''Savage Scrolls, Volume One: Thrilling Tales of Sword-and-Sorcery'' is an
anthology
In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors.
In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...
of
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...
short stories in the
sword and sorcery
Sword and sorcery (S&S) is a subgenre of fantasy characterized by sword-wielding heroes engaged in exciting and violent adventures. Elements of romance, magic, and the supernatural are also often present. Unlike works of high fantasy, the tale ...
subgenre, edited by
Jason Ray Carney. It was first published in trade paperback and ebook by
Pulp Hero Press
Pulp Hero Press is a small publisher active since 2017. The press was founded by Bob McLain. It is primarily a paperback and ebook publisher, initially specializing in non-fiction relating to Robert E. Howard and sword and sorcery before branc ...
in November 2020,
[Entry at fantasticfiction.com](_blank)
and takes its title from ''Savage Scrolls, Volume One: Scholarship from the Hyborian Age'' (2017), an earlier volume of literary criticism by Fred Blosser from the same publisher. Each was projected to be the first in a series; no further volumes of the Blosser title were forthcoming, but a second volume of the Carney title "is already in the works,"
[McLain, Bob. "Publisher's Note," in Carney, Jason Ray, ed. ''Savage Scrolls, Volume One: Thrilling Tales of Sword-and-Sorcery''. Pulp Hero Press, 2020.] with at least four projected in all.
[ONeill, John.]
Crimson Mists and Uncrowned Kings: Savage Scrolls, Volume One, edited by Jason Ray Carney
" Review at blackgate.com, January 20, 2021.
Summary
The book collects eight sword and sorcery tales of protagonists traditional in and new to the subgenre, the former including
Henry Kuttner
Henry Kuttner (April 7, 1915 – February 3, 1958) was an American author of science fiction, fantasy and horror.
Early life
Henry Kuttner was born in Los Angeles, California in 1915. Kuttner (1829–1903) and Amelia Bush (c. 1834–1911), the ...
's
Elak of Atlantis
''Elak of Atlantis'' is a collection of sword and sorcery short stories by American author Henry Kuttner (1915-1958), gathering together all his tales featuring the title character. It was first published in trade paperback by Gryphon Books in Mar ...
and Prince Raynor,
David C. Smith's Oron, and
James Enge's Morlock the Maker. Some are by the authors associated with the original works and others are pastiches by later writers. Two of the stories,
Adrian Cole's "The Tower in the Crimson Mist" and Steve Dilks's "Tale of the Uncrowned Kings," were recycled from the publisher's aborted anthology ''
Flashing Swords! #6'' (July 2020).
Contents
*"Publisher's Note" (
Bob McLain
Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to:
Places
*Mount Bob, New York, United States
*Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica
People, fictional characters, and named animals
*Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters
*Bob (surname) ...
)
*"Introduction" (
Jason Ray Carney)
*"Tower in the Crimson Mist" (Elak of Atlantis) (
Adrian Cole)
*"Tale of the Uncrowned Kings" (Erich Von Tormath and Zaran) (
Steve Dilks)
*"The Eyes of the Scorpion" (Shamal the Warrior) (
Steve Lines)
*"Born of the Serpent" (Oron) (
David C. Smith)
*"Under the Basilisk Moon" (Prince Raynor) (
Fred Blosser)
*"Slave Girls for Sacrifice" (Avok the Cytheran) (
D. M. Ritzlin)
*"Crypt of Stars" (Hanuvar of Volanus) (
Howard Andrew Jones
Howard Andrew Jones is an American speculative fiction and fantasy author and editor, known for ''The Chronicles of Sword and Sand'' series and ''The Ring-Sworn'' trilogy. He has also written ''Pathfinder Tales'', tie-in fiction novels in the wo ...
)
*"Laws for the Blood" (Morlock the Maker) (
James Enge)
*"About the Storytellers"
Reception
John ONeill at blackgate.com extols the list of contributors and remarks of the book "I'm delighted to say it's a thoroughly professional production."
Notes
{{reflist
2020 anthologies
Fantasy anthologies