The Conquering Sword of Conan (Conan of Cimmeria, Book 3)

Delivered quickly and advertised conditioned. Read the original paperbacks years ago and this Del Rey addition has all the stories in original order as published which is great. These editions obviously only have the REH stories and not the non-REH stories found in the original paperbacks from the 60s/70s.

I love reading this book The Conquering Sword of Conan. Conan faces the wild Picts, Demons Pirates. Each story seems to get you to want to read more. I love this book. The book as five adventures and each one is a joy to read. If you are Conan fan I know you will enjoy.

This volume is bittersweet for any Howard fan as it marks the last collection of Howard's extant Conan stories. Del Ray Publishing did fantasy fans a great service by putting together this trilogy of Howard's greatest creation--Conan. Some of Howard's best known and loved Conan tales are compiled in this final volume and like the previous two volumes it proves to be difficult to put this book down. Howard's writing really is energetic and immerses the reader in a way that few online RPGs could hope to. Tolkien, Jordan and Martin are recognized as some of the titans of the fantasy world, but everything began with Conan and this volume is the gritty, classic Conan at his best! If you are even mildly interested in fantasy stories then you should go out and get this entire trilogy and experience Howard's work first-hand. If you like historical fiction and mythology I also recommend these books because Howard's Hyborian Age is more akin to those types of tales than simple fantasy. Howard deserves a spot alongside the great bards, griots and poets of the ancient past and this volume is a fine example of why he should be there.

The original Conan stories are a real eye opener for people only accustomed to the popular movie depiction of the character. Conan is a cunning and dangerous man who is less of a barbarian than people might expect of him. This collection has four stories, including Beyond the Black River and Red Nails, as well as almost 100 pages of assorted material such as story drafts, letters, and maps. Howard's writing style is raw and evocative, though some people will take issue with his depictions of women and non-whites. It's easy to see why Conan was so inspirational to generations of writers and movie-makers.

Howard's frenetic prose and stark vision are on full display in this work. The final volume in the collected works of Conan displays Howard's growth as a writer and cements his legacy as one of the greatest contributors in the fantasy genre. At last, Howard offers his uncompromising view of civilization against the contrast of barbarism in two tales taken from this collection: "The Black Stranger" and "Red Nails". That he explores these themes as thoroughly and powerfully as he does, his message is only magnified by the vehicle he uses to advance his story; the savage barbarian Conan, a figure as elemental as the world in which he thrives.While "Red Nails" is arguably the penultimate Conan tale, I find myself still thinking about "The Black Stranger." Perhaps it is the mix of the ingredients in the story: an exiled noble and his family; a makeshift fortress far from civilized lands, surrounded by barbarians; a strange treasure, hidden in the wilds; and the presence of several different persons, all with radically different goals and morals (the noble, pirates, a barbarian that has some experience with civilization). Oh, and a curse and unrelenting demon, to boot. While the story is rich with metaphor and example, one passage seems to beautifully distill Howard's view; "I know what it is to be penniless in a Hyborian land. Now in my country sometimes there are famines; but people are hungry only when there's no food in the land at all. But in civilized countries I've seen people sick of gluttony while others were starving. Aye, I've seen men fall and die of hunger against the walls of shops and storehouses crammed with food." A bold statement, as true today as when Howard wrote it. Indeed, there can be no doubting its veracity even during the ancient time when Howard envisioned this story taking place.Another tale, "Beyond the Black River", offers a similar view in much plainer language. "Barbarism is the natural state of mankind," the borderer said, still staring somberly at the Cimmerian. "Civilization is unnatural. It is a whim of circumstance. And barbarism must always triumph." This passage not only gives voice to a recurring theme in Howard's work, but states a perceived truth bluntly, almost poetically.Even with the presence and potency of the themes so very present in this last batch of tales, Howard never loses his ability to hypnotize with his prose. Another quote from "The Black Stranger"; "But a chill wave of terror swept over her so she crouched dumb; incapable of the scream that froze behind her lips. It was not such terror as her uncle now inspired in her, or fear like her fear of Zarono, or even of the brooding forest. It was blind unreasoning terror that laid an icy hand on her soul and froze her tongue to her palate." From "Beyond the Black River"; "It had room for no instincts except those of destruction. It was a freak of carnivorous development; evolution run amuck in a horror of fangs and talons." And from "The Servants of Bit-Yakin": "Instinctive action followed recognition so spontaneously that sound, impulse and action were practically simultaneous." Simply put: amazing.I am saddened that I have read the final page of REH's formative, definitive fantasy character. While these stories were not what I expected when I dove into them, I have certainly enjoyed my time with them. For grim, dark fantasy that hurtles along at a breathless pace, explores places both strange and familiar, and offers savage lessons to those along the way, can there be an equal?

great book all howard's stories

I've read thousands of books and there are few writers that can compare to Robert E. Howard. He is probably not the inventor of sword and sorcery, that credit probably belongs to Homer or someone else before the dawn of time, but he surely belongs to the honor roll of fiction writers. Although, he wrote for pulp mazazines in the thirties and each story is a tale unto itself, the character of Conan manages to bind each tale into one story of epic proportions. I believe he can be compared favorably to J.R.R. Tolkien and Frank Herbert in his ability to weave entertaining fiction in a completely imaginary world and age. I envy you if you are reading his stories for the very first time. If, like me, you are reading these stories again after a very long time, you're still in for a treat.

Crom!!!! Let me tell you the tales of high adventure!!! These books are the standard of fantasy writing. Robert E. Howard is the pinnacle. While these books are paper back the price is outstanding for all these collected stories. The stories are a fast ready and very memorable.There are few other characters that stand up the test of time. Sherlock Holmes, Robin Hood, Rambo if you will and definitely Conan.You definitely can not pass up these amazing works!

Llegó con raspones. En ambos extremos.

Well packed and good conditions

Great condition. Great stories.

Das Buch kam in einwandfreiem Zustand an und ist sehr interessant.

Robert E Howard's Conan the Cimmerian deserves to be on every lover of fantasy's bookshelf! Howard wrote such a striking and vivid prose that few have matched him in the long years since his death!Within this collection is one of the more popular Howard stories in Red Nails. Be it either from the book or the audiobook, Conan is worth your time! Todd McLaren does a great job Narrating Howard's amazing prose.