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Cover of Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures
Howard Works bibliography
REH World editorial overlay

Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures

Ballantine Books - Del Rey

Material type

Publication date: January 2011

Introduction

This is a great compendium of Howard’s fiction and poetry. These adventures, set in medieval-era Europe and the Near East, are among the most gripping Howard ever wrote, full of pageantry, romance, and battle scenes worthy of Tolstoy himself. Most of all, they feature some of Howard’s most unusual and memorable characters, including Cormac Fitzgeoffrey, a half-Irish, half-Norman man of war who follows Richard the Lion-hearted to twelfth-century Palestine—or, as it was known to the Crusaders, Outremer; Diego de Guzman, a Spaniard who visits Cairo in the guise of a Muslim on a mission of revenge; and the legendary sword woman Dark Agnès, who, faced with an arranged marriage to a brutal husband in sixteenth-century France, cuts the ceremony short with a dagger thrust and flees to forge a new identity on the battlefield.

Lavishly illustrated by award-winning artist John Watkiss and featuring miscellanea, informative essays, and a fascinating introduction by acclaimed historical author Scott Oden, Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures is a must-have for every fan of Robert E. Howard, who, in a career spanning just twelve years, won a place in the pantheon of great American writers.

Notes

Edited by Rusty Burke
Art Directors: Jim & Ruth Keegan
Typographer: Stuart Williams
The texts for this edition were based on Howard's original typescripts or the first published appearance if a typescript was unavailable.
"Mistress of Death"
There are two drafts of this story. The final paragraphs of the first draft appear to be a synopsis of the stories conclusion. The second draft stops abruptly as John and Agnes are about to run off to the house of Francoise de Bretagny. In SWORD WOMAN, the final paragraphs from the first draft were used to provide some closure.

Full number line on the copyright page indicates first printing.
"A Del Rey Trade Paperback Original" on copyright page.
Cover artist credited on back cover; interior art credited on front cover and title page.

Edition and production details

Format details
Trade paperback
Format
Trade paperback
Publication date
January 2011
Identifiers
ISBN-13: 978-0-345-50545-0
Pages
xxii plus 547
Publisher / imprint
Ballantine Books - Del Rey
Cover art
John Watkiss
Illustrations
John Watkiss

28 linked Howard works

65 contents entries

  1. "Artists' Forward" by John Watkiss
  2. Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures • (2011) • interior artwork by John Watkiss artwork
  3. "Introduction" by Scott Oden
  4. Artist's Foreword (Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures) • (2011) • essay by John Watkiss xv · introduction
  5. "Spears of Clontarf"
  6. Introduction (Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures) • (2011) • essay by Scott Oden xvii · introduction
  7. "Hawks Over Egypt"
  8. Spears of Clontarf • non-genre • [Turlogh O'Brien] • (1978) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 1 · novelette
  9. "The Outgoing of Sigurd the Jerusalem-Farer" (poem)
  10. Hawks Over Egypt • (1979) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 33 · novelette
  11. "The Road of Azrael"
  12. The Outgoing of Sigurd the Jerusalem-Farer • (1975) • poem by Robert E. Howard 69 · poem
  13. "The Lion of Tiberias"
  14. The Road of Azrael • (1976) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 71 · novelette
  15. "Gates of Empire"
  16. The Lion of Tiberias • non-genre • (1933) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 107 · novelette
  17. "Hawks of Outremer"
  18. Gates of Empire • (1939) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 135 · novelette
  19. "The Blood of Belshazzar"
  20. Hawks of Outremer • non-genre • [Cormac FitzGeoffrey] • (1931) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 169 · novelette
  21. "Red Blades of Black Cathay"
  22. The Blood of Belshazzar • non-genre • [Cormac FitzGeoffrey] • (1931) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 197 · novelette
  23. "The Sowers of the Thunder"
  24. Red Blades of Black Cathay • non-genre • (1931) • novelette by Robert E. Howard and Tevis Clyde Smith 225 · novelette
  25. "The Skull in the Clouds" ( poem )
  26. The Sowers of the Thunder • non-genre • (1932) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 253 · novelette
  27. "A Thousand Years Ago" ( poem )
  28. The Skull in the Clouds • (1962) • poem by Robert E. Howard 291 · poem
  29. "Lord of Samarcand"
  30. A Thousand Years Ago • (1976) • poem by Robert E. Howard 293 · poem
  31. "Timur-Lang" ( poem )
  32. Lord of Samarcand • non-genre • (1932) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 295 · novelette
  33. "Sword Woman"
  34. Timur-Lang • (1964) • poem by Robert E. Howard 329 · poem
  35. "Blades for France"
  36. Sword Woman • [Agnes de Chastillon] • (1975) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 331 · novelette
  37. "The Shadow of the Vulture"
  38. Blades for France • non-genre • [Agnes de Chastillon] • (1975) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 365 · novelette
  39. "The Road of the Eagles"
  40. The Shadow of the Vulture • non-genre • (1934) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 387 · novelette
  41. Miscellanea
  42. The Road of the Eagles • (2005) • novelette by Robert E. Howard 423 · novelette
  43. Untitled Fragment "The Track of Bohemund"
  44. The Track of Bohemund (unfinished draft) • (2005) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 459 · story
  45. Untitled Synopsis "The Slave-Princess"
  46. The Slave-Princess (synopsis) • non-genre • [Cormac FitzGeoffrey] • (2005) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 475 · story
  47. Untitled Fragment "The Slave-Princess"
  48. The Slave-Princess • non-genre • [Cormac FitzGeoffrey] • (2005) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 477 · story
  49. Untitled Fragment "He knew de Bracy …"
  50. Untitled Fragment ("He knew de Bracy ...") • (2005) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 495 · story
  51. Untitled Fragment "The wind from the Mediterranean …"
  52. Untitled fragment ("The wind from the Mediterranean ...") • (1959) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 497 · story
  53. Recap of Harold Lamb’s "The Wolf Chaser"
  54. Recap of Harold Lamb's "The Wolf Chaser" • (2005) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 499 · story
  55. Untitled Fragment "The Persians had all fled …"
  56. Untitled Draft ("The Persians had all fled ...") • (2005) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 501 · story
  57. "The Sign of the Sickle" (poem)
  58. The Sign of the Sickle • (2002) • poem by Robert E. Howard 503 · poem
  59. "Mistress of Death" (See Notes)
  60. Mistress of Death • (2011) • short fiction by Robert E. Howard 505 · story
  61. Appendices
  62. Howard's Journey • (2011) • essay by Howard Andrew Jones 515 · essay
  63. "Howard's Journey" by Howard Andrew Jones This article contains brief excerpts from two REH letters: To H.P. Lovecraft, ca. December 1930, "As always, your letter proved highly …" To H.P. Lovecraft, ca. April 1932, "At last I’ve gotten around …"
  64. Notes on the Original Howard Texts (Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures) • (2011) • essay by uncredited 537 · essay
  65. Notes on the Original Howard Texts

Contributors

John Watkiss
Cover artist, Illustrator

Additional related terms

Preserved from the former REH World tagging system; these terms have not yet been assigned as contributors, characters or subjects.

Bibliographic and editorial layers

Howard Works source layer

Title
Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures
Publisher
Ballantine Books - Del Rey
Date
January 2011
Source file
swordwomanandotherhistoricaladventures.html

REH World editorial layer

Title
Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures
Publisher
Ballantine Books - Del Rey
Date
January 2011
Source provenance

This record combines the preserved Howard Works bibliography with a reviewed REH World editorial overlay. Editorial values are displayed when present; Howard Works remains the source and fallback.