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Bane of the Black Sword by Michael Moorcock (fifth in the Elric of Melniboné saga)
I finished reading Bane of the Black Sword by Michael Moorcock. This is the fifth book in the Elric saga and was first published in this form in 1977, though some of the work had previously been published in other formats. It consists of four stories (The Stealer of Souls, Kings in Darkness, The Flamebringers,…
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The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks
I’m still trying to add some older book jots…here is one from July 2022: I finished reading The Sword of Shannara (1977) by Terry Brooks a few days ago. This was a chunker of a book…a great big, epic fantasy novel. Years ago I had read the first chapter or so when I was in…
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The Vanishing Tower by Michael Moorcock
I finished reading The Vanishing Tower (1970) by Michael Moorcock. It’s the fourth in the series I’ve read and perhaps my favorite. The pacing is excellent and the book maintains a steady and palpable mood. There are three sections within the book, each focusing on a different but connected adventure. The narrative doesn’t feel episodic…
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Art and Fiction
I love these old paperback collections of Robert E. Howard’s Hyborian barbarian. Frazetta’s paintings are to Conan in my mind as Larry Elmore’s paintings are to the Dragonlance characters. Artwork seems particularly important to fantasy and science fiction books, perhaps because the worlds within these works are often meant to be substantially different than the…