Books with author Robert Ervin Howard

The plot is a loosely based melange of motifs from previous Conan short stories, most notably "The Scarlet Citadel", with which it shares an almost identical storyline. It takes place when Conan is about forty-five, during his reign as King of Aquilonia, and follows a plot by a group of conspirators to depose him in favor of Valerius, heir to Conan's predecessor Numedides, whom he had slain to gain the throne. To accomplish this they resort to necromancy, resurrecting Xaltotun, an ancient sorcerer from the pre-Hyborian empire of Acheron. With his aid the Aquilonian army is defeated by that of the rival kingdom of Nemedia and occupied. Conan, captured, is slated for execution until the sympathetic slave girl Zenobia risks her life to free him. Conan's quest to retrieve the Heart of Ahriman in order to defeat the wizard and regain his throne takes him through all the lands of Hyboria...

First published in 1935, "Beyond the Black River" is generally accepted as one of the best Conan stories. It is also one of the few that breaks Robert Ervin Howard's traditional narrative pattern.Although "Beyond the Black River" features everyone's favourite Cimmerian, Conan is not the protagonist. That honour goes to a young settler named Balthus. Balthus is one of a few brave settlers who has pushed over to the "wild" side of the Black River. Defended only by a isolated, pseudo-Roman military outpost, these settlers are on the far edge of civilisation - surrounded by jungle and horror.Howard is quick to draw comparisons between Conan and Balthus. Balthus is brave, noble and, ultimately, part of civilization. Conan is a creature of the barbaric other - no different from the evil savages & shamans that live in the jungle. And, when seen through Balthus' eyes, Conan is just as terrifying. Balthus, although heroic, is the outsider here. "Beyond the Black River" is about civilisation's brazen advance into the Great Unknown, and, more importantly, how the Unknown always triumphs. This short story encapsulates a gloomy, apocalyptic view of the world - how all progress is for naught, as mankind's natural, unavoidable, state is barbarism.Conan the Barbarian is employed by one of the civilised countries to help in it's push to claim lands from the primitive Picts. The Picts are not excited about the idea however. Old gods and mythical creatures are called up by the Pict witches to contest the invading army and Conan finds himself battling for his life amid the blood thirsty hordes that include saber-toothed tigers, 40 foot long venomous snakes and a demon from another dimension who is intent on crushing him...

In Queen of the Black Coast, Conan joins with Belit, the magnificent pirate queen, whose fathers were the kings of Askalon! There is a frightening conflict with a monster winged ape before the sorrowful passing of the Queen of the Black Coast. She who belonged to the sea; to its everlasting mystery he returned her.Queen of the Black Coast also contains a second Conan story -- The Vale of Lost Women, in which the massive Cimmerian rescues the girl Livia from her barbarous captors.

"The Phoenix on the Sword" begins with a middle-aged Conan of Cimmeria attempting to govern the turbulent kingdom of Aquilonia. Conan has recently seized the bloody crown of Aquilonia from King Numedides whom he strangled upon his throne; however, things have not gone well, as Conan is more suited to swinging a broadsword than to signing official documents with a stylus. The people of Aquilonia, who originally welcomed Conan as their liberator from Numedides' tyranny, have gradually turned against him due to his foreign Cimmerian blood. They have built a statue to Numedides' memory in the temple of Mitra, and people burn incense before it, hailing it as the holy effigy of a saintly monarch who was done to death by a red-handed barbarian.

"The cliffs rose sheer from the jungle, towering ramparts of stone that glinted jade-blue and dull crimson in the rising sun, and curved away and away to east and west above the waving emerald ocean of fronds and leaves. It looked insurmountable, that giant palisade with its sheer curtains of solid rock in which bits of quartz winked dazzlingly in the sunlight. But the man who was working his tedious way upward was already halfway to the top."The Teeth of Gwahlur are legendary jewels, kept in an abandoned city in the country of Keshan. Conan, following legends of this treasure, has travelled to the lost city, where supernatural gives way to intrigue.

Steve Costigan is an Irish American from Galveston, Texas (Texas Fists, 1931). He has one brother, Mike, who is also a boxer and has been more successful in this sport than Steve himself (The Bull Dog Breed, 1930). He left Texas to become a sailor, soon becoming an Able Seaman (AB) on the merchant ship Sea Girl (registered in San Francisco, California). While he has worked on other ships, he considers this to be his home.He has been an amateur boxer since childhood. Steve always likes to be champion of whichever ship or organisation he is part of (Circus Fists, 1931). Subsequently the only title he really holds is "Champion of the Sea Girl" (which he refers to as "The Fighten'est Ship Afloat"). He found his pet bulldog, Mike, as a stray in Dublin and named him after his brother (The Bull Dog Breed, 1930). Steve is a heavyweight boxer, weighing 190lb and standing 6 ft (1.8 m) tall. He has the "Black Irish" combination of blue eyes and black hair.The Sailor Steve Costigan Stories:21 Title of Sailor Steve Costigan’s adventure,The Fighting and Action Stories, written by Robert E. Howard in 1929-1934.1. Blow the Chinks Down, First appeared in Action Stories, October 1931. Alternate title: The House of Peril.2. Breed of Battle, First published in Action Stories, November 1931. Alternate title: The Fighten'est Pair and Sampson Had a Soft Spot.3. Dark Shanghai, First published in Action Stories, January 1932. Alternate title: One Shanghai Night.4. The Pit of the Serpent, First published in Fight Stories, July 1929. Alternate title: Manila Manslaughter.5. The Sign of the Snake, First published Action Stories, June 1931.6. The TNT Punch, First published in Action Stories, January 1931. Alternate titles: The Waterfront Law, The Waterfront Wallop.7. Alleys of Peril, First published in Fight Stories, January 1931. Alternate title: Leather Lightning.8. Champ of the Forecastle, First published in Fight Stories, November 1930. Alternate title: Champ of the Seven Seas, The Champion of the Forecastle.9. Circus Fists, First published in Fight Stories, December 1931. Alternate title: Slugger Bait.10. Fist and Fang, First published in Fight Stories, May 1930. Alternate title: Cannibal Fists.11. General Ironfist, First published in Jack Dempsey's Fight Magazine, June 1934.12. Night of Battle, First published in Fight Stories, March 1932. Alternate title: Shore Leave for a Slugger.13. Sailors' Grudge, First published in Fight Stories, March 1930. Alternate title: Costigan vs. Kid Camera. 14. Sluggers on the Beach, First published in Jack Dempsey's Fight Magazine, August 1934.15. Texas Fists, First published in Fight Stories, May 1931. Alternate title: Shanghied Mitts.16. The Bull Dog Breed, First published in Fight Stories, February 1930. Alternate title: You Got to Kill a Bulldog.17. The Iron Man, First published in Fight Stories, June 1930. 18. The Slugger's Game, First published in Jack Dempsey's Fight Magazine, May 1934.19. Vikings of the Gloves, First published in Fight Stories, February 1932. Alternate title: Including the Scandinavian. 20. Waterfront Fists, First published in Fight Stories, September 1930. Alternate title: Stand Up and Slug.21. Winner Take All, First published in Fight Stories, July 1930. Alternate title: Sucker.

How is this book unique?Font adjustments & biography includedUnabridged (100% Original content)IllustratedAbout The People of the Black Circle by Robert Ervin Howard"The People of the Black Circle" is one of the original novellas about Conan the Cimmerian, written by American author Robert Ervin Howard. Plot Summary: This Conan story is set in mythical Hyborian versions of India–Pakistan and Afghanistan. The death of Bunda Chand, King of Vendhya, via a curse channeled to his soul through a lock of his hair leads to the ascension of his sister, Devi Yasmina, who vows to get revenge on his killers, the Black Seers of Yimsha. Conan, meanwhile, has become chief of a tribe of Afghuli hillmen. Seven of his men have been captured by the Vendhyans and Yasmina intends to use them as collateral to force Conan to kill the Seers. However, Conan infiltrates the border fort where they are held and kidnaps the Devi instead (with the intent of exchanging her for the seven men). The problems are complicated by Kerim Shah, an agent of King Yezdigerd of Turan, who arranged Bunda Chand's death in order to lead an army through the mountains and invade in the subsequent confusion and turmoil. His contact with the Black Seers, Khemsa, has fallen in love with the Devi's maid Gitara. They decide to strike out on their own, kill the seven hillmen and pursue Conan and Yasmina to kill them both as well. Conan escapes into the Afghuli villages of the Zaibar Pass and Himelian Mountains.