The genre of Sword & Sorcery, founded by the Triumvirate of Howard, Lovecraft and Smith in the 20s and 30s, enjoyed a lifespan of almost half a century before it went all but extinct in the mid 80s. Just before that time, however, a fascinating project was conceived. Under the auspices of Robert Lynn Asprin … More [Booktalk] Thieves World; First Blood Pt. I
Its about time for another one of these. The Godsblade was not the only DMR title I purchased. The other one was Necromancy in Nilztiria, by none other then this year’s NAP finalist D.M.Ritzlin! With the mainstream publishing industry suffering a slow, drawn-out collapse as a result of archaic business models, political co-option and assorted … More [Booktalk] Necromancy in Nilztiria by D.M.Ritzlin
There is no genre of fantastical fiction more fundamental to Dungeons & Dragons then that of Sword & Sorcery. It is perhaps ironic that the days of D&D’s ascension also oversaw the near extinction of the genre that inspired it. The genre that was born from the pens of Howard, Lovecraft and Smith and was … More [Booktalk] The Godblade by J. Christopher Tarpey
Last time on Booktalk we tackled C.A. Smith’s most exotic, most refined and most seductive of worlds in the form of the Zothique Cycle. Today we tackle his Hyperborea Cycle, where we approach what is closest for Smith to what would later be Sword & Sorcery. Indeed! Of all the four cycles that bear elements … More [Booktalk] C.A. Smith’s Hyperborea
As I finish reading the exquisite Collected Fantasies of Clark Ashton Smith Vol 5. by Nightshade Books, the time has come to reflect on that most exotic and alluring of his myriad fantastical worlds, the Zothique cycle. Described in a series of short stories, the exotic funereal world of Zothique, with its swollen crimson sun, … More [Booktalk] The Zothique Cycle by Clark Ashton Smith
The Volsunga saga or Saga of the Volsungs is probably the most influential of the Viking sagas, serving as inspirational fuel for the likes of Wagner, Eddison and Tolkien. In this evil age, it is all but forgotten by the common man. It is time to bring it back and remember the old ways. Now … More [Booktalk] A Literary Appendix N; The Volsunga Saga (William Morris & Eirikir Magnusson)
William Morris is arguably the world’s first fantasy writer. There were stories with elements in them that the author believed was fiction (just look at the Gothic period), but Morris was the first to set his story in an entirely fictional world. Coming out in 1896, Well at the World’s End spans 4 volumes and … More [Booktalk] The Well at the World’s End (William Morris)
As a break from this series, let’s take a look at an entry that is actually on the appendix N. Lord Dunsany is a turn of the century author of “weird” and fantastic fiction and was much admired by the likes of Lovecraft, Howard, C.A. Smith and Tolkien, among countless others. The King of Elfland’s … More [Booktalk] Actual Appendix N: The King of Elfland’s Daughter by Lord Dunsany
The world is changing. As the wheel of time grinds on we are seperated further from the roots of our past and cast forth into the seething cauldron of the future, wherein all manner of streams are converged and distilled down to form the murky, indistinct soup of modern popculture. To prevent fantasy from sliding … More [Booktalk] A Literary Appendix N; Xenophon’s Anabasis
A.k.a History’s first fanfiction a.k.a Warhammer -400 B.C., the Aenead is an essential part of the Classic Western Canon that has mostly sunk into obscurity among my generation. For shame, says I. Here’s why it rocks. The Aenead is the unofficial sequel to Homer’s Illiad and Odyssey, and follows the adventures of Aeneas, son of … More [Booktalk] A literary Appendix N; The Aenead
Age of Dusk 