‘The stories that inspired the movie’ says the strapline atop the front cover on this book. Don’t be put off by that. Although the ‘Conan’ movies are uniformly awful, sometimes in an entertaining way, the original stories are excellent pulp fiction. Along with H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, Robert E. Howard is the most successful, in the long run, of those who wrote for ‘Weird Tales in the 1930s and, because his stories are more action orientated, they translate better into visual terms. Those films and his heroes are now the best known to the non-reading public, even if they’ve never heard of the author himself.

Most of the stories are short but it‘s worth mentioning that all these ‘short’ stories run to about 25 printed pages, which means perhaps 10,000 words. The modern definition of short fiction is more restrictive and you’ll be lucky to find a market accepting 7,000 words. The usual is about 4,000. Therefore this older stuff has room for more development of plot and character. ‘Queen Of The Black Coast’ is 30 pages. The longer tales, ‘Red Nails’ and ‘The People Of The Black Circle’ are both about 80 pages, say 30,000 words.

Howard liked to pack a lot of plot into his yarns and sometimes they groan under the weight of coincidences. In ‘Rogues In The House’, the nobleman Murrillo chooses to assassinate Nabodinus the red priest and hires Conan for the job. On that same night, the priest’s man-ape servant rebels and a group of ardent young nationalists turn up to slay Nabodinus as well. There certainly are a lot of rogues in the house all at once. Howard pulls it off with panache and it’s a classic tale.

‘The Phoenix On The Sword’ was originally a ‘King Kull’ story ‘By This Axe I Rule’ and it worked better that way for me but it was rejected by the magazines and Howard rewrote it a bit for Conan. Although this was the first story featuring our brave Cimmerian, I never got used to King Conan and, except for this one tale, it wasn’t a concept Howard used. Conan works better as a wandering freebooter and sword for hire.

This book also features ‘The Tower Of The Elephant’, which is a firm favourite among Conan fans and possibly his best story. Conan decides to raid the shining tower where Yara the priest dwells and steal the famous jewel men call the Elephant’s Heart. He encounters another thief on the same escapade and they team up. I think this works so well because of the pity evoked at the end, a change from the usual thud and blunder which reveals that Conan has a heart. As does someone else.

Conan’s steals the heart of Bêlit, ‘Queen Of The Black Coast’ in the story of that name. Bêlit is a pirate queen who runs around half naked with ‘the ivory globes of her breasts’ on show. Quite how she stays so ‘ivory’ while romping topless in the tropics is a mystery not explained. Impressed by Conan’s mighty thews, she takes him as her mate and they pirate together for a while until a deadly lost city snares them. I believe Bêlit is popular with Conan fans but I’m not sure why, though the story was okay. I note after some research that ‘thew’ means ‘muscles and tendons perceived as generating strength’. So you couldn’t really have weedy thews and mighty thews is a bit of a tautology. I’m only saying. Actually, Howard doesn’t use the phrase but other people do.

‘People Of The Black Circle’ is a brilliant work in which Conan is the leader of a pack of Afghulli tribesmen and seven of his henchmen are captured and held hostage. Meanwhile, the Black Seers of Yimsha have killed off the King of Vendhya and his sister, the Devi, swears vengeance. Meanwhile, her serving girl plots with Khemsa, the instrument of the Black Seers, to overthrow them, conquer Vendhya and then the whole world and King Yezdigerd of Turan is plotting to take Vendhya as well. All these elements are woven into a complicated plot that rolls along at the usual high speed and ends very satisfactorily. Among Howard’s best and it highlights one of his strengths which was a good understanding of real military history and politics in the days of swords, bowmen, bandits and kings.

I didn’t bother re-reading ‘Red Nails’ because I’ve seen it before and was not hugely impressed. It seems to go on a bit but, again, it has a huge following among aficionados of the Cimmerian. Mind you, reading anything by Howard is satisfying in some measure because his language and the headlong rush of the plot just sweep you along. Lush descriptions of jewelled towers, foetid jungles, bleak mountains, armoured warriors and deadly monsters abound. It’s not all lithe, supple limbs and hot-eyed brazen wenches, though they have a role to play. As a sensitive, modern new man, I obviously find those sexist parts totally unacceptable but one has to take them in context.

This collection contains some of Robert E. Howard’s best work and is a great introduction to both the author and Conan the Barbarian.

Eamonn Murphy
This review first appeared at https://www.sfcrowsnest.info/

Breaking up is hard to do...

Going undercover at a mass wedding as a bartered bride, Morrigan Blake has every intention of getting off the barbaric alien planet just as soon as the ceremony over. Or, more correctly, just as soon as she captures footage of the mysterious princes rumored to be in attendance.

 

After a euphoric night, Morrigan discovers her ride left without her and an alien dragon shifter is claiming she's his wife. It's not exactly the story this reporter had in mind. And to make matters worse, the all-to-seductive alpha male refuses to take no for an answer.

 

Being cursed by the gods was never so frustrating...

Prince Ualan is prepared to follow dragon shifter tradition and marry the woman revealed to him during the marriage festival. When the stubborn, yet achingly sexy, Morrigan refuses to accept their shared fate, it is all he can do to keep from acting like the barbarian she accuses him of being.

 

 

 

 

 

Barbarian XL Male improvement isn't at all synonymous with penis broadening. Upgrade characterized intends to enhance or improve by including alluring characteristics. The man in his job as the more grounded sex can in some cases be cowed by debilitating or weakening conditions especially about sex.

 

When he ends up in a sexual experience and neglects to stimulate his penis without hesitation, at that point the male individual realizes he is in a bad position. The exact embodiment of his masculinity is being put into a test and can't adapt to present circumstances. Subsequently, there is presently a condition of male feebleness.

 

Male improvements when in doubt don't fix a confusion however only guide in the treatment of the turmoil. Erectile brokenness or ineptitude don't just stem as a confusion all alone yet has a basic reason concerning why a man neglects to accomplish erection. Actually, the treatment of these clutters demoralizes the utilization of different medications or enhancements known to meddle with the prescription for the primary medical issue.

 

At the point when are Male Enhancements Useful?

 

Under common conditions, a man who has no issue with his sexual execution however engages the idea of adding flavor to his sexual coexistence discover these items as valuable. Single and physically fit men may have a specific fixation for sex yet has lost enthusiasm for the represent reasons that it has turned out to be conventional and custom.

 

Henceforth, the possibility of male upgrade may fringe past the admission of pills, enhancements, and contraptions however can traverse to the utilization of grown-up toys and stuff just to make an enhancement in his generally dull and dreary sexual coexistence. That is male improvement among single and sound young fellows.

 

Spouses then again resort to male improvements so as to revive his significant other's very own sexual hunger. Ladies at times come up short on the sex drive in view of the requests of thinking about the family and doing all the inauspicious housework. Lying in bed to rest and rest is substantially more alluring than participating in another round of strenuous action, particularly if the spouse takes excessively long in achieving his peak.

 

Subsequently, the genuine significance of male upgrade is to enhance all part of a generally ordinary or standard condition throughout everyday life. Once, there is an inadequacy, the utilization of male upgrade presently winds up identified with treatment. That is one motivation behind why, a few clients feel conned once a male improvement does not address their sexual impotency.

 

They are still in a condition of discipline that there is a major issue with their substantial capacity. Rather than searching for a treatment for the underlying driver of their issues, a few men utilize male improvement pills or medications to treat the indications, which is feebleness or erectile brokenness. Intermittently feeling disappointed that they wind up reliant on the medication just to accomplish and erection.

 

For the Barbarian XL who are clinically discouraged, it doesn't fix the main driver of your barrenness. What you require is to deal with what is by all accounts hindering your mind receptors so as to be invigorated. Other than strong home grown plants and engineered medications can influence your psychological state in the event that you will utilize them to treat the indications of your clinical sadness. Seeing a specialist or in milder cases a sex advisor could be the most ideal approach to treat the main drivers of your barrenness. https://maximumenhancement.com/barbarian-xl/

 

Barbarian Alien - Ruby Dixon

Barbarian Alien is book 2 in the Ice Planet Barbarians series and I forgot how unique and funny not-Hoth and the sa-kui could be! Raahosh is a lonely hunter and virgin who is terrified his mate will hate him forever. Because, lets be honest, she is a raging bitch. Liz is so hateful! I get it-you were kidnapped by aliens, stranded on a strange planet, and you have had shit all for luck, but man she is a terror! She says so many mean, hateful things. You can hate your circumstances without putting others down. It really took me a while to warm up to her (and even then, it was lukewarm).

These two have a rough road to mated bliss. Raahosh is adorable and trying to navigate understanding Liz's constant chatter makes for some great laughs! They are destined to be mated, even though Liz is fighting it, so there are lots of sexy times even before there is actual sex. I liked that their story was different from Georgie and Vektal's. Liz and Raahosh are both different from the rest of their kind so it seems fitting that they end up together.

If you are looking for hot alien sexy times, funny misunderstandings of the English language, and strong independent women, check out Barbarian Alien.

The audiobook is narrated by Mason Lloyd and Hollie Jackson. I have heard Mason Lloyd numerous times and enjoyed his voice. He totally outdoes himself in this book!!! He created an accent for these aliens and it was brilliant! Its unique and smooth. I worried it would detract from the story, but its perfect! It actually made me feel like I was listening to an alien! Hollie Jackson did a wonderful job with Liz as well, but Mason Lloyd really stole the show here.

 

• POV: dual 1st
• Tears: no
• Trope: fated mates, kidnapping
• Triggers: none
• Series/Standalone: series
• Cliffhanger: no
• HEA: yes

Other super sexy, supernatural, insta-love reads by authors like Alexa Riley, Celia Kyle, Anna Hacket, Eve Langlais...then you will probably like Barbarian Alien!

 

 

See full review on The Book Disciple