Non–Howard material – written by L. Sprague de Camp

Conan the Avenger is a 1968 collection of two fantasy works written by Björn Nyberg, Robert E. Howard and L. Sprague de Camp featuring Robert E. Howard’s sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Lancer Books, and has been reprinted a number of times since by various publishers. It has also been translated into Japanese, German and Spanish.

In the kingdom of Aquilonia, a year of peace for King Conan and his new queen Zenobia is broken when the latter is abducted by a demon. Conan learns from the wizard Pelias of Koth that the eastern sorcerer Yah Chieng of Khitai is responsible, and begins a quest to recover her, little realizing that the fate of the world, as well as Aquilonia, rests on the outcome of the contest.

Chronologically, The Return of Conan falls between Howard’s novel The Hour of the Dragon (also known as Conan the Conqueror), and the four short stories collected as Conan of Aquilonia.

The second part of Howard’s essay detailing the pseudohistorical prehistory in which the Conan stories are set describes the period from Conan’s day through the end of the Hyborian era and beyond.

Contents

• 9 • Introduction (Conan the Avenger) • (1968) • essay by L. Sprague de Camp
• 15 • The Return of Conan • [Conan] • (1957) • novel by L. Sprague de Camp and Björn Nyberg
• 174 • The Hyborian Age • [Conan] • (1938) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard

Notes

Reprinted 1976 (twice), 1981, 1982
Copyright © L. Sprague de Camp 1968.
First printed in Great Britain by Sphere Books ltd 1974.

Cover artist is mistakenly credited as Frank Frazetta. The illustration of the 1968 Lancer edition is used. This is credited to John Duillo.
Other prices: Australia A$3.95, Malta £1.25.

Se almost complete Sphere publishing story.