Science Fiction Fantasy Books

"Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep is a novel I greatly enjoyed reading. I just finished it and highly recommend it because it was a believable book about the conflicts between the T'ang and Americans, with exciting but historical events. A young Chinese boy named Moon Shadow moves to San Francisco to meet his father for the first time. His father dreams of flying and building a glider, and Moon Shadow must find the courage to stand up and not be afraid of the demons, who greatly influence him and the book.
In this novel, Laurence writes of a boy who moves to San Francisco to meet the father he's never seen but heard about from his mother and grandmother. His father, Windrider, is very interested in flying and so he begins to build small-scale glider models. Moon Shadow befriends the "Company" who his father works for, and gets to know the friendly Chinese men among them. Later his father and him move out of "China Town", and come to live with an especially nice pair of demonesses who welcome them to their town, and learn to become friends with the strange "Chinamen". Robin and Moon Shadow become companions, and Miss Whitlaw learns about the dragons she believed to be terrible, while teaching Moon Shadow how to read and write. With the help of his new acquaintances friends, he learns that despite the stereotype he believes all demons are, most are actually friendly and not willing to beat him up, every chance they get. In the end, a seemingly impossible dream is accomplished, and feuding friends overcome their differences for the chance to see "Dragonwings" fly.
Some well-thought out choices the author made in this book, changed the paperback for the better, like characters personalities and setting and time period. In this publication, Windrider has a dream in which he realizes that he was a dragon in his former life. Because of this, he decides to build glider models and when he tests them out, Robin and Moon Shadow bond and become closer playmates. His new attitude and name changes him because, he becomes bolder and eventually gets himself kicked out of his own town, by killing a man. He also acquires a knack for fixing and repairing things, and ends up getting a job as a repairman. Moon Shadow's fear of demons also influences the book too because, becomes skittish, nervous, and afraid to even step outside when it gets dark. He misses opportunities to either get ridiculed or praised by another person. Uncle's stubborn characteristic affects many of the people around him, for sometimes the better, but mostly the worse. He never apologizes, leaving people unhappy and frustrated with his attitude. He refuses to believe that a demon could be nice until he meets Miss Whitlaw and he changes his mind. Refusing to leave the house when the earthquake starts, almost kills him (literally) and he puts the rest of the "Company" in peril for a while. Because the novel is slow at the beginning, it is hard to get into and many people may put it back on the shelf right away. DON'T DO THAT! It is a superb novel that deservers to be read and I warn you that despite the informative and boring intro, it gets WAY better. The absence of dialogue and action leaves many snoring, but don't despair! It gets a lot more exciting late on, even though back then its farming, and talking all about China. The time period and setting in San Francisco, really improved the book for the better. If it wasn't set in 1906, there would have been no earthquake or fire, or a China town for the T'ang to live in. they feel much more comfortable in their familiar surroundings. Since they're in America, Windrider is able to write to the Wright Brothers and ask for model dimensions. Also, the prejudice between Americans and Chinese back then, really develops an exciting plot with historical conflicts as well. The author's choices, really improve the book for the better.
Even though the beginning was slow and boring, the time and setting enhanced the novel and made the events more exciting. The characters' moods and personalities made them very believable and realistic, and because the events were actual historical facts, it made the story even more believable. I really enjoyed this book and believe that it's a fabulous read with all the believable events, conflicts, and characters (which is understandable since it is a realistic fiction). Overall, great book!

In the book "Dragonwings" it takes place during the early years of immigration. The setting takes place in San Francisco, in the small town where the "Tang" live. From there, Moon Shadow's family face poverty and the fear of the "demons". They also have to deal with the debts Black Dog gives them. Luckily, there are some demons that are kind, like Robin and Ms.Whitlaw.

I was honestly upset with this book not as good as i thought it would be, I mean the story was just boring overall.The only thing I thought was interesting that they used kites and I would be curious to ask the author why.

Dragonwings is a good book to read because you have a good feeling to know someone's dream came true, like Moonshadow's father's dream. Moonshadow is a young man. When he was just eight years old, he had a chance to join his father who he had never seen before in the United States. He went through a difficult time passing immigration. This book talks about how Chinese people settled down in Chinatown and the experience in 1906 with the big earthquake in San Francisco, and then how Moonshadow and his father relocated to Oakland. Moonshadow's father is a good kite maker, and he has a fabulous dream to make a flying machine. Moon Shadow writes a letter to the Wrights telling them how his father likes to fly too, and wishes they can help him. The father's dream came true when he made a flying machine in 1909. Lawrence Yep's historical novels shows rich traditions and the culture of the Chinese community. I will recommend this book to people who are American born Chinese because they can learn from this book about how difficult it was for their ancesters to get into this country, and how they worked so hard and how they survived in white society, so they will appreciate them. Overall it is a good book to read, I just have some words that were hard to understand for me, maybe because they are too old fashioned.

horrible
I am 13 years old and I hate this book
we read it in english class this year. About two people actually fell asleep reading it in 5th period. Really boring. There was one exciting part to the story. The names are hard to keep track of. I also don't like the fact that all throughout this book the boy refers to the white men as "demons". At first I thought the book was suposed to teach a lesson. But in the end it didn't
don't buy this book

Altered Carbon is one of my favorite books from the last 10 years. The world created by Morgan was fascinating, full of potential. However, the second book Broken Angels, was a major let down, and now the third book Woken Furies is worse still. If you liked the first novel, and are looking for more of the same, DO NOT READ WOKEN FURIES. You will be horribly disappointed. The plot is a rambling mess. Kovacs is a mopey character that you can not feel any connection to. Basically, there is nothing engaging about this novel. My interest in these Tokeshi Kovacs novels had been fueled by my admiration for the first novel, but now that is over. No more Kovac novels for me.

Like the other books in this series this one is excellent. It doesn't matter in what order you read these books. The genre in this series varies from cyberpunk to hardcore science fiction with aliens and space battles. By the same author, but not part of this series, I recommend Market Forces.

After enjoying the first two books of the Takeshi Kovacs Series, I'd gotten started on Richard Morgans next task in Woken Furies. Insert again everyone's favorite anti-hero in Takeshi Kovacs as Kovacs finds himself back on his home world this time after a lengthy and exhausting campaign on Sanction IV.

Kovacs is in bad shape after being on the run after making several attacks on priests of The New Revelation, an extremist religious order semi-responsible for the death of his one love, Sarah. Kovacs has made it his personal mission to kill every member of this New Revelation as a measure of ultimate revenge.

Kovacs meets a very interesting woman in the bar named Sylvie Oshima in the process of protecting her against some trouble-making members of The New Revelation Order. One sudden act of chivalry later, Kovacs begins his journey by taking refuge with her mercenary crew as they head out to decommission living military hardware gone awry on a nearby continent. During one of these mercenary missions, Sylvie collapses and upon recovery her personality appears to have been replaced by that of long dead revolutionary leader Quellcrist Falconer herself. From here Kovacs goes on a thrilling journey which includes battling against government bio mechanical machines gone haywire, searching for three centuries old weapons systems, and battling the yakuza in a bitter blood feud over a member of their family that was killed by Kovacs.

As the journey goes on, Kovac's relationship with Sylvie Oshima/possibly the Quellcrist Falconer earns him a very deadly enemy that is on his trail - a younger, stronger, and straight out of hell version of himself. As Kovacs tries to figure out just who this Sylvie Oshima really is, he must stay one step ahead of his younger sleeved self as he attempts to sort this mess out.

My only qualm with this book was that it was a little hard to follow Morgans descriptions sometimes of all of the weather patterns, places, etc. Then again that could possibly be the ADD kicking in at times :). I found Woken Furies to be a throughouly enjoyable book and towards the end Morgan sets up the story well for a possible second set of books in the Takeshi Kovacs Series.

Kovacs ends up finally figuring himself out towards the end and what all of his adventures have led him to at this point and makes some decisions based on the books ending. There are some intriguing questions towards the end of Woken Furies. Will we ever figure out the Martians and be able to communicate with them/understand their technology? For that matter, why did they ever leave Harlan's World and are they still alive somewhere? Will the cortical stack of Kovac's lost love Sarah be retrievable one day? In addition, some very interesting information is made about the orbitals which ends up tying a lot of ends throughout the series together and ends up being a real eye-opener for the reader. Like others have mentioned here, I definitely hope Morgan decides to write another installment of the Kovacs Series soon. He's left himself plenty to work with based on the end of Woken Furies.

-Travis

Unfortunatly Morgan has not written a follow up to "Woken Furies."

That is the only down side to an EXCELLENT book. Morgan continues the same standard of perfection as with the previous two books of the series. I have even gone as far to email Morgan and practically beg him to continue this series.

Buy this book, and hope that Takeshi Kovacs makes a swift return!

this book was as nice to read as the first two in the series. also...i do hope that the author writes one more book for this series, as he creates great possibilities for a fourth novel.

i don't have to tell you what you already know from the reviews - it's sexy, it's fuuuuny. but what you might not know is that you are in for a ride if you read this book. from the first page, this book grabs you and yanks you fast down the rabbit hole through a twisted and vivid story. and when it's over you'll want more.

i only wish they had teen books this good when i was a kid.

I laughed my head off reading this and stayed up all night to finish it. So funny and really sexy too.

This is the worst book I have ever read. The idea of the novel is great, but McLaughlin pushes the conflict of Jill turning into Jack aside for most of the book and instead focuses on Jill's oh-so-life-ending crisis of not being able to have a date for the prom. Jack focuses on reading porn and watching dirty movies. When the plot finally emerges at the VERY END of the book, I was sick of the novel and wanted to burn it. When the novel was finally over, I found out that a sequel is coming! More suckishness is on the way!

Stay away from Cycler. There are better Teen books out there.

I found Lauren McLaughlin's Cycler to be a truly enjoyable read. It will provide a challenge to the reader as it delves into gender and sexuality, topics that need to be probed if you are a teenager. The book is a "must read" for those young adults who are questioning their persona. The characters are funny, as are many of the situations they find themselves in.
Ms. McLaughlin is a quality storyteller, The book may invoke some controversy, but that is what makes it interesting. Young adults will relate to the characters. It is thought provoking. That makes it an enjoyable read.

This product was received in a timely manner and in excellent shape. Was very satisfied.

My son fell in love with this books. Its a good way of having him improve his reading skill...

Book 6 of Jeff Smith's graphic novel Bone series, Bone: Old Man's Cave features a showdown between the Hooded One and the valley folk - and Bone and Phoney Bone at the center of controversy. A secret sacrificial moonlight ceremony threatens them in another fine Bone presentation.

I can see why Bone is so popular! This volume is truly a great continuation of the series. The plot continues to become more complicated and intriguing, and the characters are still as likeable and endearing as ever. I can't wait to read the next volume!

I'm a fanatic of bone products, so i think they are the most wonderful things i have ever bought.

I'm a writer. And I have three boys who don't read. How embarrassing is that? But they have all picked up these books (10, 12, & 13) and I catch them reading instead of watching television. That is this mother's dream, and I'm so grateful. Incidentally, this was their favorite because they liked all the "war". Warning: your kids may feel especially heroic after reading this series. And I have a message from my sons Garth Nix, hurry up, they're waiting for Sunday! Kristin

Garth Nix creates two stories that comes together with a fantastic ending. Arthur is drafted into the Architect's Army, and Leaf volunteers to help on Earth by finding the one important object that will help stop Arthur's double from infecting people on Earth. For a little while, Suzie is left out...unable to do anything for Arthur or Leaf. But when she does get involved, she makes all the difference.

Leaf plays an important role in this version. She is a brave little girl trying to outsmart Arthur's double. Even though, Leaf does not want anymore adventures after her Border Sea experience from the last book, she steps up to the plate without hesitation. She becomes a key character in saving Arthur and the world. Meanwhile, Arthur is going through training in the Architect's Army and eventually fights in a battle with the Nithlings. He even gets washed behind the ears and loose his memory, but he gains it back just in time to face Sir Thursday.

My favorite character in this novel is Leaf. I really liked how Garth Nix puts her more into the book and made her very important to Arthur's success.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the next one...Lady Friday.

Thanks.

This is the fourth book in the Keys to the Kingdom series by Garth Nix. I think this is easily the best book in the series so far.

Arthur is anxious to return back to his own world when he finds out about the presence of the Skinless Boy. He finds he is unable to return to his world and has been drafted into Sir Thursday's Army. Arthur is also very concerned about the magical contamination he has received from using the keys. If he gets too much magical contamination he will turn into a Denizen and never be able to return home. As if this all wasn't complicated enough someone has started killing the former Days. Arthur needs to disable the skinless boy and get the 4th part of the will along with Sir Thursday's key but how will he do all of this from the Army's ranks?

This was a great book. Arthur is finally starting to grow up. At least in this book he only spent 20% of the time whining instead of 60%. I am glad the Suzi Blue was in the book more and even more glad that Leaf played a larger role in this book too. The book was a little slow in the middle but the end was full of non-stop action. I thought the role of the Piper was interesting. Also the mention of Lady Friday at the end of the book was very ominous.

My only real complaint in this book is (again) Arthur's whining. Also there are points in the book where he seems to be helpless and then suddenly he takes action; it seems a bit inconsistent. This book is still the best of the four so far. I am interested to see what happens in Lady Friday (the next book). I have found it interesting how the personality of the Will changes as more and more parts of it are found. This book does end with a bit of a cliff hanger that will have you wishing for the next book.
[...]

The keys to the kingdom books are great for pe-teens up. Arthur is the lead role in the book, and he copes with his new found powers well. He shows caring and compassion for his friends and family, he does what is nessacery to protect them from the baddies while trying to complete his new tasks to gain a new key of power. It is a fansty type book, it does have some dangerous situations, and it is a series, so if your thinking about buying this please read the other books that are before it in the series. The story line is not so complicated that a young reader couldn't follow it with easy. Adults would enjoy it also. It's a good book.

Garth Nix's Keys to the kingdom series is an excellent read. easy to comprehend and follow. I highly reccomend this series. the books are short and you can get them cheap right here on amazon.com

the books are in order
Mister Monday (The Keys to the Kingdom, Book 1)
Grim Tuesday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 2)
Drowned Wednesday (Keys to the Kingdom, Book 3)
Sir Thursday (The Keys To The Kingdom, Book 4)
Lady Friday (The Keys To The Kingdom, Book 5)
and two more on the way!

My children and I are beginning a study of ancient civilizations and I bought the three Gilgamesh books to expand our coverage of ancient Sumer. These books are just amazing! The story itself is powerful but I wondered how the author was going to tone down some of the violence; not to mention the fact that Shamat was a prostitute in other versions. Ludmilla Zeman has brought this story to children with intensity and grace that comes as a complete surprise. I especially liked her painting of the chaste kiss between Shamat and Enkidu with the explanation that Shamat taught Enkidu to speak and together they explored the ways of love. Very tender.

In her illustrations, Ludmilla Zeman has made an attempt to incorporate actual historical artifacts. These are all high-quality books in every sense and I cannot recommend them highly enough.

Gilgamesh the King

The Revenge of Ishtar:

"The city of Uruk had become the happiest place in the world....But the peace and joy did not last." When Shamhat, beloved of all who lived in Uruk, is killed, Gilgamesh gets Enkidu to promise to travel with him to seek revenge on the monster Humbaba, who is responsible for Shamhat's death. But completing their mission only brings more trouble as their success attracts the attention of Ishtar.

Can Gilgamesh and Enkidu hope to prevail against the wrath of a goddess? Will Ishtar ever leave Uruk in peace?

Written for eight to twelve year olds, this is the second book in a trilogy. The Mesopotamian styled illustrations add to the book's story. The author's note on the last page gives background information on Mesopotamia, the great forest, the story itself, the Game of Twenty Squares, and how this story came down to us.

I take issue with one thing in this book. The author chose to use the name Ishtar, which we are more familiar with, rather than Ishtar's Mesopotamian counterpart, in the telling--and the title--of this tale.

The Last Quest of Gilgamesh

We really appreciate the beauty of this series of books as it covers "The Epic of Gilgamesh" in an appropriate and accessible way for our children. We love to use actual historic documents in our study if possible, but the actual epic is too uncomfortably graphic even for our older children, so we use these for everyone as we study Mesopotamia, Sumer and Babylon. There are not many books that cover these Near East cultures, which makes this set especially valuable. Along with "Our Young Folks' Josephus" as our history spine, "Science in Ancient Mesopotamia" and "Ancient Egyptians and their Neighbors: An Activity Guide (covering Hittites, Nubians, Mesopopotamians and Egyptians) this series helps considerably to round out our ancient history studies and to teach our children about one of the most ancient tales in the world in a beautifully engaging way.

Fantastic,

After having read the space Marines Omnibus i was hooked on graham mcneils story about uriel ventris and his counterpart pasanius. When i heard about this book i quickly pre ordered it.

Now i recieved this book 3 days ago and i am already onto chapter 14, i have read this book at work in my break, at home, and in the evenings. It really is a page turner.

Although i would have to say you will appreaciate this book much more if you read the Space marines omnibus' before as you will get the back story to all the proceeings portrayed in this book.

You dont need a summary from me as its on the website but if your after a fast paced action novel with a touch of heroism and an epic story line, please buy this novel.

its a credit to graham and a great sequel to the omnibus.

Enjoy!

The miniatures game and world of Warhammer 40,000 has captivated gamers world wide. "The Killing Ground" is a gripping science fiction novel set in the world the game is famous for. Following the famed Ultramarines, devoted to Codex Astartes, as they struggle to get through the universe to finally reach their home known as Ultramar. "The Killing Ground" is enthusiastically recommended to fans of the game and its world.

The two Ultra Marines return after completely their Death Oath in defeating the Chaos demon. The Warhammer 40k sci-fi story of their adventure continues as they arrive at a world suffering from over a decade of rebellion by former Imperial Guard descendants and the current Imperial Guard Regiment given the honor to settle there.

The story revolves around the ethics of rebellion and methods used to occupy and "pacify" the rebels. There is also the tale of leadership, how strict narrow minded bureaucrats can rule with no regard to the how their "subjects" think and interact. The book could have described in greater detail on how the governor was despised by both the civilians and soldiers. Instead, the book tends to repeat several statements over again on how Uriel and Pasanius long to return home with Uriel also trying to find a way to help the Unfleshed.

Am not happy about the recent Horus Heresy books as the characters are dull and bland. McNeill is able to add more personality and creativity to both major and minor characters in this Ultra Marines series. The book is a quick and easy read, only a few hours. Hope that the Ultra Marine series will continue. Maybe the Iron Warriors will return with the Uriel clone in a future novel? Overall, a decent library book to borrow or wait for the paperback. A bit expensive in hardbound form.

Continuing the storyline of Graham McNeil, we find ourselves once again following Pasanius and Uriel Ventris, Ultramarines banished from their Chapter and sent on a Death Oath. But their oath has been completed, and miraculously, they survived to escape. After finding themselves on an Imperial world that was conquered and colonized by a brutal and ruthless former Imperial Guard regiment, the two Space Marines must try to find a way back to Ultramar, while surviving the attentions of a bitter insurrection as well as disquieting psyker activity.

McNeil manages to bring Uriel and Pasanius out of the standard cliche one-dimensional super soldier character, and makes them evotive and recognizable as still being human, which is a failing of many novels based around the Astartes. The scenery and detail expressed in his characters, as well as the heartbreaking story of the titular Killing Ground and the fate of the Unfleshed is gruesome and caustic, just the flavor for the Warhammer universe. Also appearing are the Grey Knights, who also manage to break free of the even more restrictive cliche character of one-dimensional super soldier secret police officer. The monsters, both human and not, all manage to evoke a distaste even through the page, and its hard not to relish the fate of the villian of the piece.

McNeils storyline drags briefly from time to time, somewhat hindered by the political backstory and the insurrection portion of the tale, but has a steady stream of combat and action, as well as new scenes and iconography, including the memorable Inquisitorial Trial. While I'll always be more sold on Caiphas Cain and Ibram Gaunt, Uriel Ventris definitely sweeps aside all previous Marine characters.

Two Ultramarines, Pasanius Lysane and Uriel Ventris, have escaped from the Eye of Terror. They well know that no one comes back from there unchanged and they have no idea if they will even be welcomed back by their brothers. After all, they had fought alongside renegade Space Marines, made a pact with cannibal mutants, and even freed a daemon creature. It may not matter that each decision had been made with the best intentions or for the right reasons. The pair, along with some of their mutant allies (the Unfleshed), travel homeward within one of the Iron Men's vile, daemonic machines. Upon arriving, the Unfleshed hide in the mountains until such time the Ultramarines may figure out what planet (and year) they are on and explain the mutants to any locals.

The planet is named Salinas. A designated army of conquest has claimed the world as theirs. Yet after fighting in some of the most horrific war zones in the galaxy year after year and killing countless enemies, they find themselves unable to simply turn off the instincts that had kept them alive. Needless to say, the conquered locals hate their new leaders even after ten years. Everyone remembers the massacre of innocents in the city Khaturian a decade ago. It is referred to as the Killing Ground. A rebel group calling themselves the "Sons of Salinas" still fight against the new ruling government. Eradication of the rebel group is proving difficult and the possibility of a traitor is high.

When the infernal conveyance delivering the Ultramarines and the Unfleshed ripped its way through to Salinas and then tore a hole back through the gates of the Empyrean, a lot of energy came through too. The walls that separate Salinas from the warp were worn very thin and something that feeds on death and bloodshed had been attracted to the Killing Ground. The souls of those who died in Khaturian were now massing. They now had a very real, very dangerous wellspring of power to draw upon. And they hunger for vengeance.

Pasanius and Uriel must battle terrible powers and somehow keep an oath to the Unfleshed until their brothers can come for them. Only then will they be able to get home to Ultramar and redemption.

***** "The bar was crowded and the summering air of resentment that filled its smoky depths was like a current running through Hanno Merbal's body. He could sense the hatred of what he represented in every muttered syllable, every furtive glance and every hostile stare. He lifted the glass before him and knocked the harsh spirit back in one gulp." (Used with permission of the publisher, USA branch.)

By simply reading those first three sentences of this story I knew it would be awesome. An author who is able to put such a detailed description of angst within a few simple sentences KNOWS his stuff. From the beginning to the end I found myself compelled forward and into many forms of battles (mental and physical). By the time I finished the story I found myself wondering if the author, Graham McNeill, actually had talent oozing from his pores. The story is so well written that I could almost feel the heat and smell the carnage. The ending left me with the feeling of euphoria, yet a sense of loss too. I only hope there will be more Ultramarine stories in the future. *****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

Its my own fault for purchasing her books, I know. I am continuously appalled at how such a strong willed female heroine has become nothing more then a mediocre concubine.
I realized I was 183 pages into this book and there was still really no plot other then Anita's ever-growing "love" triangle. There was supposed to be a plot. There's something like a bad guy lurking around, but it is so over shadowed by trite dialog and sexual activity that there really is no point in having the bad guy threat at all. I put the book down then and have not finished it.
I once again realize that it is my fault for purchasing Hamiltons book. No matter how many bad reviews she gets, as long as people are still buying the smut it doesn't matter. I, for one, will no longer be spending any money on these books.

UTTER TRIPE!!!

terribly written and the sex was awful.

i get it...Jean-Claude is french...does he need to call her 'ma petite' every damn line? or is it just that NONE of the male characters or their speech patterns are distinguishable enough from each other that character tags are necessary on every line?

sweetheart...get a new series...read some hardcore erotica, then try sex with beast-men.

Goodness, all the whining and complaining, combined with all the hyperboloid praise, would turn any author's head ... into mush. Good thing LKH doesn't read reviews. Frankly, for me, and for many of us quietly enjoying her artistry, the very plot devices and dialogue qualities that people alternately whine and glow about are what simply please us the most.

What if the criticized and beloved characters and plot lines are actually imperfect and growing, on purpose, and neither mistakes nor genre-typical simplistic devices machined to keep the dough rolling in? What if we are invited to grow, too, through the seeming imperfections?

As a human development specialist, I've felt relieved to read LKH's style, to see the ludicrously predictable hyper-drek of this genre meet the deeper, less-attractive qualities of the real human spirit. Oh yes, our favorite characters (and there are many!) are bull-headed, inane, cruel, surprising, narcissistic, passionate, bellicose, stupid, grandiose, ridiculous, insightful, incomplete, cheesy, shallow, tender, and confused. *But then again, so are we all.* And THIS is where LKH shines above and beyond the usual drek of this genre, which I normally dislike intensely. The author gives us more than what we expect - through fantasy, she gives us a detailed mirror of our own selves, warts and all.

Frankly, unlike some of LKH's critics, after the first few novels, I never wanted to read about exploding guts and impossibly studly Anita's many, beloved, penis-oid guns, ever, ever again. Freud, save me from the boredom. But then LKH began developing Anita and some of her relationships. And then more of her relationships, and the relationships between the relationships, aka politics. And despite the surreal surface complexities, the deeper issues that each character faces are surprisingly realistic, in that the politics and politicians are also just as desperate, stupid, pathetic, surprising, smart, defensive, and inconsistent as we and ours are in real life. Again, LKH holds up the mirror for us to consider.

And the rampant sexuality, I find fascinating. Overdone, certainly. But still beneficial, in that the author offers a relatively mainstream readership in repressed/overwrought American society further insights into the variety and possibilities of the human sexual-relational experience. She offers us possibility - we could, if we wanted to, give ourselves permission to be even a little more open, exploratory, and creative with our hearts, minds, beliefs, and bodies. Furthermore, for those whining about what LKH has done so far with the ardeur, notice that it's no different than what *we've already done in our society* - superficially hypersexualized the experience, and wrapped it in a shiny, neurotic bow. So if you don't like what LKH is showing you in the mirror, change the image you offer her.

Blessedly, though, in this novel, the author takes the ardeur one giant step beyond where we are as a society and points to another possibility.... without spoiling the plot, I'll just ask readers to see what happens next.... could it be a growing maturity? A tentative step into a new direction? Can you stand the possibility?

As for the accusation of underdeveloped plotlines, all I can say is, Of Course! Keep us coming back for more - how does character X (whether it's Harlequin, Nathaniel, or anyone/thing else) handle life after getting lucky, or acting stupid, or missing the point, etc? What if not-knowing in one book becomes knowledge-gained in another?

I've read reviews of her next book that suggest that, among other surprises, Jean-Claude gets insecure. I cannot *wait* to see what LKH does to develop this. His impossibly smooth competence was getting on my nerves, and I've been hoping that he'd learn to be human again.

I wonder what would happen if fantasy as a genre became beautifully, imperfectly human again? I know I'll stick around to find out.......

Remember that and don't waste your money buying this book. I wasn't able to finish TH as I was seriously afraid it would turn me off reading altogether. When will LKH learn that stories need a plot and that sex is NOT a plot. If the sex was well written and erotic then I could almost forgive the weak plots in the past 5 or so books. But it isn't. It's simply bad porn - repetitive and boring. At least TH was consistent to her past few AB books as they have been: 1) consistently bad and 2) consistently inconsistent regarding characterizations and Anitaverse rules.

Okay - number 15 - running out of plot ideas, are we? A few name changes and such, and !poof! you have "The Harlequin", a book that eerily seems familiar to all the other Anita Blake books, and not to far off from anything written by Laurell K Hamilton. If you liked her other books enough to read them again, go ahead and read this one. For everyone else, there are enough books out there that don't have that deja vu feeling to waste your time with repeat #15.

I have wanted, wished and waited for something like this to come along! I grew up in the 80's collecting 'Savage Sword'. To a mid-teen boy it was the best stuff ever!

This collection gives fans an opportunity to collect and read all of Conan's SS adventures from the beginning. The two downsides are:
1) The reduced picture size. (SSOC was larger as a magazine)
2) None of the "extras" were included. (Often there were Red Sonja, Kull or Solomon Kane stories at the end of each SS. It would have been great to keep those attached.

Overall though, I love this series and intend to buy all of them that they make!

I had only read one Savage Sword comic, back in 1987, but I remembered how much I liked it. I've been collecting the new Dark Horse Conan series, and I've always been a big fan of the original Robert E. Howard stories, so I was excited when I learned they were re-releasing the Savage Sword comics.

The print is smaller here, which other reviewers have complained about, and in a few stories you lose some of the details. It depends on the artist, really. I haven't found it to be a major problem on any of them, but it can make certain frames hard to see on occasion. The newsprint-quality pages is something else you might hear complaints about, but for me it added to the spirit of the work. The black and white art also, it's a style I don't see often anymore, and I love it.

The main positive is that there is just so much in a volume. For the price you get a lot of Conan, more than your money's worth for sure. It's the same price as is a single volume in the old Marvel series reprints, but you get three-to-four times as much content for that price.

Overall I think it was well worth the money I paid, and I'm definitely looking forward to future volumes in the series.

Created in 1932 as a pulp-fiction fantasy hero by Robert E. Howard, Conan the Barbarian found new life 38 years later when Marvel Comics launched its successful Conan comic. But something of Howard's Conan was lost in the kid-friendly Marvel monthly, so a magazine, "Savage Sword Of Conan", was created.

A collection of Conan stories from the first ten issues of "SSC", as well as five issues of predecessor mag "Savage Tales", "Savage Sword Of Conan Volume 1" offers a generous helping of Cimmerian savagery as published from 1973 to 1976. Unencumbered by the Comics Code, Conan fights rotting corpses, crushes skulls, and makes his moves on assorted cat-eyed brunettes and pouty blondes whose near-nakedness is played up on every page. It's Conan as Howard intended.

Now published again as a Dark Horse compilation, it's easy to see what "Savage Sword" really had going for it: Incredible artwork and a steady scripter in Roy Thomas, the primary person behind both "Savage Sword" and the original Marvel Conan. Here, with "Savage Sword", Thomas uses the room to take Conan through novel-length adventures rather than the more episodic treatments of the Marvel comic. He has help from some singular artists, none better than John Buscema, who gave panels a depth of detail that makes them singularly re-readable.

Picking a favorite Conan adventure from this pile is hard. Thomas makes striking use of several original Howard stories, including Howard's only full-length Conan novel, "The Hour Of The Dragon" (here confusingly chopped up into non-consecutive chapters as "Corsairs Against Stygia" and "Conan The Conqueror"), and the classic novella "Red Nails". Other great Howard adventures repurposed here include "A Witch Shall Be Born" (where Conan is crucified on a giant X and chomps a vulture by its neck for nourishment) and the splendidly atmospheric "Iron Shadows Of The Moon."

While a couple of the Howard adaptations are notably sketchier, and the non-Howard-based stories often wilt in comparison to the group mentioned above, there is a remarkable consistency in the stories. Formulaic, yes, with Conan often interchangeably doing battle with a wizard, slaying a monster, and saving a maiden, yet the action is never less than gripping and there's enough variety of incident to keep one entertained. In one story, the monster gets the woman (of her own free will); in another, Conan feeds the woman to the monster himself. He even ditches one hottie for a horse.

Often captured, never defeated, Conan has a routine, almost casual response for his would-be tormentors: "Loose my bonds and hand me a sword, and I'll not walk the road to Hell alone." Whatever his enemies plot usually turns out a bad idea.

In a world of shifting values, it's nice to have Conan around again. Dark Horse would have done better to offer some introductory information, perhaps an intro from Thomas like he did with Dark Horse's reprints of the Marvel comic books. There's a strong need for a map of Howard's Hyboria for those of us who don't know our Asgard from our Kush - the magazines follow a non-chronological path and Conan bound around the known world a few times during his singular career.

But quibbles aside, what you get here is a remarkably generous portion of Conan's finest moments. Even Conan would be pleased about that.

Dark Horse has been reprinting Marvel Comics' color Conan comics for a few years but now they are adding the Conan stories from the black & white Savage Sword of Conan Magazine. This volume one Omnibus edition features 544 pages and includes the Conan stories from Savage Tales # 1 - 5, and Savage Sword of Conan # 1 - 10. Back in the day as a young Conan fan, Savage Tales was like the Holy Grail. These first five issues pre-dated Savage Sword and within a few years had already escalated in price beyond my pocket change. With this volume we are seeing theses stories again for the first time in over 30 years. What immediately strikes you about the book is the incredible roster of artists. These are truly legendary names: Barry Windsor Smith, Neal Adams, Jim Starlin, Mike Kaluta, Frank Brunner, John Buscema, Boris Vallejo, Esteban Maroto, Alex Nino, and Tim Conrad. From a purely artistic standpoint, Savage Sword and Savage Tales were dwarfing just about anything else going on in comics at that time.

The volume leads off with one of Robert E. Howard's shortest, but most well known Conan tales, The Frost Giant's Daughter. This is one of Conan's earliest tales chronologically. Still a teenager, he encounters a beautiful woman in the frozen north who leads him into an ambush by her giant brothers. The story features some of the best art to grace the magazine by Barry Smith. I have a theory about present day comic book art... Comic art APPEARS to be much better than it was say 20 or 30 years ago but this is due to advances in technology as far as printing, colorization, and digital enhancing. Today we see so many artists working in a minimalist, cartoony style because it can be digitally produced much quicker than hand drawn artwork. But you can't really hide behind technology when working in strict black and white.

Jump ahead to the second story, and adaptation of Howard;s Red Nails and just marvel at Smith's detailed line work. Look at Conan in the wilderness as Smith painstakingly draws seemingly every blade of grass and every leaf on the trees and bushes. Look at the close-ups of Conan with so many individual follicles of hair illustrated and then compare it to a lot of art today where you might get a curl or two drawn in. Smith puts most modern day artists to shame with his unique, renaissance influenced style.

The second issue of Savage Sword presents another Howard Adpatation, Black Colossus in which Conan faces off against a three thousand year old sorcerer. This story teams long time Conan penciller John Buscema with his frequent partner Alfredo Alcala. Buscema always drew a great Conan but Alcala pushed his work a notch higher with a gritty detail that would only work in a black and white format.

Issue #5 of Savage Swords sports one of Boris' best covers depicting Conan being crucified, from the tale, A Witch Shall Be Born. This story features Conan at his most resilient, surviving his crucifixion in the desert to get revenge on the man who put him there.

The final story from Savage Sword #10 concludes the adaptation of Howard's only full-length Conan Novel, The Hour of the Dragon. In a way it's a strange inclusion because you only get the last third of the story or so. The first parts were printed in Giant-Size Conan the Barbarian and while this is a great Story it might have been best just to skip it rather than having it pickup in the middle.

The art does lose some of it's potency since it is reduced down to regular comic size from it's original format but that's about the only negative I can come up with from this superb book. This was one of the best comics that Marvel ever produced and a we have to thank Dark Horse for making these stories available again to Conan fans.

For a fan of Conan in particular or graphic storytelling in general, the content of this volume is excellent. There are, after, all, reasons that The Savage Sword of Conan mag has been so fondly remembered for the past thirty years: the stories are exciting and frequently thoughtful, and the artwork is beautiful.

Ironically, though, for a fan of Conan in particular or graphic storytelling in general, the presentation of that content is disappointing. Contrary to what at least one other reviewer has asserted, this book is not like a Marvel Essential or DC Showcase volume, because 1) the original Savage Sword of Conan magazine was in a significantly larger format than this book, and 2) the reproduction of the artwork in this book is quite--surprisingly--poor. Given that the original stories were in black & white, one would expect (I certainly did) that they would reproduce very well, but such is not the case. The book's printing (at least in the copy I have) is so dim on many pages that much detail is lost (a problem exacerbated by the smaller-than-original size), making the reading of the book often akin to looking at a poor photocopy.

Is this book better than nothing? Sure. But would it have been so difficult to print the thing well enough to do justice to the original stories?