Christian’s Comments (group member since Apr 17, 2019)

Christian’s comments from the Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy" group.

A whole lot of horror - old, new, extreme, quiet, splatterpunk, weird, cosmic, whatever... I love it all.

Also big fat fantasy and scifi. I used to read more of it than I do now but it usually flows in cycles with me.

Stuff like Tolkien, Brooks, Feist, Eddings, and Jordan were my first loves, along with King, Masterton, Barker, Koontz, and Laymon on the horror side.

I read much more non-S&S than I do S&S.

Michael Fierce (aka Darth Fierce) wrote: "Christian wrote: "Michael Fierce (aka Darth Fierce) wrote: "Christian wrote: "Michael Fierce (aka Darth Fierce) wrote: "Christian wrote: "Mortu and Kyrus in the White City by [autho..."

Hey, I appreciate the offer but that's not necessary. I probably will end up buying a copy.

I've been a backer of Cirsova Magazine from the first issue and if memory serves me that's where his "The Gift of the Ob-Men" story was first published. Definitely a highlight in that first issue. Cirsova has been a fantastic source of new and old authors of ye olde pulp.

EDIT: But yeah, I do think he is this generations second coming of the old pulp masters. High praise maybe but one author to very much support.

Michael Fierce (aka Darth Fierce) wrote: "Christian wrote: "Michael Fierce (aka Darth Fierce) wrote: "Christian wrote: "Mortu and Kyrus in the White City by Schuyler Hernstrom"

It's great. 👍"

It is. Look..."

Nice. I almost bit the bullet on that but the overseas postage is a killer nowadays. I see it's up for preorder on Amazon but $50 for the hardcover and $30 for the paperback is a bit rich for me atm. Still very much considering it though, might be worth a mint in the future.

Michael Fierce (aka Darth Fierce) wrote: "Christian wrote: "Mortu and Kyrus in the White City by Schuyler Hernstrom"

It's great. 👍"

It is. Looking forward to when he can fill out a collection of Mortu & Kyrus tales.

Mortu and Kyrus in the White City by Schuyler Hernstrom

Started up Thune's Vision by Schuyler Hernstrom. I first discovered him in the pages of Cirsova a number of years back and quickly picked this up. I think it's oop now as a new edition is out. Dude had serious chops very early on.

So I finished up Robert E. Howard Changed My Life: Personal Essays about an Extraordinary Legacy and left a small review. Hey, better late than never.

A really great and touching collection, some really resonated with me and hit me in the feels. Also having that Appendix H at the end will keep me coming back for a long time.

I haven't read much this past week but I'm still slowly making my way through REH Changed My Life.

I also began reading Warlords, Warlocks & Witches ed. by D.M. Ritzlin

I've read a few more so far and a small complaint I have is that the author isn't stated at the beginning of the piece. I'm reading the kindle version so I can't just easily flick to the table of contents or end of the particular essay.

BUT, it keeps me guessing like a whodunnit. Like this one I just read right now, said person grew up in East Texas, young at the time, 19, wanted to write but didn't know where to start or who to contact, couldn't really finish any stories he wrote, married too young so under pressure to make everything work while going to college. And I'm thinking to myself have I heard of this person before, who just is this?

And then he picks up a used paperback of Wolfshead by Howard that ultimately changes his life. Turns out it's Joe R. Lansdale. Joe ******* Lansdale. You don't get much bigger than that in genre fiction. And imagine that no one most likely would of read him let alone heard of him if it wasn't for REH speaking to him from that paperback. Amazing.

A tad late but I started reading Robert E. Howard Changed My Life: Personal Essays about an Extraordinary Legacy

Having just read Bill Cavalier's essay I should say I'm shocked someone would steal REH footstone, but I'm not... I wonder where it is now? Sitting "proudly" in one's collection somewhere or has it been forgotten even by the thieves themselves, tossed aside and thrown out?

Also the passing and fading away of those people in Bill's life, who he met on his REH pilgrimage, all except one, has left me in a sombre mood. Time moves so quick for all of us, people we meet briefly or for longer periods of time change us and then their gone. Hopefully we leave tales worth telling like this one.

I should be done with Sunfail: A Dark Days Novel by Steven Savile soon. A fast paced end of the world techno-thriller.

Also just started up Robert E. Howard Changed My Life: Personal Essays about an Extraordinary Legacy

I polished this off the other day and can say the highlight were definitely the Ryre tales, I think they stand hands and shoulders above the other stories. Not to say the rest were bad, far from it, but I wish he had written a lot more S&S stuff.

Jamie wrote: "I found that whole concept of taking names as a way of literally appropriating someone's personal history so totally off the wall. Very cool."

Yes, that was a fairly original take I've never come across before on the whole true name magickal concept.

Another good story in "The Pit of Wings", I can say this heavily weird/horror infused S&S very much appeals to me.

Flapping down from the pale sky, in a flock which stank of caverns and worse, came wings. Their span was greater than the spread of his arms. They were the blotchy white of decay; between their bony fingers, skin fluttered lethargically as drowned sails. All this was frightful—but there was no body to speak of between each pair of wings, only a whitish rope of flesh thin as a child’s arm. Yet as a pair of wings sailed down near him, Ryre saw a mouth gape along the whole length of the scrawny object. Its lips resembled a split in fungus, and it was crammed with teeth.

S.E. wrote: "Christian, thx for chronicling your adventures thru Tond. We've a quiet group here, so many never chime in as they read along. But having some feedback spurs us along.

For me, your notes remind m..."

Yes, I'm very much guilty of that myself.

Going by your review, I'm very much looking forward to his weirder yarns. I do love me some weird.

I have that SK novel of his ready to go when I get to it, but I think I should read the REH Kane stories first. Shamefully never read them yet. But I did watch the movie when it first released and loved it, thought it was very well done.

Just now finished the second story, "The Changer of Names". Once again very much mining horror, these tales so far have a distinct dismal atmosphere hanging over them, no signs of any levity exists in the towns Ryre visits.

I haven't participated in one of these in a while but having Campbell as a monthly read is a good lure as I've committed myself to reading his oeuvre in publication order, the books I can get my hands on that is, and currently up to Obsession (1985).

So far I've just finished the first story, The Sustenance of Hoak, and its opening line is classic S&S,

"If we ever reach the treasure," Ryre said with bitter humour, "we'll have earned it and twice again."

From there it descends into unabashed horror, not surprising as Ramsey Campbell is one of the best at it. Great start.

Awesome! Just bought it along with the Ramsey Campbell special.

Today I finished Salem's Lot by Stephen King. One of his early ones I never got around to before now, even though seeing the made for tv movie as a young pup and scaring the crap out of me. It started off slow, didn't care much for the residents of the town (at times I think King despises small town America), but after it got going there were many times I didn't want to put it down. I gave it 4 stars but thinking maybe it is more like a 3. I know it is much loved by many (and by him) I don't think it is one of his best.

Also slowly reading through Flame and Crimson: A History of Sword-and-Sorcery by Brian Murphy

Currently slowly making my way through Flame and Crimson and enjoying it a lot. The chapter I've found most fascinating so far and the most recent one I've read up to is the one about the letters between Howard and Lovecraft, so much so that now I'm going to have to read that two volume set.