Robert E. Howard's (non-Conan) MASTERPIECE

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Great video! The James Allison stories are indeed magnificent.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Thanks Michael, I’m very much looking forward to your full rundown from Swords of the North!

[@abhilashmaddali7158]

I remember this story! The opening sequence with the warriors marching through the foggy landscape to the apocalyptic ending, fantastic story and Marchers of Valhalla a very evocative title

[@GrammaticusBooks]

It’s a great story Abhi!

[@secretfirebooks7894]

Grammaticus on REH. That's a good way to start the morning. 👍

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Thanks FSB!

[@occultdetective]

Howard is my favorite author by a country mile. I agree with you that Marchers of Valhalla is one of his finest... and this video is one of yours.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Thanks Bob! Marchers is a great story!

[@LiminalSpaces03]

I love the idea of fictional histories about areas writers grew up, so I'm absolutely going to have to check this one out! Great video!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

It’s excellent Liminal. I think you’ll like it.

[@MysteryandMayhem-gr7nn]

That very edition of "Marchers of Valhalla" that you're holding in your hands is the one that hooked me on Robert E. Howard decades ago. I'll do a video on Howard one of these days, but you and Michael keep doing excellent videos like this one. 💯

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Thanks Jim! And there's so much material you can work with regarding REH. From Conan to James Allison, Cormac Mac Art, Kull and Solomon Kane. It's an almost endless well.

[@MysteryandMayhem-gr7nn]

@GrammaticusBooks It really is! His work is amazing and has stood the test of time.

[@Dehumanizer3000]

with Kull and Solomon Kane they are Howard's early years and a stepping stone to Conan. but they are still kick ass tales that i love!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Undisputedly correct sir! They were early test runs for Conan (so to speak). And are still great tales!

[@General_reader]

Man, you’re just pumping out videos left and right!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Doing my best GR!

[@tristanhogue4690]

I can’t wait to read this. I ordered the “Swords of the North” book that has all the James Allison stories

[@GrammaticusBooks]

It has ALL of them. Including the completed fragments. Which I've not had a chance to read yet. Enjoy Tristan!

[@georgeseal8463]

I loved the James Allison stories. I have them in Spanish, in an edition by Martinez Roca. That old Spanish editorial came out with a great Fantasy series that allowed me to read Tanith Lee, Fritz Leiber and, of course REH ( I had only read the Marvel Comic adaptions). In the 90s they launched a Conan series with all the original stories and pastiches. Their edition of Valley of the Worm is very good. I liked Marchers of Valhalla, but I prefered The Garden of Evil and Valley of the Worm. Of course, Marchers and Garden were adapted by Marvel as Conan stories. Worm was adapted by R. Corben as Bloodstar (my book has an illustration from that comic) but I haven't been able to read that. James Allison is a great series. I liked that Howard could create so many different characters. I hope all of them end up translated into Spanish. I like Solomon Kane as much as Conan. So I'm forced to say I find your lack of faith disturbing! Great video. Greetings from Chile.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Thanks George! I knew about the Marvel's adaptation of Garden of Evil but I wasn't aware Corben adapted Valley of the Worm. I'll have to keep a look out for that one!

[@davidk6269]

I have that book, and it is wonderful. Have you read Robert E. Howard's novella: "The Twilight of the Grey God" otherwise known as "The Grey God Passes"? It is one of my favorite Robert E. Howard stories. I also enjoy Robert E. Howard's Cormac Mac Art stories--Cormac and his Viking companion Wulfhere are a lot of fun. Do you enjoy them as well?

[@GrammaticusBooks]

I’ve read both of those David and both are great. But I’m definitely due for a reread on them!

[@JosephReadsBooks]

I have not read Kull yet but I totally agree about Solomon Kane. It is nowhere near the same quality as Conan. I have never heard of the James Allison stories and I am very intrigued. I need to figure out the best way to get some physical copies that aren't MMPB. They must be added to my REH collection! This video was great! I appreciate you introducing me to yet another Robert E Howard character I need to read!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Hey Joseph, I believe the entire Allison collection (fragments included - but finished now) can be purchased in hardback from the Robert E. Howard foundation in Swords of the North.

[@JosephReadsBooks]

@@GrammaticusBooks Funny enough an hour after I left that comment someone tagged me on discord in a book group with a link to that book. I ordered it for myself as an early birthday present. I am the "Robert E Howard" guy in there 😂.

[@DavidWiley7]

Here I thought you were going to go with Bran Mak Morn! I need to read all of the James Allison stories!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Hey David! Good to see you! This one is great. As is The Garden of Fear which is on project Gutenberg. I haven't read the previously unpublished stories yet. I need to change that!

[@rickcantrell5302]

I was wondering why that story does not show up in the "Complete" Robert E. Howard Collections available for Kindle, but that 1972 pub date explains it. I guess I'll have to suffer through the eye-strain reading the little print in the Swords of the North collection Michael K. Vaughan made me buy. You know, by showing the cover on his channel! Thanks for another great review, G!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

I hear you Rick, I may have to buy that book as well!

[@nosotrosloslobosestamosreg4115]

Thank you! I'll look for them!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Thanks and you should be able to find Marchers for cheap. And Worms of the Earth and Garden of Evil are both available on Project Gutenberg.

[@DDB168]

Sounds like a good one, I'll search for it. I have a beaten up copy of The Sowers of the Thunder but haven't read it yet.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Sowers ~ Shadow of the Vulture is good. The other stories in Sowers are hit and miss. Same with Marchers. Marchers is excellent. And the other stories vary. I think you'd like Marchers. I'd love to hear your take on it if you read it DDB.

[@TheAyeAye1]

Respectful disagreement about Soloman Kane not being as good as Conan.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Understood and completely valid point of view!

[@8enable]

aaah Marchers, what a book, and James Allison... Do have a soft spot for Solomon Kane.....

[@GrammaticusBooks]

I hear you Enable! And Solomon Kane and Kull are excellent. But IMHO Conan and Marchers just rise to a whole different level.

[@user-pg3pe4gx4p]

I agree with you about Kull, but I like Kane. Never heard of this story, I’ll have to check it out. Thanks.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

[@user-pg3pe4gx4p]

@@GrammaticusBooks where do I get a copy? Amazon didn’t have it.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

@@user-pg3pe4gx4p I'm actually showing it on Amazon...but pricey at $20. However, all the James Allison stories are collected in Swords of the North. Both on Amazon and through the REH Foundation. But my STRONG advice is first check it out from your local library and dip your toe in before shelling out your hard earned cash.

[@user-pg3pe4gx4p]

@@GrammaticusBooks thanks. I wonder why this story/character wasn’t included in the REH series of books that came out 20 years ago (they all have a quote by Stephen King on the cover)? They include 3 Conan, and 1 of Kull, Bran Mac, Kane, El Borak, horror, ‘sword women’, and 2 ‘best of’. I have them all except the 2 ‘best of’. I check library and if not eBay too. Thanks again for informing me of these stories I somehow missed.

[@SleepyBookReader-666]

Awesome…gonna have to hunt this down. Thanks. Im a bit embarrassed to say, i only know Allison from the Valley of the Worm comic.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

I think I may have that comic...is that a Conan adaptation by any chance?

[@SleepyBookReader-666]

@@GrammaticusBooks It's a one issue adaptation of Valley of the Worm, not turned into a Conan story, with gorgeous Gil Kane/Ernie Chan art. From marvel’s Supernatural Thrillers. Issue 3!

[@GrammaticusBooks]

@@SleepyBookReader-666 I'll bet that's beautiful with Gil Kane and Ernie Chan working on it.

[@User_Un_Friendly]

R U kidding me?! Almuric! ❤ Howard's best stand alone. And I vastly prefer the El Borak stories over Conan. (I read them in high school, so I literally missed the anti-Semitic references) I also enjoyed the 4 or so Lovecraftian stories he wrote. I only remember the "Black Stone" and the "Fires of Ashurbanipal", however.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

El Borak over Conan? Heresey!

[@User_Un_Friendly]

@@GrammaticusBooks At least Francis Xavier Gordon knew which end of a revolver to point at the enemy... Conan: Um...(looks down into barrel...) wizard tool is hard to use.., ah! (squeezes trigger) 😳🫢😂

[@GrammaticusBooks]

@@User_Un_Friendly Hah!

[@redwawst3258]

Bob Howard has no equal.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

No arguments Red. When you're reading the Ace/Lancer series the jump in quality between Carter/de Camp to REH is visibly noticeable.

[@tommyapocalypse6096]

I love REH,but the guy had little imagination when it came to titles. It was always “The (Something) of (Something or Somewhere)”. 😆

[@GrammaticusBooks]

There may be some truth to that!

[@MusicMike939]

Howard was the best western writer too. I have read all the western writers,(in boredom) and he was better than most of them.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

That is his one genre of fiction that I have not yet read! A mistake I need to correct!

[@theprincipalofficer_1]

Then books/stories that would be turned in unofficial audio books stories something for you to do. 😉

[@GrammaticusBooks]

I am seriously considering a read aloud video of Marchers.

[@sleeperyjeemtoybox]

Have to agree with UserUn, Almuric has been a yearly re-read for me.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

It’s been too long since o read Almuric Sleepy. I’ll have to reread those!

[@User_Un_Friendly]

@@sleeperyjeemtoybox Yep, me too. 👍😉

[@sleeperyjeemtoybox]

@@GrammaticusBooks Interestingly its now seen as a "problematic" book, lad i went to school with is now a university teacher and he cites Almuric for its white saviour narrative and racism, his words not mine. Though i will add i know he owns a full collection of J.Normans Gor novels, so i don't take his opinion to seriously.

[@User_Un_Friendly]

@@sleeperyjeemtoybox Considering the casual anti-Semitism of the El Borak stories, and the overall sexism in Howard's prose (which was considered "Normal" 🤯🤯🤯 at the time) seriously, Almuric is practically tame compared to Howard's body of work. 🙄🙄🙄. Consider also the all-encompassing racism of Lovecraft, and other objectionable work of his contemporaries. 🤮

[@GrammaticusBooks]

@@sleeperyjeemtoybox I'm actually thinking about doing a video on REH's use of race in his Conan novels and why it actually makes the stories better.

[@DavidSmith-pg1ob]

I used to enjoy Robert Howard's fantasy novels way more than anything by Tolkien. I was not really into furry toed little people singing songs around the campfire. Unfortunately, every film adaptation of Howard's work has been complete garbage, so the mainstream public has no idea what a great writer he was.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Agreed David. I thought Mamoa was a perfect pick to play Conan but then the script was awful.

[@DavidSmith-pg1ob]

Well, I was mainly talking about the earlier Conan movies, where Conan (played by Schwarzenegger) was raised as a slave and kinda stupid. Conan was a freaking king in the books and above average intelligence IMO.

[@GrammaticusBooks]

@@DavidSmith-pg1ob Agreed again! It wasn't Conan. But it was a damn good movie...just not Conan. Why movie producers can't wrap their heads around the REH concept is a bit bewildering.

[@jamesonpace726]

That's the best fantasy writing, ever? Uh, I dunno, man....

[@GrammaticusBooks]

Greatest “pulp” fantasy writer of all time. I’ll argue that all day long!