I picked up a copy of Clark Ashton Smith’s The Last Incantation. I figured I’d probably read some of the stories before in collections or anthologies before, and such proved the case. But there were some I had the pleasure of reading for the first time, and re-reading CAS is never a chore. It was… Continue reading Clark Ashton Smith. The Last Incantation
Category: Reading
Lawrence Watt-Evans’ “The Lords of Dûs.” Immanentizing the Eschaton.
It was the Darrell K. Sweet cover that lured me to the first book, The Lure of the Basilisk. This introduced me to the world of Lawrence Watt-Evans’ The Lords of Dûs tetralogy and his unique character, Garth the Overman. The overmen were, it seems, magically created genetic mutations of men, made larger, stronger, less… Continue reading Lawrence Watt-Evans’ “The Lords of Dûs.” Immanentizing the Eschaton.
Currently Reading.
Happily I will never run out of reading matter. There are five books waiting in the ever-replenishing to-be-read pile. Currently I am finishing up Glen Cook’s The Dragon Never Sleeps. This is an epic, sweeping, galaxy crossing space opera of improbably massive space ships clashing, power dynamics, and the pursuit of quasi-immortality. At over 400… Continue reading Currently Reading.
Tower at the Edge of Time. Not Precisely a Towering Achievement.
The indefatigable Lin Carter published a slender novel in 1968 titled Tower at the Edge of Time. I have been open in my admiration for Mr. Carter’s gifts as a scholar, editor, and stylistic imitator. I even enjoy, on occasion, his more independently innovative works. That being said…Well, let me just get into it. Tower… Continue reading Tower at the Edge of Time. Not Precisely a Towering Achievement.
Robert E. Howard’s Dennis Dorgan. Plus Savage Journal Entry 50.
Dennis Dorgan, the character whose exploits are collected in The Incredible Adventures of Dennis Dorgan, is definitely not Popeye the Sailor Man, despite his creation shortly after the release of E.C. Segar’s classic character in 1929. Dennis makes this perfectly clear by his stated dislike of canned spinach. Though both men are sailors, speak in… Continue reading Robert E. Howard’s Dennis Dorgan. Plus Savage Journal Entry 50.
Weird Tales Four, Plus Savage Journal Entry 49.
I picked up this book for the cover. I mean look at it. There’s a story in that artwork. Unfortunately that story isn’t in this book. Not even tangentially. There are other disappointments. It is haphazardly edited and printed. The introduction (which opens the book for a page at the front, then is continued at… Continue reading Weird Tales Four, Plus Savage Journal Entry 49.
Edgar Rice Burroughs’ I Am A Barbarian. Plus Savage Journal Entry 48.
Among the haul I picked up at the North Texas RPG Con was Edgar Rice Burroughs’ I Am a Barbarian. I’m not ashamed to admit that I was drawn by the cover. It appears to be early Boris Vallejo, prior to his style taking on a glossy sheen. Surprisingly, the cover depicts (more or less)… Continue reading Edgar Rice Burroughs’ I Am A Barbarian. Plus Savage Journal Entry 48.
Breckinridge Elkins: A Gent From Bear Creek. Plus Savage Journal Entry 47.
I enjoyed an eventful Saturday: I finished reading Robert E. Howard’s A Gent From Bear Creek and hosted the first pool party of the season here at Casa Lizzi. If any of you who attended are reading, thanks for coming. That was fun. As was Gent, a fix-up novel stringing together several of REH’s Breckinridge… Continue reading Breckinridge Elkins: A Gent From Bear Creek. Plus Savage Journal Entry 47.
Howard’s Historicals: The Sowers of the Thunder. Plus Savage Journal Entry 45
I won’t delay any surprise here: the anthology of Robert E. Howard historical novellas The Sowers of the Thunder is an absolute treat. There, you can head off the used bookstore or open another tab and start the hunt at eBay or ThriftBooks. Or you can stay and keep reading. Roy G. Krenkel’s introduction is… Continue reading Howard’s Historicals: The Sowers of the Thunder. Plus Savage Journal Entry 45