on October 20, 2025
by Gary Romeo.
I took a chance on this latest collection of unauthorized Robert E. Howard pastiches and was pleasantly surprised. Stephen Gaspar is a capable writer. Clear, concise, easy to read prose and stories that are, if not particularly innovative, are nevertheless fun to read.
This book is reasonably priced at $10.99 and available from Amazon. It consists of 7 stories. Three with Conan, two with Kull, and two with Solomon Kane. The big worry I had when purchasing the book was a prejudice that a self-published book was going to be obviously amateurish and derivative. Lay that worry to rest. These stories are on a par with the professionally published and authorized e-books in the “Heroic Legends” series. Some are slightly better.
The book is illustrated with AI art. The author points out one particular illustration, “the image on page 151 is a tribute to Frank Frazetta, who created fantastic artwork for many Conan books. The images I used for the dreams are not exact copies of his work, but any fan can see the resemblance.” The other AI art in the book was very neutral, neither pleasing nor upsetting me. Only this particular illustration gave me pause. I’m still on the fence about it!
Let’s move on to the stories.
The Scroll of Anoch. This story is a sequel to “The Tower of the Elephant.” Conan is impulsive and a little naïve in this story. That seems perfectly fine considering his age. A wealthy merchant hires Conan to steal an ancient scroll. That is the well-tested plot of many a Conan adventure. The author does a good job with it. Mikalos, the merchant, is full of himself and the dialogue was humorous to me. Some fans might argue that Conan would have been angered by Mikalos’s anti-barbarian views but the story makes it work. The mechanics of the heist are interestingly told and the ending, while routine, is satisfying.
Moon Over the Black Forest. Solomon Kane encounters a werewolf at Wolfssturm Castle. Big surprise. This story is a by the numbers Kane story. It entertains though. The slight twist was not unexpected.
Daggers At My Back. This is one of the longer stories in the book and has lots of things going on. The country of Kamelia is gathering allies to attack Valusia. Two wizards, Mamot of Thule, and Zakar-rah, are involved. Armies clash. Brule saves the day. It is a decently told story.
Rendezvous With Death. This was my favorite story. Nygard, an older Aesir warrior, and Conan are mercenaries. Outnumbered by the opposing army, Nygard and Conan, fight back to back, and slay dozens. They survive the battle and rest. Conan imagines a lasting friendship with the older warrior and proposes they travel together. Nygard tells of a time when he met Lady Death on the battlefield. I don’t doubt that this type of story has been done before but the author did a very good job with this version.
The Long Journey Home. Solomon Kane returns home after his adventure told in “The Moon of Skulls.” This is another short tale with a lot going on. The story uses elements from “Solomon Kane’s Homecoming” to give us details about Kane’s life and the fate of Bess.
What Yesterday May Bring. This is an attempt at a more metaphysical Kull story. I appreciated it. It starts out cleverly introducing a warrior with amnesia. The farmer’s daughter names him “Con.” The reader assumes this is a Conan story until the warrior wakes up from the elaborate dream. Kull is having another existential crisis. The ending has a little twist. This is a good Kull pastiche.
Uneasy Lies the Head. Conan abdicates his throne once again. The Master of Yimsha from “The People of the Black Circle” has returned as Zaram, son of Sootha. Conan prevails. Returning to the throne doesn’t interest him. This one was ho-hum. The only post-Lancer King Conan story I’ve enjoyed was Leonard Carpenter’s Conan the Great.
All in all, I’m glad I purchased this book. Three of the stories were above average (average being the current crop of “Heroic Legends” e-books), three were average (but decent) adventures and only one was ho-hum.
That isn’t bad odds for REH pastiche these days.
3 Blades Against Darkness by Stephen Gaspar is available in a graphic edition, a non-graphic edition and also on Kindle.
