Kull

Kull. Published by Bantam Books in 1978. Cover by Lou Fleck. This edition removes the changes made by Lin Carter in the Lancer edition titled King Kull.

Witchcraft & Sorcery Volume 1 Number 5

Witchcraft & Sorcery Volume 1 Number 5. Prior to this issue, it was published by Camelot Publishing Company as Coven 13. The company was bought by Fantasy Publishing Company and the name was changed to Witchcraft & Sorcery.

This issue contains MISTRESS OF DEATH. Featuring Agnes de Chastillon. This is the only Dark Agnes story to include a fantasy element, in the form of a sorcerer. It is not written to the same standard as the two stories Howard completed, and features some departures from the established character, making her more stereotypically feminine. The story was not finished by Howard and he wrote two drafts. The story in this issue is based on the second unfinished draft and completed by Gerald W. Page.

The Hills of the Dead

First published in Weird Tales, August 1930. In Africa again, Kane’s old friend N’Longa (the witch doctor from “Red Shadows”) gives the Puritan a magic wooden staff, the Staff of Solomon, which will protect him in his travels. Kane enters the jungle and finds a city of vampires.

The Sword of Skelos

Non-Howard material.

The Sword of Skelos is a fantasy novel written by Andrew J. Offutt featuring Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian, the third and final volume in a trilogy beginning with Conan and the Sorcerer and continuing with Conan the Mercenary (which was actually published after The Sword of Skelos, though relating events prior to it). It was first published in paperback in May 1979 by Bantam Books, and reprinted in August 1981. Later editions were issued by Ace Books (September 1987, reprinted May 1991) and Tor Books (February 2002). The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in 1989.

Skulls in the Stars

In England Kane is on his way to the hamlet of Torkertown, and must choose one of two paths, a route that leads through a moor or one that leads through a swamp. He is warned that the moor route is haunted and all travelers who take that road die, so he decides to investigate.

Conan the Rebel

Non-Howard material.

Conan the Rebel is a fantasy novel by American writer Poul Anderson, featuring Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in July 1980. It was reprinted once by Bantam (1981) and twice by Ace Books (1988, 1991). The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in 2001; a trade paperback followed from the same publisher in 2003. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in 1988.

The Road of Kings

Non-Howard material.

The Road of Kings is a fantasy novel by Karl Edward Wagner, featuring Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in October 1979. Later paperback editions were issued by Ace Books (1987) and Tor Books 2001. The first trade paperback edition was published by Warner Books in 1989. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books (1986, reissued 1989). Aside from the Bantam and Tor editions, all other editions were issued under the variant title Conan: The Road of Kings.

Conan the Liberator

Non-Howard material.

Conan the Liberator is a fantasy novel by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in February 1979, and reprinted in 1982; later paperback editions were issued by Ace Books (July 1987 and April 1991). The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in June 2002; a trade paperback followed from the same publisher in 2003. The first British edition was from Sphere Books (July 1987). The novel was later gathered together with Conan the Swordsman and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan (Tor Books, 2004).