Customer Reviews

Conan of the Red Brotherhood (Conan the Barbarian)

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I'm not one of those who thinks only Conan stories by Robert E. Howard are of any worth. Sure he's the best but there have been other works of merit under the Conan aegis. Leonard Carpenter wrote one of my favorite non-Howard Conan's with "Conan Lord of the Black River". Here, Carpenter slips a little. Granted we get the rare treat of one of Conan's wenches from a previous story returning and playing a major role in a second, but some of the goings-on in this one are a stretch. During a project to come up with a naval weapon capable of defeating the pirates, a wizard stumbles on the steam engine. The silliness took away a bit from the story. And one wonders why Conan stuck with the crew of whiners that seemed to mutiny every time he turned around. On the plus side, we see Yildiz and Yezdigerd, 2 implacable foes of Conan during the series, trying to come up with a new idea for besting him. Mysterious centipede creatures and a sorceror's unique use for them add a bit of horror. Fair non Howard Conan, better than some but not as good as others.

This title is perhaps one of the weakest entries in the Conan series. The book plods along at an uneven pace, and far too much time is devoted to developing secondary characters. The book, however, is not completely devoid of redeeming qualities. Carpenter's knack for characterization shows through although at the expense of the action many "Conan readers" are accustomed to.