"The Star of Khorala" is a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

Björn Nyberg Björn Emil Oscar Nyberg (11 September 1929 – 16 November 2004), was a Swedish fantasy author best known for his additions to the series of Conan stories begun by Robert E. Howard. His primary contribution to the series was ''The Return of Co ...

and

L. Sprague de Camp Lyon Sprague de Camp (; November 27, 1907 – November 6, 2000) was an American writer of science fiction, fantasy and non-fiction. In a career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and works of non-fiction, including biog ...

, featuring the fictional

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 ...

hero

Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...

created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published by

Bantam Books Bantam Books is an American publishing house owned entirely by parent company Random House, a subsidiary of Penguin Random House; it is an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group. It was formed in 1945 by Walter B. Pitkin, Jr., Sidney B. ...

in the paperback collection ''

Conan the Swordsman ''Conan the Swordsman'' is a collection of seven fantasy short stories and associated pieces by writers L. Sprague de Camp, Lin Carter and Björn Nyberg featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first publi ...

'' in August 1978. Later paperback editions of the collection were issued by

Ace Books Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns, and soon branched out into other genres, publishing its first scienc ...

(1987 and 1991). The first hardcover edition was published by

Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles, and is the largest publisher of Chinese scien ...

in 2002. The book has also been translated into

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

. It was later gathered together with ''

Conan the Liberator ''Conan the Liberator'' is a fantasy novel by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in February 1979, and ...

'' and ''

Conan and the Spider God ''Conan and the Spider God'' is a fantasy novel by American writer L. Sprague de Camp featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in December 1980; later paperbac ...

'' into the omnibus collection ''

Sagas of Conan ''Sagas of Conan'' is a 2004 omnibus collection of three previously issued fantasy books written by L. Sprague de Camp, Lin Carter and Björn Nyberg featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published ...

'' (Tor Books, 2004).

Plot

During the events of "

Shadows in Zamboula "Shadows in Zamboula" is one of the original stories by Robert E. Howard about Conan the Cimmerian, first published in ''Weird Tales'' in November 1935. Its original title was "The Man-Eaters of Zamboula". The story takes place over the course ...

" and ''

Conan the Raider ''Conan the Raider'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Leonard Carpenter, featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Tor Books in October 1986. It was reprinted by Tor i ...

'', Conan journeys into Ophir with a fabulous jewel called the Star of Khorala, knowing it was formerly owned by Queen Marala of Ophir, who will pay well for its return. Once in Ophir, Conan learns that Marala has fallen from grace and been imprisoned. Freeing the queen, Conan escorts her west toward Aquilonia, where she has a hereditary fief on which she can begin life anew. However, before they can reach their destination the two are trapped inside a mysterious temple where the gem turns out to be a key in the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy. In the end, Marala is restored to her ancestral estate in Aquilonia as the Countess Albiona. She will later play a role in the events of the novel ''

Conan the Conqueror ''The Hour of the Dragon'', also known as ''Conan the Conqueror'', is a fantasy novel by American writer Robert E. Howard featuring his sword and sorcery hero Conan the Cimmerian. It was one of the last Conan stories published before Howard ...

''.

Adaptation

The story was adapted for comics in Savage Sword of Conan #44, September 1979. It was written by Roy Thomas with interior art by Sal Buscema and Tony DeZuniga with cover artwork by Bob Larkin.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Star of Khorala, The 1978 short stories Conan the Barbarian stories by L. Sprague de Camp Pulp stories Fantasy short stories