Customer Reviews

Lord of Samarcand and Other Adventure Tales of the Old Orient (The Works of Robert E. Howard)

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In this collection are some of the best historical stories written by the literary giant Robert E. Howard. My personal favorite among them is Lord of Samarcand, the title story, though all are well done. What other writers would have droned on and on about ad nauseum Howard completes quickly, compellingly, and concisely. The stories are never funny, and often have grim endings indeed. This doesn't interfere with our enjoyment, though, for Howard was both an accomplished writer and a first-rate story teller. From Red Blades of Black Cathay to Shadow of the Vulture to Sowers of the Thunder and all the rest, Howard is in top form here. The excitement never wavers, and the crispness of the writing never fails. Combined with some fine editing and a generous selection of other stories in the same vein Howard sadly never finished, these stories are a must for any fan of good writing and good storytelling (especially fans of the immortal Robert E. Howard).

'Lord of Samarcand' is an excellent collection of some of the best stories ever written by Robert E. Howard, the writer who, in his all too brief career, created such memorable characters as Conan the Barbarian, King Kull and Solomon Kane, to name but a few.
Howard's historical stories may be less well known than those about the mighty-thewed barbarian, but show him at the peak of his narrative powers: set in the Orient at the time of the Crusades, these grim, blood-soaked tales bring history to vibrant life as only Howard could. Rewriting history in the guise of fiction was one of the things he loved most, and his suicide in 1936, at the age of 30, robbed the literary world of a very talented writer that had only begun to hit his stride.
So enjoy these tales about Godric de Villehard, Cormac FitzGeoffrey and Red Cahal, to name but a few of the grim-faced giants whose bloody exploits are told in this excellent volume of The Works of Robert E. Howard.

I've been collecting the works of REH for a few years now, and have found this book to be an excellent collection. The stories in here are unique, containing none one of REH's 'big' heroes (Conan, Solomon Kane, Kull). Rather is about the later Crusades. Think if REH had written Kingdom of Heaven and you'll have a good idea as to what these stories are like. This isn't quite Sword and Sorcery... there are none of the monsters or magic found in many of REH's writings, but it is still worth reading for any true REH fan.

This is a must read and great to add to any book collection. I thoroughly enjoyed it! REH was a genius! Anytime I can find a REH story it's a great day! Lord of Samarcand - Gottfried von Kalmbach in The Shadow of the Vulture. REH wrote: "A more dissolute vagabond than Gottfried never weaved his drunken way across the pages of a popular magazine: wastrel, drunkard, gambler, whore-monger, renegade, mercenary, plunderer, thief, rogue, rascal-I never created a character whose creation I enjoyed more. They may not seem real to the readers; but Gottfried and his mistress Red Sonya seem more real to me than any other chracter I've ever drawn." Collected in this book is the entirety of Howard's historical Oriental fiction-including some fragments. These tales are probably among the most somber ever written by REH; among his best, too. Prepare to embark on a journey unlike any other in the field of historical fiction. The place is Outremer, the time the early thirteenth centery... Must Reads of REH (1906-1936): Blood and Thunder, The Life & Art of REH by Mark Finn, Two Gun Bob, One Who Walked Alone by Novalyne Ellis REH's girlfried, The Last of the Trunk-Paul Herman, Crimson Shadows-The Best of REH I & II, Conan, Kull, Solomon Kane, Cormac Mac Art, The Black Stranger and Other American Tales has the scariest story ever called Pigeons From Hell, Bran Mak Morn, all of the Weird Tales issues, etc. Get them all. If you can't locate them at your local bookstore try used bookstores and/or the internet. A special thanks to Glen Lord, Mark Finn, Paul Herman, Dark Horse, and everyone else that kept REH's legacy alive and well. Check out the REH Foundation and Forum!

These are some of Robert E. Howard's grimmest, best stories although they are far less well known than his (excellent) Conan and Solomon Kane stories. I particularly like the title story - a fictionalization of that grim and dynamic conqueror Timur (Tamerlane) who also inspired the work of artists like George F. Handel (who wrote an opera about him) and Christopher Marlowe (Tamburlaine the Great). Howard's tales are filled with hopeless, desperate heroism and dark poetry. He may have kille himself when he was only thirty but the guy was a writing fiend who left behind an impressive body of work which has stood the test of time and transcends its pulp origins.

Robert E. Howard is well known among readers of action/adventure as the creator of Conan of Cimmeria, the Puritan killer Solomon Kane, and Kull of Atlantis.

He is less known for his forays into historical fiction, but these bleak, savage (and action-packed) stories of the Crusades and the Mongols are phenomenal, and should be read by anyone who appreciates Howards immense descriptive skill.

A few examples, if I may:

"The Lion Of Tiberias"

The year 1124: One of the few survivors of a battle against the Caliph of Baghdad, Crusader John Norwald was enslaved in the galleys by "Zenghi esh Shami, Imad ed din, governor of Wasit and warden of Basorah, whom men called the Lion of Tiberias", after seeing Zenghi mercilessly murder a young boy... "the only person who had ever shown Norwald kindness"...If it took a lifetime, John Norwald would have his revenge.


"Sowers Of The Thunder"

A historically detailed and exciting tale of the real life conqueror Baibars, Sultan of Egypt and Syria, the fictional Red Cahal who opposes him, and the actual slaughter by Tartars of Moslem and Christian alike in the sack of Jerusalem in 1243.

"Shadow of The Vulture"

The story of Suleiman the Great and his attack on the City of Vienna in 1529, (and the lengthy siege that followed). Howard, as is his wont, works in some excellent fictional characters: Red Sonya, in her first appearance in print, and the drunken (yet ferocious and formidable) Gottfried von Kalmbach (whose head Suleiman wants on a platter).

These stories, as well as the many others (including the title story, a brutal yet excellent tale of Timour The Lame, (and fictional Donald , a Frank who rises to fame as his chief killer) make this book well worth owning for any fan of Robert E. Howard, or those who appreciate historical fiction in the tradition of Harold Lamb (but a little more graphically violent, as we expect from R.E.H.).

I also recommend the desert tales of another Howard slayer, Kirby O'Donnell, an American adventurer in the guise of a Kurdish outlaw, "Swords of Shahrazar".
Swords of Shahrazar

As a kid I read the majority of Robert E Howard's Conan stories, and though I've moved on to more "literary" interests I've retained a soft spot for the ol' mother-loving, self-killing pulp writer. A lifelong lover of history, I recently got the urge to check out some of REH's rarer historical fiction, which has conveniently been placed together in this definitive volume, Lord of Samarcand.

This book compiles all of Howard's "Oriental Magazine" tales and all those which take place in the Crusades-era Middle East (with an occasional foray into the West). Howard obviously had a great interest in this era of history; his research is spot-on, as is the armor and weaponry he provides his characters. The only problem is that Howard was writing for the pulp fiction market, so these stories come off as repetitive and one-note, especially when read one after another. Each tale features some stoic and deadly knight who defends one or another besieged castle or city against invading Muslims - and the problem is, each stoic and deadly knight is so perfect as to be boring after a while. The cumulative effect is, despite the number of eviscerations, guttings, beheadings, maulings, mutilations, and suppurations, the whole gory diorama eventually glazes over the reader's eye. And of course there isn't even the barest hint of sex.

Here are the stories which stood out for me:

Blades of Black Cathay: Norman Crusader Goddfrey travels far, far east at the behest of his lord, seeking out the mythical kingdom of Prester John. Goddfrey instead ends up in "Black Cathay," right alongside the border of China, where he defends the city against Genghis Khan. Truly written by a white Texan: Godfried is the only one who can unite the "lazy" and "cowardly" people of Cathay against Khan (who, by the way, is so impressed that he ends up offering Goddfrey a slice of his kingdom!). Plus, Goddfrey gets the princess of Cathay, a virginal jaw-dropper who of course falls in love with this blood-soaked and battle-lusting heathen from the barbaric north.

Hawks of Outremer: In post-Third Crusades Outremer, a "Norman-Gael" knight named Cormac FitzGeoffery plans vengeance against those who murdered his comrade in arms. Where to start with this one? I love it to death, though likely not for the reasons REH would've desired. Describing Cormac in a letter excerpted in this book's introduction, REH writes: "I've never created a more somber character." Well, "somber" would be one way to describe Cormac. Another way would be "pompous blowhard." For Cormac is a jerk of jerks, slashing through the constraints of his one-dimensional world of print to slap the reader with his tedious self-importance. The story achieves the quality of a Saturday Night Live skit as Cormac buzz-kills conversations with irrelevant boasts like "At twelve I was running wild with shock-head kerns on the naked fens - I wore wolfskins, weighed near fourteen stone, and had killed three men." And "Hate and the glutting of vengeance!" (Which I now use to end phone calls rather than the old-fashioned "goodbye.") In the course of the story Cormac nearly cripples a gatekeeper (who's an old friend, no less!), boasts that "bloodshed follows my trail" while casually displaying the Viking sword which he took from his brother's murderer, kills via lance-turned-javelin an unarmed baron who refuses to fight him, saves a man nearly hanged to death and then proceeds to berate him, murders three (sleeping!) guards, and generally sows dissent wherever he goes, bragging about his courage every step of the way ("I will follow by another route - aye, by a road none but I can ride!"). The whole thing comes off like a Don Quixote-esque parody of the heroic adventure genre, with Cormac a razor-sharp spoof of the de rigueur "grim and gritty" warriors who populate such tales. Only REH was no doubt dead serious about the whole thing. In a way, that makes it even funnier, though Howard does tip his hat by giving Cormac a bit of an ego-bruising comeuppance in the end, when he realizes that his Muslim enemies aren't all cruel savages.

The Blood of Belshazzar: Another Cormac FitzGeoffery story, though not nearly as enjoyable as the previous one. This is more of a sword-and-sorcery plot mixed with a mystery, as Cormac must figure out who murdered the Genghis Khan-like sultan who serves as his current liege. The tale comes off like a prototype of Conan, with talk of demons and ancient gods and a blood-red jewel which demands the blood of innocents to retain its unearthly glow. Cormac here is a shadow of his former self, with hardly any of the pompous blowhardry he displayed so magnificently in "Hawks of Outremer." Probably because he's outdone in the bragging department by Skol Abdhur, the aforementioned Genghis Khan stand-in.

Sowers of the Thunder: This one takes place about fifty years after the previous tale, though Cormac FitzGeoffery gets a mention. Here we follow exiled Norman king Red Cahil as he arrives in besieged Outremer and gets involved in the last gasp of the failing kingdom's defense. The story takes a while to get going - first Cahil meets a loutish Arab who engages him in a drinking bout, then Cahil joins up with an old comrade who talks him into raiding a hidden Moslem treasure cache. REH jumps over this bit, though - we next meet Cahil after his raiding party's been decimated by Huns. Cahil rushes from one besieged Christian fortress to the next, proclaiming the oncoming Hun onslaught, and eventually takes a final stand against them in Acre. This story gets much favorable mention among REH scholars, but it left me a little cold.

Shadow of the Vulture: A change of scenery: Vienna in the 1500s as it is besieged by Suleiman the Magnificent. This story is notable because it introduces Red Sonja, but REH depicts her differently than she's now known: rather than the barely-clad gladiatrix who battles beside Conan, Howard's Sonja is a gun-toting warrior from 16th Century Poland. She has the same red hair and the same fiery temper, but otherwise she's nothing like we now think of the character. Howard himself considered the lead character his most important creation yet, of course not realizing the future fate of Sonja. Gottfried Von Kalmbach is the star of the piece; in a letter reproduced in the introduction, REH enthuses about how "different' Kalmbach is from his previous characters - a loutish drunk who's more interested in lazing about than in fighting. Yet Kalmbach turns out to be EXACTLY like all other REH characters: a tough-as-nails stoic who is feared by his enemies, respected by his comrades, and lusted after by women. Howard's description had me hoping for a Tyrone Slothrop-esque character plunged into a grim Howardian world, but alas it didn't happen.

The problem with the stories in this collection is the same as that of all REH's other heroic fiction: the characters are too perfect. I realize this is a requisite of the genre, but it becomes deadening after back-to-back stories. REH could've ascended out of pulp fiction purgatory if he'd only applied a little self or genre-parody, but these tales are all told with a dead-eyed calm. My discovery is that REH is best taken in small doses; maybe read one of these a week or so, maybe even once a month (to fully achieve the "pulp" feel). And it's important to note than Howard's Conan tales are better-known for a reason; they are all stronger than those in this collection, and despite Conan's similar perfection, he at least had a black humor which made him somewhat human.

Do not overlook this collection. Unlike the Conan or Kull stories there are no fantasy elements in these stories. The settings are very historically accurate. Most of the main characters have some deep flaw or weakness from pride, to anger, to alcoholism, to lack of faith in anything. They war in torn and broken lands but somehow REH allows a glimmer of greatness /hope/ good luck to touch them or their world. Alot of times that is not the case. Worth the time to read just for the entries "The Lion of Tiberias", and "the Sowers of Thunder". "The Road of Azrael" stands with "Beyond the Black River" and "By This Ax I Rule" as REH at his best. Yes, there are some weaker inclusions aka "The Road of the Eagles" and "Gates of Empire". Also unlike the Del Rey editions there is NO ART WORK. All REH and historical fiction fans need to read this collection.

Yet another Wonder of Howard's work. You are transported to a world that was or atleast a world that should have been.

Howard's work was like every great artist never fully appreciated in his own time

Having read many of Howard's fantasy works (Conan the Barbarian, Kull the Conquerer, Solomon Kane), it's nice to read more hack n' slash works from him but with an actual historical backdrop.