted by his insistence to show contempt for the Baron and his accomplishments. Again I am not excusing nor condoning the Baron's behaviors. But I found it ridiculous to assert that while the Baron was venomously anti-Semitic, in 1920 he was not having a Mongolian horde carry banners with a swastika in support or even acknowledgment of the rising Nazi movement. People forget that the Nazi's took an ancient worldwide symbol and twisted it for their own. While the Baron was merciless to the Jews in Urga, I just don't believe it was as a Nazi confederate - it was as a militant Buddhist. NOW how many of you were even aware of such a thing? I wasn't.

There were a number of documented tales of the Baron's bravery and military prowess and all too often I thought Palmer was willing to say those were just propaganda and stories to pump up the Baron's image, while all the bad things must be true. Granted, I don't believe I would invite the Baron over for tea but a lot of the wilder stories must be true- you don't become a Warlord on rumor, not of the Mongols.

Believing everything he did was guided by fate, Sternberg eventually consulted a soothsayer that proclaimed him to only have 130 days remaining of life. Fully accepting of his fate, he is said to have proclaimed, "I shall die, I shall die, but no matter the world has never seen such a terror and such a sea of blood as it shall now see..."

He accepted his fate. Captured by Soviets he was executed by firing squad exactly 130 days after the soothsayer said he would die!

This was a fascinating book full of loads of great material I'll be using in my own stories.

Rogues in Hell

Rogues in Hell created by Janet Morris, edited by Janet and Chris Morris, with the diabolical assistance of their damnedest writers

Into the rich shared world milieu of Morris's  In Hell series we are given glimpses into a number of adventures and cruel double-crosses.

One thing I particularly enjoyed was the varied and wild assortment in this rogues gallery, there were quite a few individuals I guess I never expected to see in Hell, among them Mary Shelley, Ben Franklin, Solomon, Wyatt Earp, Frank Hopkins, Bat Masterson, and T.E. Lawrence. Some others I have to admit to not being too surprised about as residents of the netherworld.

Ragnarok and Roll by Larry Atchley, Jr. for example had Anton LaVey (who I don't think is even dead yet) paired with the Red Baron and a pack of Vikings on a hunt for the Spear of Longinus.

Colony by Bruce Durham is among my favorite of the collection and made me smile in that he reminds us a goodly number of friendly Canadians are lingering (see tortured) in Hell as well. They are looking for a mysterious island and led by a very mad Samuel de Champlain (that killed me). Durham joins us with General James Wolfe and things never go as planned. Great tale.

The Miraculous Roadside Attraction by Jack William Finley is another favorite. Elliot Ness finds out why he is in Hell.

Hell Road Truckers by Michael H. Hanson has Odysseus (who I had never before pictured as belong in Hades) taking the dangerous Tartarosian road with Hell's frieght. Meanwhile Achilles and Hektor continue to duel. I never would have guessed Hektor deserved to be there. Very entertaining.

If Necessary by Bradley H. Sinor is an excellent ride with one my of my favorite writers Hunter S. Thompson, Richard Burton (the magnificent explorer [neither of whom I think deserve this fate]) and Lillian Hellman of whom I am rather neutral on and Caligula who definitely deserves it all along in a maddening road trip.

Overall a great eclectic collection sure to please the reader looking for new vistas on the damned.

Roar of the Crowd ~ R.I.P.

After waiting a couple of years for something to come of a tale that I was particularly fond of, I recieved the email that Rogue Blades Entertainment had to concede that Roar of the Crowd is dead. The Editor Jason Waltz has been overwhelmed with a number of issues and could not keep the project on hold continually.

(Ironic I posted this was still forthcoming last week on my birthday.)

So I now have Whispers of the Goddess back.

Looking it over and giving it a reread after sitting for so long, I definetly want to polish it up, not a lot but some. I am proud of what I put together in a white heat weekend to make the deadline for the antho and I was excited to be sharing the TOC with quite a few of people I call friends now among them...

Mbogo Returns ~ Milton Davis

Carcass and Mallet ~ Ty Johnston

Race to Dragonhead Rock ~ Bill Ward

For the Light ~ Gustavo Bondoni

Spirit of the Maya ~ Robert Waters
Winter’s Game ~ Kate Martin
The Last Refuge of Piyamaradu ~ Ryan Harvey
Up the Gladiators! ~ David Bischoff
Panathenaic ~ Bruce Durham
Naumachia Magic ~ Alva Roberts
Hard Crossing at Luhinmov Ford ~ Adrian Simmons
Love and Revolution ~ Jeff Draper
The Turul Spreads its Wings ~ Boglárka Takács
Whispers of the Goddess ~ David J. West
Ulemet’s Wager ~ Lyn Perry
The Dream Horn ~ Howard Andrew Jones
Shini-tai ~ C.L. Werner
Foreword ~ Michael Ehart

I'm thinking now that I'll likely throw my hat into the eRing and release the novella as an ebook. That means polish, polish, edit, edit, edit and a fantastic cover to boot. I'm gonna make a goal of september, just to have plenty of time to get some good help on all facets of this project.

Prince Valiant

I took a break after yard work/writing work/wife in the hospital (she's doing very well) etc etc and saw coming up on HBO (which I have for Game of Thrones) that a Prince Valiant movie was coming up in an hour.

I watched a Prince Valiant movie when I was a kid-I remember that I liked it-but don't know that I could actually recall much of anything about it-I barely followed the daily comics-but as much as I like love comics I found the medium of a daily strip tedious-and Lord help you if you miss a few days.

But I flipped to the channel and LO! Ron Perlman looking as scruffy as ever-this Prince was filmed in 97'!

How did I miss this? I thought I had seen every old fantasy movie there was to see-at least everything predating the millennium-(still haven't watched Name of the King). I honestly thought well it must be because it sucked-but I still want to watch it. So I did, and I was pleasantly surprised.

It has breaks which feature Hal Foster's original art-but I didn't find that technique disturbing, if anything it just speeds us along to get to the action. I thought the cinematography was fine and the costumes were most excellent-often making me feel like some characters looked so grand that when you didn't see them in action you felt disappointed-there was actually a female viking packing some kind of dragons head flame thrower-AND she was clearly wearing some type of medieval garter beneath her armor-WHAT?!?

Don't get me wrong-this is a romanticized fantasy movie, it is not meant to take itself too seriously-it has Joanna Lumley as Morgan LeFay for crying out loud (my wife knows who that is-AB FAb and a Bond Girl) and that Arthurian romantic ideal is probably what made me like it so much-daring heroes and dastardly villains are a nice break from some of the grimmer things of late. This was exactly the type of enjoyable Sword & Sorcery movie that I am inclined to think most of my regular readers/commentators will enjoy.

The director Anthony Hickox (also plays Sir Gwain) typically does horror films (Waxwork, Warlock, one of the Hellraisers) maybe that's why he had a few good spots of tension and some interesting homages. In the beginning when Morgan LeFay and the bad vikings are digging up Merlin-his shriveled body looks like Nicol Williamson-bizarre shiny steel headplate and all. One of the marauding vikings is clearly wearing one of the elongated skull helms that Halfdan the Black's (John Cleese's character) guardsmen wear in Eric the Viking.

Starring Stephen Moyer (I don't really know who that is) Katherine Heigel, Udo Kier, Warwick Davis, and Ron Perlman I was pretty happy with the performances and fight scenes-with the exception of Prince Valiant, for being a good fighter he made a lot of very clumsy moves that should have gotten him killed.

So aside from thinking some characters were underutilized Warwick Davis for one-and that it had a forgettable soundtrack-this was a pretty decent movie. Light on any blood or gore despite the violence and some sensuality but nothing I'm worried about having my kids watch with me again later (I DVRed it).

I recommend checking it out for what it is.

And its funny because I was just recently lamenting that they don't make fantasy movies like they used to in the 80's-but apparently they still did in 97'.

I Am Pulp Fiction

pulp fiction  noun

fiction dealing with lurid or sensational subjects, often printed on rough, low-quality paper manufactured from wood pulp.




Now I am truly a Pulp Fiction writer.

The 0.5 issue of Utah Geek has finally been released and is being parceled out over the metropolitan Utah area-so its in the gaming shops and libraries all over SLC. The publisher, Dennis Lundstrom posted that he will have copies in Utah county next week-so all of my former locals, just hang on a little longer.

Though it may be a little hard to read, I am on the cover, no not the zombie, but the center tab reads,
Chapter 1: MIDNIGHT SONS, original fiction by David J. West

IF you can get a copy, read it and let Utah Geek (and me) know how much you liked it-if you don't like it, make a big stink about it and bring all the attention possible to this new little mag.

I still don't have a copy myself and borrowed this pic from the cover artist Carter Reid.

About MIDNIGHT SONS~ it will be an ongoing dark fantasy serial, centered on a trio of heroic yet superstitious characters who will be charged with hunting down the fantasy equivalent of Nazi war criminals- think steam punk Lovecraftian sorcerers. I believe the very premise will allow an infinite number of twists and turns for rather roguish heroes.

Everyone who possibly can-check it out.

I'll arrange something one fine day for all my friends out of Utah state (as I am now myself = Montana hence the great lack of blogging) to have a chance to read it as well.

Quick Reads Lately

I am still in the midst of moving but must find the time to read and unwind-the quickest things to hit the spot are graphic novels and here are the five latest.

The Outlaw Prince, by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Rob Hughes, Thomas Yeates & Michael Wm. Kaluta

Based on Burroughs The Outlaw of Torn I found this to be a great action-adventure historical. Taking place in 1243 during the reign of King Henry the third, we are shown how things haven't changed that much since King John was around-he still isn't fully respecting the Magna Carta and noble Simon De Montfort, Earl of Leicester is calling Henry out on it. Simon departs and Henry takes out his aggressions on court swordsman DeVac (whom is supposedly the finest swordsman in all of Christendom).

Henry insults DeVac who vows revenge.

So how does an angry Frenchman get revenge?

He kidnaps Henry's son, Richard, slaying the Lady Maud and an officer in the process-all so he can raise the prince as his own son and turn him into the greatest swordsman in the whole world and in general give bloody hell to Henry.
Some of this was a little slow, but you could tell it was all building-it is after all the adaption of a novel.

The graphic ends as Richard, now Norman of Torn is about to start dealing blood against the King, whom he no longer realizes is his father. This has definitely intrigued me to read what Burroughs himself said was, "the best thing he ever wrote..."

Batman R.I.P. by Grant Morrison and Tony S. Daniel

I've enjoyed some of Morrison's other writings and the art is absolutely superb (the best of all 5 graphics I mention here today) but I was continually wondering throughout What is Going On? Opening with a scene similar enough to the classic Killing Joke storyline, the Joker is giving clues to the Batman about some new villain? huh?

Said new villain-is he Dr. Hurt, is he The Black Glove? is he Thomas Wayne? huh?

He has a cabal of villains with him, none of which are particularly noteworthy (and I generally think Batman has the best villains in the DC universe) one of the new ones looked like he was supposed to be some kind of bucket head Ned Kelly wannabe-but I don't think they ever even gave us his name.

Anyhow, Batman is given a hypnotic trigger from graffiti tagged non-sense and goes into shock-they shoot him full of crystal meth and leave him on the street to die-no wait they expect him to show up so they can do something else to him, oh and his girlfriend betrayed him but he knew she was going to do that, huh?

I can allow plenty of suspension of disbelief when reading a comic book, I have no problem letting a lot of things slide...but I suspect that with Batman R.I.P., Morrison was going for an over the top,deep classic storyline and I'm sorry I think he failed at that.

R.I.P. is interesting, it makes you wonder about what the Batman is capable of to overcome and compensate for every scenario but somethings are just way too out there-I don't even want to get into the final epilogue chapter=serious Huh?

Did I mention the art was great?

B.P.R.D. The Black Flame, by Mike Mignola, John Arcudi and Guy Davis

We are still dealing with the war on Frog Demon monsters from earlier story lines and the BPRD is all over the place just trying to deal. Roger the Homunculus is adapting well as a team commander (emulating Captain Daimio) but dark days are ahead for the weird guy that doesn't wear pants. (see cover)

The title character, the Black Flame is a Dr. Doom type guy for the Hellboy universe and is my favorite thing about the whole graphic; a CEO for the Zinco corp, he emulates some of the bizarre Thule society Nazi's from earlier Hellboy stories (Nazis are the best villains just ask Indiana Jones) and as the Black Flame he attempts to bring in something big and bad to the world.

Storyline wise I was kind of underwhelmed-big bad monster comes-Liz fries it, and I've seen that too many times-that's what the big arc is-its the little stuff that's good and surprising, I just wish they could have come up with a more novel way of dealing with the Lovecraftian Katha-Hem.

Time of the Twins, by Margaret Weis, Tracy Hickman, Andrew Dabb, David Cole

I wasn't sure what to expect with this one, I did not care for its beginnings.
Only two years have passed since the War of the Lance (Dragonlance trilogy) and the nods to the previous characters seemed a little gratuitous and unnecessary to me. But Fizban did say he wasn't good with beginnings so...

Once things get moving I did enjoy this "new" staple of fantasy cannon.

The art was reasonably good and most everything seemed to flow once we got past reminders of Dragonlance. I still don't get some of the D&D tropes being force fed into the storyline but I could deal with those.

Having a character like Carmon hit rock bottom and bring himself back (with external pressure) was great-but his twin brother Raistlin, who I know is a fan favorite-yeah he's a super powerful sorcerer, but is that the only reason I'm supposed to like him? I could'a used something more there-I mean WHY does the priestess of Paladine, Crysiania, even fall in love with him? That was never clear to me-no reason, it just happened, I could have used anything, even a look, but no.

I would still gladly read the next in the series but I'm not sure that DDP press is even doing anymore of the D&D titles and that's a shame.

instead...

Dungeons & Dragons: Shadowplague, by John Rogers  and Andrea Di Vitto

I was almost ready to put this down with the first couple chapters, every hackneyed plot twist, every wisecrack you have ever heard, ever stereotype you have ever seen is splashed here-NO, bombarded upon you mercilessly. Di Vitto's art is pretty good and sheer wonder made me persevere further.

It does get better.

But a terrible beginning is a terrible beginning.

Everything you ever read about not writing a story like its your D&D game is right here.

Maybe if you've never seen an action movie or only read Paolini this stuff might seem fresh and hip to you-but it was only annoying to me.

By chapter 4 things have moved on a bit and the story became a bit more original-not real original, but enough that I didn't want to throw the book. What gets me is how I was so much more interested in the side characters we see for mere moments than I ever was in the main characters but...

By the end of the 6th chapter if there was a 7th I would have kept reading, but...

This is a big beautiful hardcover book, its supposed to match the newer D&D v.4 gaming books (which I don't own I'm old school-heh) the back cover says this was 24.99 gimme a break, glad I didn't pay that and I wouldn't pay that for volume 2-way too much for a so-so storyline. I don't know who Wizards of the Coast and IDW think they are fooling but seriously gimme a break. I would read Shadowplague 2 but I won't pay that for it.