Customer Reviews

Gods in Darkness: The Complete Novels of Kane

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Gods in darkness is stunning dark fantasy containing three novels about unforgettable anti-hero named Kane.Kane is cursed to wander the world immoral until he is destroyed by the violence that he himself has created!the first book:Bloodstone, Kane has found a ring that part of ancient alien empire that will give him incredible power which he will use for conquest not knowing that he himself is being used by the Ring's sinsister masters in the bid to enslaving the planet! This story itself has terrifying scenes of monsters, magic and battles as Kane uses his army of froglike beasts in pursue of his goal!
Second Book: Dark Crusade finds Kane joining forces with fanatical cult leader who seeks to conquer kingdom with the use of dark magic and finally in Darkness Weaves: Kane aids a depraved and hideous sorecress who wants to reclaim her empire
by using a ancient race of aquatic demons and their advance technology! This book is brilliant marriage of horror of Lovecraft with violent swashbuckling of Robert Howard. Wagner's world-building skills are awesome and lyrical prose which heigtens the atmosphere of his dark world!Wagner's descriptions of gruesome and bloody battle scenes and intrigue and betrayal will have you turning pages all through the night! You may not like Kane, who acts more of a villian than hero but you can't stop reading about him and his dark adventures as his hunger for power almost consumes him and his world!

The three Kane books in my opinion are some of the best old style sc-fi/fantasy/horror written. It is not a Robert Jordon that sends you to sleep, it is that old fashion - torch under a blanket/can't put it down fantasy. I have read the three as separate novels and each one is awesome. Rather than some of the previous reviewers, I don't think that Bloodstone is a weaker novel - it is better seen as a faster, rollicking read not as layered or dark as the other novels.

I love the "Who won this war, that killed so many" attitude that Kane invaringly answers "I did" - "but why", "because I lived and they died.". It is so refreshing to see what is called an anti-hero, but is probably more acurately called a realist in todays terms. Not quite an opportunist, as Kane will often sacrifice self needs for cold or hot revenge or dark justice. To me this is how more of our heros should be written - all of the care but for darker reasons :-)

If you have not read these novels please do yourself a favour and do so. For Conan, Deathstalker, Corwin of Amber fans I belive you will be the richer. For Robert Jordon, Stephan Donaldson and those who want to read 1000 pages before the hero gets the fortitude to leave his town and love it - steer clear.

Wagner's stories about Kane are not simply dark fantasy at it's best. It shows the influence of immortality on a human being. From our (mortal) point of view Kane looks quite evil until you understand that for Kane reality is totally different. He is the only constant thing in a world of change. Empires rise and fall but he stays the same. It's Wagner's greatest achievement to give us a look into the workings of a mind you can no longer consider simply human.

What I'm Reading: GODS IN DARKNESS - Karl Edward Wagner

When Karl Edward Wagner began writing his Kane stories in 1970 he inherited the legacy of the barbarian hero from Robert E. Howard. Howard had almost single-handedly created sword-and-sorcery with his works, but Wagner - in creating his character of Kane - not only went back to the roots which had been planted by Conan and Kull (as so many other pale imitators had done), but also infused those roots with the rich traditions of fantasy and horror which had blossomed in the forty years since Howard had died.

Kane is one part Elric, one part Conan, but a creation all his own. His tales inherit the purity of Howard's barbarism, but also reach back into Howard's own influences to crank up the elements of Lovecraftian horror. You can feel the influences of Moorcock, Leiber, Moore, and Tolkien bubbling beneath the surface.

To this rich tradition, Wagner brought his own natural talent for the fantastical and the horrific, telling his stories with a brutal, beautiful prose.

GODS IN DARKNESS, from Night Shade Books, is a collection of all three of Karl Edward Wagner's Kane novels: BLOODSTONE, DARK CRUSADE, and DARKNESS WEAVES. It has a sister volume, THE MIDNIGHT SUN, which collects all of the Kane short stories.

BLOODSTONE
Unfortunately, the first novel in this collection is almost certainly the weakest. Perhaps the most persistent and grating problem here is Wagner's infatuation with the thesaurus, coupled with an inordinate amount of obvious pleasure taken in finding the most obscure terms possible. The intention appears to an evocation of Lovecraftian prose, but the effect which Lovecraft so expertly crafts is rendered impotent through the sheer tenacity with which Wagner pursues it.

The plot, while strong in many regards, is conveyed in an episodic fashion - with many events relegated off-stage with description or narration. The effect, in later works, is to keep the action focused on the primary cast of characters - seeing their place and their reactions within a large world. In BLOODSTONE, however, the effect is disjointed and further weakened by the fact that most of the characters (with the exception of Kane himself) have strong taints of the cliché about them.

Coming to BLOODSTONE I had heard that Wagner was something of a hidden gem in the sword-and-sorcery genre: A writer whose talents compared favorably to Howard, Leiber, and Moorcock - but whose career had been cut tragically short by an early death. Reading BLOODSTONE, I was disappointed to discover an author of only mediocre skill.

DARK CRUSADE
Fortunately, the second novel in the collection is DARK CRUSADE, which should be on the reading list for any fan of sword-and-sorcery.

I don't know if BLOODSTONE was just an early work which took its time getting into print, if Wagner was simply rushed or off his rhythm while writing it, or if Wagner had a major breakthrough between '75 and '76: Whatever the case may be, everything which was only nascent mediocrity in BLOODSTONE comes together in DARK CRUSADE to craft a top notch novel.

One of the interesting things to note about Kane is that, unlike his fellow heroes-in-arms, Kane frequently finds himself on the wrong side of a conflict. Conan finds a crown when he joins a just rebellion against a tyrannical king. Kane seeks empire, and frequently allies himself with any power which becomes convenient or available. He believes that he can overcome whatever flaws or corruption exist within the power base he takes advantage of, but finds - time and time again - that the flaws and corruption are inherent to the power. As a result, Kane often finds himself in a role which would be villainous if it were not for his own nature as an anti-hero: Often he destroys his own dreams in an attempt to purify them of a tarnish which cannot be removed.

It is this dark depth of contradiction and tragic flaw - a wisdom and strength coupled with folly and weakness - which makes the character of Kane so infinitely fascinating. Like all of the great sword-and-sorcery tales, it is not the plot of pulp adventure which makes the stories of Kane a compelling read: It is the careful drawing of their larger-than-life protagonist.

DARKNESS WEAVES
The third novel in GODS IN DARKNESS is on the same playing field as the second. If anything, DARKNESS WEAVES represents an improvement over the craft and skill which went into the telling of DARK CRUSADE. Notably, a more complex cast of characters is invested with more detail, drawn in more depth, and (as a result) given greater significance.

Ultimately, none of these novels impressed me with the quality of Howard's THE HOUR OF THE DRAGON or Leiber's "Lean Times in Lankhmar". But DARK CRUSADE and DARKNESS WEAVES are both classics - and if I want to see more of the war in DARK CRUSADE and more of the twin romances in DARKNESS WEAVES, that's only a testament to the strength of what's already on the page.

Kane fans probablly already have the 3 books that have been bound together in this one: "Bloodstone", "Darkness Weaves" and "Dark Crusade".
But if you're new to Kane books or don't have any of the above novels, it is a great collection. "Darkness Weaves" and "Dark Crusade" are two of my favorites, but I was hoping for a COMPLETE collection of his stories and felt a tad cheated. There is a new collection of Kane stories coming out in September, so if you're undecided you might want to wait and see what that one contains before forking over the money. Of course, this book does have a great map on the inside cover showing Wagner's Elder Earth.

It seems that the 2 low reviews on here revolve largely around "I don't have a vocabulary". Well, sorry lads. Go off and Enrich Your Word Power and come back for another try.

I have this GiD volume as well as all of the individual editions, and I have read each one more than once. More generally, I'd flatter myself to say that I'm rather well-read. Now, pertaining to Kane, my experience offers this instruction: If you haven't read Kane, then you haven't read anything like Kane, because there simply is nothing else like Kane. He is utterly ruthless, absolutely self-serving, and ... hopelessly bored with it all. But he's still bitter enough about it that he's not going to lie down and give over. The stories are well-woven, they are violent, they are sorrowful, they are surprising. Never Desslyn offers the threads of two stories in parallel, twisted love stories from before and after Desslyn's death. Reflections for the Winter of My Soul is a beautiful Whodunnit set in an isolated fortified manse, where Kane loses what he might once have remembered as love, ending with the lovely analogy "The snow was heavily crusted over and bore his weight easily. But for spots." The surprise ending of Sing a Last Song of Valdese: just when the actors of an old villainy believe reprieve is secure, the Uninvited Guest fills in and makes possible the magic to ensure their punishment. Frazetta was the perfect artist to paint covers for the Kane books; just as Frazetta worked so well with shadows in his paintings, so too did Wagner use dark implications and shadows (quite literally in Dark Crusade) in his stories to create a profoundly eerie texture.

These are stories not to be missed. If you like the fantasy genre and have perhaps some faint tinge of darkness to your soul, you will revel in the mind-splintering adventures of the uncanny Kane.

It doesn't get much better than this...

Wagner's horror writing was in some ways superior, but his 'Kane' fantasy series was simply an outstanding contribution to the genre. Gritty, grim, & bloody with Lovecraft-like overtones, it will appeal to modern readers of George R.R. Martin and the like. If you like this, you will LOVE his 'Kane' short stories collected in 'The Midnight Sun'.

This was a Christmas gift. The recipient has been looking for the complete set for quite some time. Apparently these books are not being printed anymore. I was given a received by date of December 15th, but received it only a few days after I placed my order at the end of November. For used books, they look and feel brand new.

As a long-time Wagner/Kane fan, these stories are excellent. I must say that I enjoyed his short stories much more. if you are afraid of spending the $$ on the complete novels, get the short stories compendium. You will not be disappointed!

If you're considering buying the expensive and out-of-print hardcover, Gods In Darkness, which collects the three Kane novels, my recommendation is don't waste your money. Buy the enjoyable Dark Crusade and, if you're feeling a bit masochistic, the problematic but still serviceable Darkness Weaves. You can get them separately as the original paperbacks (I've reviewed them both on Amazon). While I have not read Bloodstone (the only other Kane novel), the reviews seem to be very much against it. If you buy the used paperbacks, you'll save money and these novels have been way overhyped... I agree that the fantasy genre needs more books about villains and anti-heros as the main character, but Karl Edward Wagner's Kane novels just don't do it for me (although Dark Crusade comes very, very close -- my only complaint about it being Kane's character does not become interesting until 2/3 of the way through). If you want to read a truly flawless, gritty fantasy novel by Wagner, try The Road Of Kings. That's easily the finest Conan pastiche ever written and puts even the best of the Kane novels to shame!