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Bohun: The Complete Savage Adventures
Egypt was still a dream in the eye of Ra, the sun-god, when Bohun of Damzullah battled his way across a forgotten empire than spanned half the world...
Collected together for the first time come these seven epic tales of sword-&-sorcery!
The Festival of the Bull. The Horror from the Stars. By Darkness Enthroned. Intrigue in Aviene. Black Sunset in the Valley of Death. Red Trail of Vengeance. Harvest of the Blood-King.
"Lots of bloody, eldritch action with an indomitable protagonist, told in a colorful style that races along. This is sword and sorcery in the classic mode and very well done." - James Reasoner (NY Times best-selling author of TEXAS WIND)
"Well-written heroic fantasy with some great fight scenes and real weirdness layered in." - Brian Murphy (author of FLAME & A HISTORY OF SWORD-&-SORCERY)
"Good, bloody fun." - Black Gate: Adventures in Fantasy Literature
Collected together for the first time come these seven epic tales of sword-&-sorcery!
The Festival of the Bull. The Horror from the Stars. By Darkness Enthroned. Intrigue in Aviene. Black Sunset in the Valley of Death. Red Trail of Vengeance. Harvest of the Blood-King.
"Lots of bloody, eldritch action with an indomitable protagonist, told in a colorful style that races along. This is sword and sorcery in the classic mode and very well done." - James Reasoner (NY Times best-selling author of TEXAS WIND)
"Well-written heroic fantasy with some great fight scenes and real weirdness layered in." - Brian Murphy (author of FLAME & A HISTORY OF SWORD-&-SORCERY)
"Good, bloody fun." - Black Gate: Adventures in Fantasy Literature
- GenresSword and SorceryFantasy
222 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 26, 2024
13 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
About the author
Steve Dilks
37 books44 followersSteve Dilks (1971- ) is an English writer. He has written SF, fantasy and horror for Pulp Hero Press, Wildside Press, Literary Rebel LLC, Rogue Blades Entertainment, Hippocampus Press, and Parallel Universe Publications.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 1, 2024
If you want to know what sword and sorcery is, read this book. Pure gold. Non stop savage adventure. I have already read several of the stories in other publications, but 2 were new to me. Steve writes sword and sorcery as well as anyone living. Highly recommend!
August 21, 2024
I really enjoyed Steve Dilks’ Bohun character. I first encountered him in Savage Realms monthly’s debut issue. I was hooked on the character right away. I’ve been looking forward to this anthology since it was announced as I had not had the chance to read every publication Bohun appeared in.
First off, the writing is top notched and bloodthirsty. It’s gripping action filled prose that will hook you. At the same time the stories take a long time to build up. There is a lot of setup but it works very well creating atmosphere and mood.
These stories feel a bit “Clonan” and I mean that in the most complementary way possible. They capture that raw machismo but at the same time have a deeper sociopolitical subtext that is both thoughtful but not overbearing. Particularly poignant to those looking for it in our current cultural landscape.
The Horror from the Stars is almost the plutonic ideal of a sword and sorcery story. It just gets the genre.
Black Sunset at the Valley of Death was really magical. It felt very spiritual, but also very Burroughs. It had that long setup that was deeply engaging that I mentioned earlier. Dilks does this so well.
This is a great anthology highly recommended.
First off, the writing is top notched and bloodthirsty. It’s gripping action filled prose that will hook you. At the same time the stories take a long time to build up. There is a lot of setup but it works very well creating atmosphere and mood.
These stories feel a bit “Clonan” and I mean that in the most complementary way possible. They capture that raw machismo but at the same time have a deeper sociopolitical subtext that is both thoughtful but not overbearing. Particularly poignant to those looking for it in our current cultural landscape.
The Horror from the Stars is almost the plutonic ideal of a sword and sorcery story. It just gets the genre.
Black Sunset at the Valley of Death was really magical. It felt very spiritual, but also very Burroughs. It had that long setup that was deeply engaging that I mentioned earlier. Dilks does this so well.
This is a great anthology highly recommended.
February 2, 2025
Also published here: https://spiraltowerpress.blogspot.com...
"Do I look like a slave to you?" Steve Dilks' Bohun: The Complete Savage Adventures and Heroic Tenacity
One of the key facets of a hero is their agency rather than their response to adversity. Heroes are protagonists; they proceed toward agony and conflict. But not all heroes fit this mold. Some heroes are less defined by their agency and more by their adversities and challenges--by the events that befall them. We recognize their heroic qualities in how they react to their fates. One of the best examples of this is in film history, First Blood (1982), a favorite growing up with me, my older and my younger brother (my parents were very half-hearted censors). Fans of this movie know: John Rambo doesn’t seek trouble. He just wants to find his friend, have a sandwich, and pass through town. Unfortunately, he encounters an overzealous local sheriff, Will Teasle, who mistakes him for a drifter, insults him, incarcerates him, and ultimately abuses him. Rambo reacts to these instigations by blowing up the entire town and maiming numerous public safety and security officers, pure 1980s action movie machismo distilled to a fine spirit. While Rambo shows agency in the end (that suturing scene!), an important narratological distinction needs to be made: in terms of inciting action, Rambo is the victim of a brutal and unfair interference in his difficult life.
Matthew Arnold, the famous Victorian critic and poet, had this to say about the most famous paragon of heroic victimhood, Odysseus (or Ulysses, rather), and the poet who sings him to life, Homer:
"[Homer] he makes Ulysses the great type of the enduring and laborious man, who, through patience, courage, sagacity, and self-control, at last succeeds. The signal characteristic of the Homeric poetry--the simplicity and self-sufficing wholeness of its heroes--is best seen in Odysseus. He is never taken out of himself, never driven out of the limits of his own character, never the prey of introspective broodings or the victim of circumstance, but always the master of himself and of fortune."
Tossed and turned, incarcerated and abused, Odysseus is definitely a heroic victim, but despite his many challenges, he is "never driven out of the limits of his own character, never the prey of introspective broodings or the victim of circumstance, but always the master of himself and of fortune." Odysseus, qua Homer, sounds a lot like the sword and sorcery hero as defined by Jason M Waltz in the introduction to his most recent sword and sorcery anthology, Neither Beg Nor Yield (2024). For Waltz, the sword and sorcery hero is defined by their heroic adversity, their tenacity: "To ardently live, not merely survive, at any cost in the face of all odds, unequal or unnatural. LIVE!-ism."
The main character of Steve Dilks’ new sword and sorcery collection, Bohun: The Complete Savage Adventures, bears a striking resemblance to the adversity-laden hero described above, epitomizes what Waltz describes as "LIVE!-ism" and what Matthew Arnold articulates as the hero being "master of himself and of fortune": a hero who has horrible things happen to them and whose character is revealed through their reactions. Of the seven stories in this anthology, most begin with Bohun unjustly incarcerated, enslaved, or otherwise placed in circumstances he did not seek out. In the first story, "Festival of the Bull," Bohun arrives in the city-state of Tharyna having escaped from a slave ship, manacles still on his arms. In the second story, "Horror from the Stars," he soon finds himself trapped in a pitfall chamber. In the third story, "By Darkness Enthroned," he fights as a mercenary conscript in the armies of Valentia. In the fourth story, "Intrigue in Aviene," he is quickly thrown into the city jail. The fifth story, "Black Sunset in the Valley of Death," offers an intriguing exception: while Bohun starts out as a prisoner and intended blood sacrifice, he swiftly escapes and, for once, acts rather than reacts, making his own decisions. In the penultimate story, "Red Trail of Vengeance," Bohun is accosted by bandits and thrown into a well. Finally, in "Harvest of the Blood King," he is again in manacles but gains a conditional release to fight in a Valentian military operation. In nearly every case, Bohun’s character is revealed through his reactions to external forces.
This structure is not unique to sword and sorcery; numerous pulp adventure stories rely on a "catch and release" narrative, perhaps best exemplified by Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter stories, where the protagonist is repeatedly imprisoned and escapes and is imprisoned again. However, Dilks’ use of this narrative structure is skillful and serves a distinct thematic purpose: it introduces us to a character who, in his heart, does not want to be a sword and sorcery hero. Despite his muscularity, his warrior prowess, Bohun just wants his wife, his domestic peace, his tranquility. He just wants to be left alone.
Over the course of these stories, we learn that Bohun’s people, the Damzullah, were destroyed. In "Festival of the Bull," he recounts his tragic past. A civil war in his homeland weakened the Damzullah, allowing their enemies, the cowardly Razuli, to attack. Later, as Bohun fled with his wife, Dana, she was captured by another group, the Gharubah. Thus, Bohun’s wandering is not fueled by curiosity or boredom, as it is for many sword and sorcery heroes. He is not a restless adventurer, but a man forced into this life through tragedy. His stories is not about the thrill of battle sought out but survival in a brutal world.
Indeed, brutality, both in war and social hierarchies, becomes a theme in the collection. One of its most striking moments of intellectual frisson comes near the end of the collection. After Bohun fights as a mercenary for the Empire of Valentia, his supposed victory leaves him disillusioned. His friend, Tiberius, a Valentian, mockingly tells him:
"'You’re heroes now […]. Freedom and gold are yours now. Let this be an end to war for all of us.'"
Bohun’s response, as he surveys the carnage, is telling:
"'Bohun glanced around at the slain children and the ravaged corpses of young mothers strewn throughout the compound. Through the smoke and burning ashes, he saw King Varak looming on his warhorse and Lucian Flava covered in white ash, looking like a specter of death.
"'As long as there are generals and kings, there will never be an end to war.'"
This is a defining moment for Bohun, an epiphany, a psychological event that brings about a change to his character. Just a few beats later, Bohun admits, "'I was not born for war.'" These words are remarkable for a sword and sorcery hero who has left a pile of bodies in his wake. Many contemporary figures in the genre--such as Willard Black’s Redgar, Matt John’s Maxus, D.M. Ritzlin’s Vran the Chaos-Warped, and Howie K. Bentley’s Eldol--are defined by agency, desire, momentum, their wild-card like ability to actually make things happen in and of themselves. But characters like Howard Andrew Jones’ Hanuvar, David C. Smith’s Hanlin, Chase A. Folmar’s Uralant and Emrasarie, and Bohun are different. They are not always reactive, but they find themselves in adventures due to circumstance rather than choice. If one major theme of sword and sorcery is the path of the self-driven adventurer dropped into an equilibrium to bring about creative disharmony, another is the reluctant warrior--the powerful quasi-martyr who responds to the brutal world's hammer falls of fate, and in ways that reveals their undeniable humanity.
Each of Bohun’s stories merits individual consideration. Without giving too much away, here are some highlights. "Festival of the Bull" features a gladiatorial battle gone awry, rich in the "dark of night" atmosphere characteristic of sword and sorcery. "Horror from the Stars" is one of the creepiest entries in the genre in recent years, featuring a monstrous transformation that lingers in the mind. "By Darkness Enthroned" is the most epic in scope, involving large-scale military conflict and compelling sorcery. "Intrigue in Aviene" is more focused on skullduggery, plotting, and assassination. "Red Trail of Vengeance," possibly my favorite, evokes the classic Western revenge film Unforgiven (1992) in its structure and themes. "Harvest of the Blood-King" feels like a final statement from Dilks on Bohun, leaving me wondering whether he is moving on from the character. But "Black Sunset in the Valley of Death" is the most enigmatic of the collection. Here, Bohun briefly integrates into a community and fights for them. In his moment of peace, the reader encounters a beautiful piece of writing that allegorizes an inherent tension in sword and sorcery: a violent, action-packed, often brutal genre that paradoxically offers relaxation, reflection, and quietude. Consider this passage, in which a wise woman tells the story of her tribe:
"'Ylarrna gave pause, and the listeners sighed, a lament that ripped through the glade. There, under the silvered moon, Bohun squatted before her on the ground. She sat high up between the two trunks of the towering trees that formed a natural throne--a throne of earth. Her stick lay across her knees, and as she looked down on the ring of listeners, her eyes were glazed with the memory of far sight. The pale stars were strewn across the heavens, and the jeweled eye in her brow radiated a soft glow. It seemed as if the listeners were dragged hypnotically into that eye now. Ylarrna’s voice began to intone again. As she did, windows of the past opened, and Bohun gazed on marvels both alien and strange.'"
This is powerful writing, and I cannot help but see it as a symbol of reading sword and sorcery itself: a moment of tranquility amid chaos, where the audience is drawn into a world of alien and strange marvels.
Steve Dilks’ Bohun stories are an impressive contribution to the genre, the collection a true accomplishment, standing alongside recent contemporary masterpieces such as David C. Smith’s Sometimes Lofty Towers (2021), Schuyler Hernstrom’s The Eye of Sounnu (2020) , and Howard Andrew Jones’ Lord of a Shattered Land (2024). In essence, Bohun's tales pay homage to the tradition of sword and sorcery while exploring the reluctant hero archetype whose advertsities reveal their worth and forge them into tempered steel. In other words, heroic power is not about control or dominance of others, the brutal tinsel crowns of status-threatened kings and generals. It's about answering that most pointed of questions posed by fate: Who are you? Bohun: "Do I look like a slave to you, dog? By T'agulla, the last man who thought as much is now holding counsel in hell!"
"Do I look like a slave to you?" Steve Dilks' Bohun: The Complete Savage Adventures and Heroic Tenacity
One of the key facets of a hero is their agency rather than their response to adversity. Heroes are protagonists; they proceed toward agony and conflict. But not all heroes fit this mold. Some heroes are less defined by their agency and more by their adversities and challenges--by the events that befall them. We recognize their heroic qualities in how they react to their fates. One of the best examples of this is in film history, First Blood (1982), a favorite growing up with me, my older and my younger brother (my parents were very half-hearted censors). Fans of this movie know: John Rambo doesn’t seek trouble. He just wants to find his friend, have a sandwich, and pass through town. Unfortunately, he encounters an overzealous local sheriff, Will Teasle, who mistakes him for a drifter, insults him, incarcerates him, and ultimately abuses him. Rambo reacts to these instigations by blowing up the entire town and maiming numerous public safety and security officers, pure 1980s action movie machismo distilled to a fine spirit. While Rambo shows agency in the end (that suturing scene!), an important narratological distinction needs to be made: in terms of inciting action, Rambo is the victim of a brutal and unfair interference in his difficult life.
Matthew Arnold, the famous Victorian critic and poet, had this to say about the most famous paragon of heroic victimhood, Odysseus (or Ulysses, rather), and the poet who sings him to life, Homer:
"[Homer] he makes Ulysses the great type of the enduring and laborious man, who, through patience, courage, sagacity, and self-control, at last succeeds. The signal characteristic of the Homeric poetry--the simplicity and self-sufficing wholeness of its heroes--is best seen in Odysseus. He is never taken out of himself, never driven out of the limits of his own character, never the prey of introspective broodings or the victim of circumstance, but always the master of himself and of fortune."
Tossed and turned, incarcerated and abused, Odysseus is definitely a heroic victim, but despite his many challenges, he is "never driven out of the limits of his own character, never the prey of introspective broodings or the victim of circumstance, but always the master of himself and of fortune." Odysseus, qua Homer, sounds a lot like the sword and sorcery hero as defined by Jason M Waltz in the introduction to his most recent sword and sorcery anthology, Neither Beg Nor Yield (2024). For Waltz, the sword and sorcery hero is defined by their heroic adversity, their tenacity: "To ardently live, not merely survive, at any cost in the face of all odds, unequal or unnatural. LIVE!-ism."
The main character of Steve Dilks’ new sword and sorcery collection, Bohun: The Complete Savage Adventures, bears a striking resemblance to the adversity-laden hero described above, epitomizes what Waltz describes as "LIVE!-ism" and what Matthew Arnold articulates as the hero being "master of himself and of fortune": a hero who has horrible things happen to them and whose character is revealed through their reactions. Of the seven stories in this anthology, most begin with Bohun unjustly incarcerated, enslaved, or otherwise placed in circumstances he did not seek out. In the first story, "Festival of the Bull," Bohun arrives in the city-state of Tharyna having escaped from a slave ship, manacles still on his arms. In the second story, "Horror from the Stars," he soon finds himself trapped in a pitfall chamber. In the third story, "By Darkness Enthroned," he fights as a mercenary conscript in the armies of Valentia. In the fourth story, "Intrigue in Aviene," he is quickly thrown into the city jail. The fifth story, "Black Sunset in the Valley of Death," offers an intriguing exception: while Bohun starts out as a prisoner and intended blood sacrifice, he swiftly escapes and, for once, acts rather than reacts, making his own decisions. In the penultimate story, "Red Trail of Vengeance," Bohun is accosted by bandits and thrown into a well. Finally, in "Harvest of the Blood King," he is again in manacles but gains a conditional release to fight in a Valentian military operation. In nearly every case, Bohun’s character is revealed through his reactions to external forces.
This structure is not unique to sword and sorcery; numerous pulp adventure stories rely on a "catch and release" narrative, perhaps best exemplified by Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter stories, where the protagonist is repeatedly imprisoned and escapes and is imprisoned again. However, Dilks’ use of this narrative structure is skillful and serves a distinct thematic purpose: it introduces us to a character who, in his heart, does not want to be a sword and sorcery hero. Despite his muscularity, his warrior prowess, Bohun just wants his wife, his domestic peace, his tranquility. He just wants to be left alone.
Over the course of these stories, we learn that Bohun’s people, the Damzullah, were destroyed. In "Festival of the Bull," he recounts his tragic past. A civil war in his homeland weakened the Damzullah, allowing their enemies, the cowardly Razuli, to attack. Later, as Bohun fled with his wife, Dana, she was captured by another group, the Gharubah. Thus, Bohun’s wandering is not fueled by curiosity or boredom, as it is for many sword and sorcery heroes. He is not a restless adventurer, but a man forced into this life through tragedy. His stories is not about the thrill of battle sought out but survival in a brutal world.
Indeed, brutality, both in war and social hierarchies, becomes a theme in the collection. One of its most striking moments of intellectual frisson comes near the end of the collection. After Bohun fights as a mercenary for the Empire of Valentia, his supposed victory leaves him disillusioned. His friend, Tiberius, a Valentian, mockingly tells him:
"'You’re heroes now […]. Freedom and gold are yours now. Let this be an end to war for all of us.'"
Bohun’s response, as he surveys the carnage, is telling:
"'Bohun glanced around at the slain children and the ravaged corpses of young mothers strewn throughout the compound. Through the smoke and burning ashes, he saw King Varak looming on his warhorse and Lucian Flava covered in white ash, looking like a specter of death.
"'As long as there are generals and kings, there will never be an end to war.'"
This is a defining moment for Bohun, an epiphany, a psychological event that brings about a change to his character. Just a few beats later, Bohun admits, "'I was not born for war.'" These words are remarkable for a sword and sorcery hero who has left a pile of bodies in his wake. Many contemporary figures in the genre--such as Willard Black’s Redgar, Matt John’s Maxus, D.M. Ritzlin’s Vran the Chaos-Warped, and Howie K. Bentley’s Eldol--are defined by agency, desire, momentum, their wild-card like ability to actually make things happen in and of themselves. But characters like Howard Andrew Jones’ Hanuvar, David C. Smith’s Hanlin, Chase A. Folmar’s Uralant and Emrasarie, and Bohun are different. They are not always reactive, but they find themselves in adventures due to circumstance rather than choice. If one major theme of sword and sorcery is the path of the self-driven adventurer dropped into an equilibrium to bring about creative disharmony, another is the reluctant warrior--the powerful quasi-martyr who responds to the brutal world's hammer falls of fate, and in ways that reveals their undeniable humanity.
Each of Bohun’s stories merits individual consideration. Without giving too much away, here are some highlights. "Festival of the Bull" features a gladiatorial battle gone awry, rich in the "dark of night" atmosphere characteristic of sword and sorcery. "Horror from the Stars" is one of the creepiest entries in the genre in recent years, featuring a monstrous transformation that lingers in the mind. "By Darkness Enthroned" is the most epic in scope, involving large-scale military conflict and compelling sorcery. "Intrigue in Aviene" is more focused on skullduggery, plotting, and assassination. "Red Trail of Vengeance," possibly my favorite, evokes the classic Western revenge film Unforgiven (1992) in its structure and themes. "Harvest of the Blood-King" feels like a final statement from Dilks on Bohun, leaving me wondering whether he is moving on from the character. But "Black Sunset in the Valley of Death" is the most enigmatic of the collection. Here, Bohun briefly integrates into a community and fights for them. In his moment of peace, the reader encounters a beautiful piece of writing that allegorizes an inherent tension in sword and sorcery: a violent, action-packed, often brutal genre that paradoxically offers relaxation, reflection, and quietude. Consider this passage, in which a wise woman tells the story of her tribe:
"'Ylarrna gave pause, and the listeners sighed, a lament that ripped through the glade. There, under the silvered moon, Bohun squatted before her on the ground. She sat high up between the two trunks of the towering trees that formed a natural throne--a throne of earth. Her stick lay across her knees, and as she looked down on the ring of listeners, her eyes were glazed with the memory of far sight. The pale stars were strewn across the heavens, and the jeweled eye in her brow radiated a soft glow. It seemed as if the listeners were dragged hypnotically into that eye now. Ylarrna’s voice began to intone again. As she did, windows of the past opened, and Bohun gazed on marvels both alien and strange.'"
This is powerful writing, and I cannot help but see it as a symbol of reading sword and sorcery itself: a moment of tranquility amid chaos, where the audience is drawn into a world of alien and strange marvels.
Steve Dilks’ Bohun stories are an impressive contribution to the genre, the collection a true accomplishment, standing alongside recent contemporary masterpieces such as David C. Smith’s Sometimes Lofty Towers (2021), Schuyler Hernstrom’s The Eye of Sounnu (2020) , and Howard Andrew Jones’ Lord of a Shattered Land (2024). In essence, Bohun's tales pay homage to the tradition of sword and sorcery while exploring the reluctant hero archetype whose advertsities reveal their worth and forge them into tempered steel. In other words, heroic power is not about control or dominance of others, the brutal tinsel crowns of status-threatened kings and generals. It's about answering that most pointed of questions posed by fate: Who are you? Bohun: "Do I look like a slave to you, dog? By T'agulla, the last man who thought as much is now holding counsel in hell!"
January 28, 2025
Unfortunately, this author doesn't know how to spell hyphenated words correctly at all. He hyphenates words that don't need to be, and doesn't hyphenate words that need hyphens (I give examples in the comments. I don't have enough characters left in this review to put them in the actual review). His characters often do not know what they are doing until they are not doing it (in one scene, a man didn't know he was drowning until he wasn't). His stories often have very little plot and his secondary characters rarely act logically. One story was great. I'll give him that. If it were ever published with corrected spelling, I'd love to see that in a collection.
“A Stranger from the Dark” is the first story. Bohun climbs out of the sea, up a huge wall, and mounts the wall. My favorite Conan story is “The People of the Black Circle,” and I love the moment Conan appears to the governor, having climbed a bastion. Likewise, Conan’s appearance in “Pool of the Black One,” where he appears out of the ocean unexpectedly. This moment has shades of both of those moments in it. Loved it. Great opening for this character.
He rescues a girl. She takes Bohun to where she was going to meet a lover for a tryst (I wonder why this lover doesn’t show up at all. You’d think he was on his way there from another direction, or already there, but he is Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Story). So, the girl tries to get it on with Bohun, but Bohun says he is too tired (well, he did escape a chained oar-line, swim a fair piece, climb a big ass wall, fight some dudes, flee for his life, fight some more dudes, and tell a backstory). The girl seems okay with it (because of logic) and goes with her eunuch while he rests up for later. Then the girl comes back, all pissed because she now inexplicably thinks the tired claim is nonsense, so she gives him drugged wine, which knocks him out.
Women, right? If they have a headache, you must just accept it, but if you say you are too tired because you escaped slavery, swam into a harbor, climbed a vertical wall, fought some guards, fled through a foreign city, rescued a girl from more dudes by fighting them, and then told your back story, well… that’s just not good enough. How dare you ask to rest first! Of course she’s going to feel rejected. Bohun should have known better. Just perform and rest when she’s satisfied.
Seriously, I do not understand the change in the Lady’s demeanor. His request for a bit of rest wasn’t unreasonable. He wasn’t rude. I think drugging him for asking her let him rest was an overreaction. I’m guessing the author just needed a fade-to-black scene change. I’m really not getting a handle on the Lady’s personality beyond “batshit crazy.” She does inexplicable evil things to someone who rescued her because… well, she’s the bad guy. It felt like the author just needed to get the guy in chains and in front of a leopard, so he just made it happen. I mean, Bohun was already in chains – the author could have just have had the guards capture him right after he rescued Elissa. Or given us some reason for Lady Elissa to change her tune like that.
Bohun wakes up chained again (he just got the last chains off!), but this time the chains are made of gold. Luckily, gold makes for poor chains. It’s a pretty soft, malleable metal. You’d think whoever forged them would have warned the nobles that while gold chains are okay for bedroom use, don’t try using them on prisoners. The smith might have suggested just gold-plating some stronger metal. Or he could have pointed out that prisoners don’t need to accessorize in gold.
However, when Bohun breaks the chains, it surprises everyone (except the smith, who was probably in the back, snickering). One noble, Atreus, even exclaims, “By Hellos! Those chains were of solid gold!”
Anyway, now he must fight a leopard. I am not sure it was meant to be an actual fight, given Bohun was chained and not given a weapon, but Atreus did ask the people of Tharnya “Shall we let these beasts fight… to the death?” They said yes, but they still had Bohun chained and weaponless. I feel like “execution by animal” was the actual intent.
Bohun steals a sword, kills the eunuch, kidnaps the Lady, disrobes a slave, kills some guards, and jumps out of a window.
I like Bohun. He’s blustery and likes to tell stories, but we don’t really get to know him well in this story in terms of his personality. Virtually none of his thoughts on what was going on was offered. This story was about hitting the beats and tropes of an adventure story, but it had no intention of going on beyond that. It also didn’t feel like Sword & Sorcery. There was no eldritch anything here. I guess the book is advertised as “savage adventures,” so maybe I incorrectly assumed it was going to be Sword & Sorcery.
I did like the ending. That was a just end for Lady Elissa. I doubt the desert people will listen to any claims about her being tired either.
“The Horror from the Stars” is the second story. If it were not for the horrible spelling and grammar errors throughout the story, this story would be AWESOME. Honestly, if the errors were corrected (and a few weird ways of phrasing things), I’d have nothing negative to say about this story. It’s fantastic. I got a much better sense of who Bohun was from this story. I LOVED the descriptions of the fights. The monsters were genuinely horrifying. The ending was satisfying. There were sacrifices made, weird sorceries, savage battles, worthy enemies, and horrible monsters. On a scale of 1 to “Sword & Sorcery,” this story achieved “Sword & Sorcery.” Worthy to be in any collection – if, and only if, the spelling and grammar errors are corrected.
The soldiers kill the Vizier for helping the Sultan. Then we have a Wizard of Oz moment when the guards tell Bohun they killed theWicked Witch Sultan and to please take her broom his sword and take it with him.
“By Darkness Enthroned” is the third story. Now we have Tibeirus, “…before he realized he was drowning, broke the surface.” Okay. If he broke the surface BEFORE he realized he was drowning, he probably wasn’t drowning. WTF. That is seriously weird phrasing. That’s like me saying, “Before I realized I was broke, I left the bookstore without buying the book I wanted.” Okay… That’s such a weird way of saying… nothing. He broke the surface and had air BEFORE he realized he might need air. Great.
Already, I have no sympathy for anyone in this story. I don’t know who is in the wrong. I don’t know what they are fighting for. Also, they see a woman up on the cliffs and they note that she doesn't seem joyful. Why would she be joyful? If the soldiers invading the shores of Normandy saw a woman on a cliff, would they notice or be surprised that she wasn't joyful?
“As the ships drew closer, the range of the catapults increased…” (p. 63). The range? Does he mean the accuracy? Why would the range change based on the proximity of the ships? A catapult has a range and it’s calculated based on the launch angle, the velocity of the projectile, and gravitational acceleration. Nowhere in that calculation is “distance to the target.” A ship drawing closer has no impact on the catapult’s range. Now, the waves and the roll of the ship could change the launch angle, which would impact range, but that is also independent of distance from the target. Maybe he meant that as the ships got closer, more of the catapults came into effective range. The range isn’t increasing. The target is just getting within range.
“How long Tibeirus Varro fought, he never knew. He was only aware the battle had ceased when he heard a man shouting his name." I envision this guy swinging his sword at nothing, completely oblivious that the battle is over and he has no one to fight. Seriously, this author loves to have his characters not be aware of the passage of time, or even aware of what they are doing until they are no longer doing it.
This story hinges around a villain who is so stereotypically villainous that you wonder that he has even lasted this long. It also hinges around the "superior being enslaved by an inferior" trope. And you know how this trope ends: Magical entities have a habit of breaking out and slaughtering their captors.
In the real world, differences are punished unless they are exploitable in some way, in which case they are rewarded. If you are stronger than everyone else, you will typically be chosen for the playground teams. If you are prettier than normal, you’ll be treated well by everyone who isn’t being oppressed. These differences are never oppressed. There are occasional exceptions, but the rule holds true in most cases. Magic, as it is portrayed in fiction, is almost always exploitable. Indeed, Xenias does exploit the magical entity. Mages would be loved and showered in accolades, not despised for their differences. It would make more sense to treat her like a goddess. Oppression flows from power, not toward it. The story would make more sense if the siren was the evil lord, and oppressing the humans. Bullies oppress the weak, not the strong. This dynamic makes no sense.
Bohun meets a goddess who decides Bohun will carry out the slaughter she has deemed necessary for the death of the magical being. She gives him a ghostly companion and a magic sword. He doesn’t do anything to earn these tokens or aids. They are just given to him. He didn’t quest for them, he didn’t have to do anything. He’s strong and mighty, so stuff is just given to him (see my comments on oppression above – even though he’s black, he has an exploitable power, so he is rewarded). That is how it works, folks.
This whole story is resolved because of invincible magical swords being distributed and so on. Nothing in the story hinges on Bohun's actual attributes or efforts. Bohun isn’t really awesome in this one. He shows up, is given a vorpal sword, uses it without a problem and without fear, and wraps everything up way too easily. The whole siren storyline could have been handled better, and the fearsome sword of Ungg was a big nothing. The evil lord gets depressed when he’s handed all the awesome stuff, which is probably why he lost. Bohun just used the awesome stuff he was given. The evil lord actually had to work for his awesome stuff, and it depressed him once he had it.
There were no stakes. What happens if the attack fails? Well, the main attack fleet was on its way, so nothing really. What happens if Tibeirus dies? Another officer takes command. What happens if Bohun fails? Well, he can’t because a goddess is backing him – it’s a sure thing – so this option won’t happen.
“Intrigue in Aviene” is the fourth story. Bohun comes to town and looks for a restaurant. A man who is foppish arrives.
The author goes to the “School of Redundancy School” and tells us what foppish means right after using the word. “The fellow was slim and foppish, dressed in expensive garments.” Any idea what “foppish” means? Yep. It basically means “dressed in expensive garments.” The second part of that sentence offered no new information. That’s like describing an event as “ephemeral, lasting but a fleeting moment.” Well, duh, that’s what ephemeral means.
They give each other the high-sign, and then correctly hyphenates some words. Yay! The foppish guy wants to hire Bohun as an assassin. Then three bullies show up and pick a fight for no reason.
Seriously. I am going to get on my soapbox here. This is another stupid thing modern S&S authors seems to want to write. The bullies who attack the protagonist for no reason just so the protagonist can show how amazing he is at combat. Basically, the author doesn’t know how to realistically portray people, and cannot plot, so they bring in the bullies, without ever understanding the bullies.
There have been studies that show that criminals can pick out victims easily. Body language and so on informs them. They’ve put people in groups and just had them walk around, and had the criminals pick out who they would victimize. In every case, they chose people who had already been victimized or were frequent victims. They had “victim” body language. The criminals never, ever chose the people who would or could fight back. NO ONE would choose to pick a random fight with Bohun.
I’m going to repeat that. NO ONE would choose to pick a random fight with Bohun. He’s not a victim waiting to happen. Bullies operate from a position of strength. They know who is going to bow and scrape, and who is not. Even if they can’t consciously talk themselves through their choice, they know.
This is LAZY plotting and I hate it. Seriously, no one is going to mug Bohan, bully Bohan, or rape Bohan. Or anyone he is with. They are going to steer clear. Even if they are drunk, they are not going to. So this scene is NONSENSE. It was put in by a lazy writer who doesn’t understand psychology, leadership, or behavior. Also, I learned that the way to stop bullies is to stop WALKING LIKE A VICTIM. Learned that in gradeschool. Walk like you don’t give a damn and have a purpose, and people leave you alone. Well, Bohun would walk, sit, talk, and move like that. No one is going to pick a random fight with Bohan.
EVER.
Then guards come in with crossbows to arrest Bohun, as though he was the one in the wrong. Sorry folks. Most police and guards are better at sizing up a situation better than that. They’d know a man like Bohun didn’t start the random bar fight.
Okay, so Bohun is in jail now. Whoopdee doo. Notice Bohun takes no part in the trivial squabbles of the prisoners. He knows he can kick their ass, so why bother? It’s this attitude that would have alerted the guards to the actual nature of the altercation, but for some reason Sword & Sorcery guards are the dumbest people on the planet.
Someone tries to recruit Bohun into their cult. This is dumb. I don’t know even know what the point of that episode was. All this is doing is delaying the plot that was set up with the fop trying to hire Bohun to assassinate someone.
He’s sold into slavery, and the he bursts into action! I honestly think this is just lazy plotting again because I honestly don’t see how this advances ANY plot. This isn’t "Captain Blood." I don’t see how participating in a bar fight warrants slavery as a punishment, but nothing in this story makes any sense. Can we at least have a passing reference to a legal system? Were the other people involved in the bar fight sentenced to enslavement? Or did they join the cult to get out of the punishment?
He leaves the city. Seriously. This is the entire story. No sorcery. Just random sword fights. For no reason. None of these fights advance a plot or a story. A capture that leads to nothing. Nonsense bullying. Nonsense capturing. Nonsense fighting. This whole story was a big nothing. It was a big bunch of nonsense written by an author who can’t hyphenate correctly.
Bohun goes to town, and is forced out of it. That’s the sum of this story. In between, we get a bunch of combat because the author wanted to write fight scenes. None of the fights advance the plot. All of them require the antagonists to behave stupidly.
“Black Sunset in the Valley of Death” is next. I’m guessing it’s set in California. Bohun is captured again, but this time on a ziggurat and he has to remember why he’s there. He screams but he doesn’t know he is screaming until he can’t scream. I don’t understand why that sentence needs to be there. “It was only then that he realized he had been screaming.” Just delete that. It’s like the guy in a previous story who didn’t know he was drowning until he wasn’t. Here, Bohun doesn’t know he was screaming until he wasn’t.
Then an arrow saves Bohun. Great. Bohun doesn’t save himself. Also, he has invisible chains and visible ones? Long descriptions of Bohun killing random mooks. He doesn’t even save his men (who are also captured). He flees. Leaving his men to their fates. He then doesn’t know how long he ran.
Bohun makes a spear with some obsidian and a stick, then uses sap as an adhesive. However, unless one directly applies heat, sap takes 2-4 years to harden. Sure, it’ll be sticky, but that’s not the same. Plus the sap would probably slowly drip down the shaft and make Bohun’s hands sticky, which could be a problem if he needs to throw the spear.
Blackberries are one word, not two. Bohun eats the blackberries, letting juice dribble down his chin like he’s in a George R. R. Martin book. Or maybe he learned how to eat from watching Denethor eat a cherry tomato in the movie version of The Lord of the Rings.
“Bohun was never sure how long he dwelled there among the strange folk of the trees.” Well, I am not surprised by this. This author loves keeping his characters in the dark about how long they are doing things or that they are doing things at all. I am not sure why this motif is so beloved by the author or what purpose it serves him.
Well, Bohun is pulling a Captain Kirk right now, the one who adopted the identity of "Kirok" and lived among a Native American-like tribe on a planet called Amerind (“The Paradise Syndrome”). And, like Kirk, Bohun eventually remembers who he was.
The final fight was decent. I liked the monster.
For all of Bohun being a rare Black character in Sword & Sorcery, it'd be nice if he had some kind of pseudo-African character traits or practices. He's just a generic "barbarian." It put it in quotes because he is a generic Conan-Clone. Worse, he has virtually no personality aside from "tough guy" and "generic barbarian." I'll hit the rest of the stories in the comments.
“A Stranger from the Dark” is the first story. Bohun climbs out of the sea, up a huge wall, and mounts the wall. My favorite Conan story is “The People of the Black Circle,” and I love the moment Conan appears to the governor, having climbed a bastion. Likewise, Conan’s appearance in “Pool of the Black One,” where he appears out of the ocean unexpectedly. This moment has shades of both of those moments in it. Loved it. Great opening for this character.
He rescues a girl. She takes Bohun to where she was going to meet a lover for a tryst (I wonder why this lover doesn’t show up at all. You’d think he was on his way there from another direction, or already there, but he is Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Story). So, the girl tries to get it on with Bohun, but Bohun says he is too tired (well, he did escape a chained oar-line, swim a fair piece, climb a big ass wall, fight some dudes, flee for his life, fight some more dudes, and tell a backstory). The girl seems okay with it (because of logic) and goes with her eunuch while he rests up for later. Then the girl comes back, all pissed because she now inexplicably thinks the tired claim is nonsense, so she gives him drugged wine, which knocks him out.
Women, right? If they have a headache, you must just accept it, but if you say you are too tired because you escaped slavery, swam into a harbor, climbed a vertical wall, fought some guards, fled through a foreign city, rescued a girl from more dudes by fighting them, and then told your back story, well… that’s just not good enough. How dare you ask to rest first! Of course she’s going to feel rejected. Bohun should have known better. Just perform and rest when she’s satisfied.
Seriously, I do not understand the change in the Lady’s demeanor. His request for a bit of rest wasn’t unreasonable. He wasn’t rude. I think drugging him for asking her let him rest was an overreaction. I’m guessing the author just needed a fade-to-black scene change. I’m really not getting a handle on the Lady’s personality beyond “batshit crazy.” She does inexplicable evil things to someone who rescued her because… well, she’s the bad guy. It felt like the author just needed to get the guy in chains and in front of a leopard, so he just made it happen. I mean, Bohun was already in chains – the author could have just have had the guards capture him right after he rescued Elissa. Or given us some reason for Lady Elissa to change her tune like that.
Bohun wakes up chained again (he just got the last chains off!), but this time the chains are made of gold. Luckily, gold makes for poor chains. It’s a pretty soft, malleable metal. You’d think whoever forged them would have warned the nobles that while gold chains are okay for bedroom use, don’t try using them on prisoners. The smith might have suggested just gold-plating some stronger metal. Or he could have pointed out that prisoners don’t need to accessorize in gold.
However, when Bohun breaks the chains, it surprises everyone (except the smith, who was probably in the back, snickering). One noble, Atreus, even exclaims, “By Hellos! Those chains were of solid gold!”
Anyway, now he must fight a leopard. I am not sure it was meant to be an actual fight, given Bohun was chained and not given a weapon, but Atreus did ask the people of Tharnya “Shall we let these beasts fight… to the death?” They said yes, but they still had Bohun chained and weaponless. I feel like “execution by animal” was the actual intent.
Bohun steals a sword, kills the eunuch, kidnaps the Lady, disrobes a slave, kills some guards, and jumps out of a window.
I like Bohun. He’s blustery and likes to tell stories, but we don’t really get to know him well in this story in terms of his personality. Virtually none of his thoughts on what was going on was offered. This story was about hitting the beats and tropes of an adventure story, but it had no intention of going on beyond that. It also didn’t feel like Sword & Sorcery. There was no eldritch anything here. I guess the book is advertised as “savage adventures,” so maybe I incorrectly assumed it was going to be Sword & Sorcery.
I did like the ending. That was a just end for Lady Elissa. I doubt the desert people will listen to any claims about her being tired either.
“The Horror from the Stars” is the second story. If it were not for the horrible spelling and grammar errors throughout the story, this story would be AWESOME. Honestly, if the errors were corrected (and a few weird ways of phrasing things), I’d have nothing negative to say about this story. It’s fantastic. I got a much better sense of who Bohun was from this story. I LOVED the descriptions of the fights. The monsters were genuinely horrifying. The ending was satisfying. There were sacrifices made, weird sorceries, savage battles, worthy enemies, and horrible monsters. On a scale of 1 to “Sword & Sorcery,” this story achieved “Sword & Sorcery.” Worthy to be in any collection – if, and only if, the spelling and grammar errors are corrected.
The soldiers kill the Vizier for helping the Sultan. Then we have a Wizard of Oz moment when the guards tell Bohun they killed the
“By Darkness Enthroned” is the third story. Now we have Tibeirus, “…before he realized he was drowning, broke the surface.” Okay. If he broke the surface BEFORE he realized he was drowning, he probably wasn’t drowning. WTF. That is seriously weird phrasing. That’s like me saying, “Before I realized I was broke, I left the bookstore without buying the book I wanted.” Okay… That’s such a weird way of saying… nothing. He broke the surface and had air BEFORE he realized he might need air. Great.
Already, I have no sympathy for anyone in this story. I don’t know who is in the wrong. I don’t know what they are fighting for. Also, they see a woman up on the cliffs and they note that she doesn't seem joyful. Why would she be joyful? If the soldiers invading the shores of Normandy saw a woman on a cliff, would they notice or be surprised that she wasn't joyful?
“As the ships drew closer, the range of the catapults increased…” (p. 63). The range? Does he mean the accuracy? Why would the range change based on the proximity of the ships? A catapult has a range and it’s calculated based on the launch angle, the velocity of the projectile, and gravitational acceleration. Nowhere in that calculation is “distance to the target.” A ship drawing closer has no impact on the catapult’s range. Now, the waves and the roll of the ship could change the launch angle, which would impact range, but that is also independent of distance from the target. Maybe he meant that as the ships got closer, more of the catapults came into effective range. The range isn’t increasing. The target is just getting within range.
“How long Tibeirus Varro fought, he never knew. He was only aware the battle had ceased when he heard a man shouting his name." I envision this guy swinging his sword at nothing, completely oblivious that the battle is over and he has no one to fight. Seriously, this author loves to have his characters not be aware of the passage of time, or even aware of what they are doing until they are no longer doing it.
This story hinges around a villain who is so stereotypically villainous that you wonder that he has even lasted this long. It also hinges around the "superior being enslaved by an inferior" trope. And you know how this trope ends: Magical entities have a habit of breaking out and slaughtering their captors.
In the real world, differences are punished unless they are exploitable in some way, in which case they are rewarded. If you are stronger than everyone else, you will typically be chosen for the playground teams. If you are prettier than normal, you’ll be treated well by everyone who isn’t being oppressed. These differences are never oppressed. There are occasional exceptions, but the rule holds true in most cases. Magic, as it is portrayed in fiction, is almost always exploitable. Indeed, Xenias does exploit the magical entity. Mages would be loved and showered in accolades, not despised for their differences. It would make more sense to treat her like a goddess. Oppression flows from power, not toward it. The story would make more sense if the siren was the evil lord, and oppressing the humans. Bullies oppress the weak, not the strong. This dynamic makes no sense.
Bohun meets a goddess who decides Bohun will carry out the slaughter she has deemed necessary for the death of the magical being. She gives him a ghostly companion and a magic sword. He doesn’t do anything to earn these tokens or aids. They are just given to him. He didn’t quest for them, he didn’t have to do anything. He’s strong and mighty, so stuff is just given to him (see my comments on oppression above – even though he’s black, he has an exploitable power, so he is rewarded). That is how it works, folks.
This whole story is resolved because of invincible magical swords being distributed and so on. Nothing in the story hinges on Bohun's actual attributes or efforts. Bohun isn’t really awesome in this one. He shows up, is given a vorpal sword, uses it without a problem and without fear, and wraps everything up way too easily. The whole siren storyline could have been handled better, and the fearsome sword of Ungg was a big nothing. The evil lord gets depressed when he’s handed all the awesome stuff, which is probably why he lost. Bohun just used the awesome stuff he was given. The evil lord actually had to work for his awesome stuff, and it depressed him once he had it.
There were no stakes. What happens if the attack fails? Well, the main attack fleet was on its way, so nothing really. What happens if Tibeirus dies? Another officer takes command. What happens if Bohun fails? Well, he can’t because a goddess is backing him – it’s a sure thing – so this option won’t happen.
“Intrigue in Aviene” is the fourth story. Bohun comes to town and looks for a restaurant. A man who is foppish arrives.
The author goes to the “School of Redundancy School” and tells us what foppish means right after using the word. “The fellow was slim and foppish, dressed in expensive garments.” Any idea what “foppish” means? Yep. It basically means “dressed in expensive garments.” The second part of that sentence offered no new information. That’s like describing an event as “ephemeral, lasting but a fleeting moment.” Well, duh, that’s what ephemeral means.
They give each other the high-sign, and then correctly hyphenates some words. Yay! The foppish guy wants to hire Bohun as an assassin. Then three bullies show up and pick a fight for no reason.
Seriously. I am going to get on my soapbox here. This is another stupid thing modern S&S authors seems to want to write. The bullies who attack the protagonist for no reason just so the protagonist can show how amazing he is at combat. Basically, the author doesn’t know how to realistically portray people, and cannot plot, so they bring in the bullies, without ever understanding the bullies.
There have been studies that show that criminals can pick out victims easily. Body language and so on informs them. They’ve put people in groups and just had them walk around, and had the criminals pick out who they would victimize. In every case, they chose people who had already been victimized or were frequent victims. They had “victim” body language. The criminals never, ever chose the people who would or could fight back. NO ONE would choose to pick a random fight with Bohun.
I’m going to repeat that. NO ONE would choose to pick a random fight with Bohun. He’s not a victim waiting to happen. Bullies operate from a position of strength. They know who is going to bow and scrape, and who is not. Even if they can’t consciously talk themselves through their choice, they know.
This is LAZY plotting and I hate it. Seriously, no one is going to mug Bohan, bully Bohan, or rape Bohan. Or anyone he is with. They are going to steer clear. Even if they are drunk, they are not going to. So this scene is NONSENSE. It was put in by a lazy writer who doesn’t understand psychology, leadership, or behavior. Also, I learned that the way to stop bullies is to stop WALKING LIKE A VICTIM. Learned that in gradeschool. Walk like you don’t give a damn and have a purpose, and people leave you alone. Well, Bohun would walk, sit, talk, and move like that. No one is going to pick a random fight with Bohan.
EVER.
Then guards come in with crossbows to arrest Bohun, as though he was the one in the wrong. Sorry folks. Most police and guards are better at sizing up a situation better than that. They’d know a man like Bohun didn’t start the random bar fight.
Okay, so Bohun is in jail now. Whoopdee doo. Notice Bohun takes no part in the trivial squabbles of the prisoners. He knows he can kick their ass, so why bother? It’s this attitude that would have alerted the guards to the actual nature of the altercation, but for some reason Sword & Sorcery guards are the dumbest people on the planet.
Someone tries to recruit Bohun into their cult. This is dumb. I don’t know even know what the point of that episode was. All this is doing is delaying the plot that was set up with the fop trying to hire Bohun to assassinate someone.
He’s sold into slavery, and the he bursts into action! I honestly think this is just lazy plotting again because I honestly don’t see how this advances ANY plot. This isn’t "Captain Blood." I don’t see how participating in a bar fight warrants slavery as a punishment, but nothing in this story makes any sense. Can we at least have a passing reference to a legal system? Were the other people involved in the bar fight sentenced to enslavement? Or did they join the cult to get out of the punishment?
He leaves the city. Seriously. This is the entire story. No sorcery. Just random sword fights. For no reason. None of these fights advance a plot or a story. A capture that leads to nothing. Nonsense bullying. Nonsense capturing. Nonsense fighting. This whole story was a big nothing. It was a big bunch of nonsense written by an author who can’t hyphenate correctly.
Bohun goes to town, and is forced out of it. That’s the sum of this story. In between, we get a bunch of combat because the author wanted to write fight scenes. None of the fights advance the plot. All of them require the antagonists to behave stupidly.
“Black Sunset in the Valley of Death” is next. I’m guessing it’s set in California. Bohun is captured again, but this time on a ziggurat and he has to remember why he’s there. He screams but he doesn’t know he is screaming until he can’t scream. I don’t understand why that sentence needs to be there. “It was only then that he realized he had been screaming.” Just delete that. It’s like the guy in a previous story who didn’t know he was drowning until he wasn’t. Here, Bohun doesn’t know he was screaming until he wasn’t.
Then an arrow saves Bohun. Great. Bohun doesn’t save himself. Also, he has invisible chains and visible ones? Long descriptions of Bohun killing random mooks. He doesn’t even save his men (who are also captured). He flees. Leaving his men to their fates. He then doesn’t know how long he ran.
Bohun makes a spear with some obsidian and a stick, then uses sap as an adhesive. However, unless one directly applies heat, sap takes 2-4 years to harden. Sure, it’ll be sticky, but that’s not the same. Plus the sap would probably slowly drip down the shaft and make Bohun’s hands sticky, which could be a problem if he needs to throw the spear.
Blackberries are one word, not two. Bohun eats the blackberries, letting juice dribble down his chin like he’s in a George R. R. Martin book. Or maybe he learned how to eat from watching Denethor eat a cherry tomato in the movie version of The Lord of the Rings.
“Bohun was never sure how long he dwelled there among the strange folk of the trees.” Well, I am not surprised by this. This author loves keeping his characters in the dark about how long they are doing things or that they are doing things at all. I am not sure why this motif is so beloved by the author or what purpose it serves him.
Well, Bohun is pulling a Captain Kirk right now, the one who adopted the identity of "Kirok" and lived among a Native American-like tribe on a planet called Amerind (“The Paradise Syndrome”). And, like Kirk, Bohun eventually remembers who he was.
The final fight was decent. I liked the monster.
For all of Bohun being a rare Black character in Sword & Sorcery, it'd be nice if he had some kind of pseudo-African character traits or practices. He's just a generic "barbarian." It put it in quotes because he is a generic Conan-Clone. Worse, he has virtually no personality aside from "tough guy" and "generic barbarian." I'll hit the rest of the stories in the comments.
September 16, 2024
Okay, this was just fun! Very Howardian, as others have pointed out, but just a load of fun. Good action, interesting characters and settings, and tons of despots, diabolical monsters, demons and magicians to be hewed through by our hero.
August 15, 2025
If you're Conan Lancer paperbacks are ragged and falling apart from multiple readings, these Bohun tales should be required reading. Even if you're a Sword & Sorcery snob, of which there are many, I urge you to place these Bohun tales at the top of your reading list. Absolutely great stuff. It's not that Steve Dilks is purposefully trying to emulate Robert E. Howard's writing style, but these stories are THAT GOOD and hearken back to Howard's Conan stories and other great sword & sorcery fare. There is an economy of words and action here. Often, sentences will pop right out at you and sear themselves into your brain. Steve Dilks is not Robert E. Howard, but in these Bohun tales the mechanics and prose of Howard weave throughout the passages like wisps of fog.
- FESTIVAL OF THE BULL - this is the first tale in this Bohun collection, and it was first published in Savage Realms #1, a magnificent magazine. This is my second time reading this tale and I must say that the ending is dark but rewarding and a real banger.
- THE HORROR FROM THE STARS - this is the third time I've read this short story, and I have to say that it may be Steve Dilks overall best work. If John Carpenter's The Thing and Invasion of the Body Snatchers had a love child, it would be The Horror From the Stars. Crisp, engaging, expertly written, this tale should have been nominated for an award somewhere. It's criminal that it doesn't get more recognition. It is an absolute MUST READ. If you have not read this, I suggest you drop what you're doing, leave work, stop making love to your partner, put off house chores, and sit down with your favorite beverage and read this story. Extremely strong. Dilks delivers a perfect ending and serves to paint Bohun as a tragic figure. If you want to measure this author against past and current greats, I suggest you read this offering.
- DARKNESS ENTHRONED - first published in Schlock! Webzine #24 and #25 finds Bohun embroiled in a web of dark vengeance. It is an original tale rife with sorcery and magical blades. While The Horror From the Stars did feature a terrifying alien parasite, the stories thus far, including the one that follows this one, have centered on the evil that resides within man. A tale burgeoning with dark magics and eldritch blades expands upon what we might see in Bohun's world and does not diminish the character. I loved the Witch-kings of Ungg in this story.
- INTRIGUE IN AVIENNE - is a shorter tale that finds Bohn involved in dirty politics. I love tales featuring strange monsters, alien entities, terrifying undead, but I find that some of the best stories are merely those that feature the evil that men do. Sometimes man with all of his cruelty can be the most terrifying monster of all. Dilks is in high form again in a tale that was first published in Heroic Fantasy Quarterly #48.
I am struck with the similarities between Howard Andrew Jones' Hanuvar Chronicles and Steve Dilks' Bohun adventures. Both featuring authors that are on top of their game with strong writing, great characters in a wonderful "fix-up" collection of tales that tell a larger story.
- BLACK SUNSET IN THE VALLEY OF DEATH - was first published in Savage Realms Monthly #10 and it was my second time reading this outstanding story. This one channeled Predator a bit for me - the ending was extremely suspenseful. A strong Bohun story.
- RED TRAIL OF VENGEANCE - was first published in Savage Realms Monthly #28. This was my first time reading this particular story as I am not yet caught up with current Savage Realms issues. This story is the epitome of why a good western and a sword & sorcery story can be compared and talked about in the same breath. In this tale Bohun crosses paths with a bunch who beats him up and throws him down a well. The only thing they didn't do was kill his dog. The ending of this tale of vengeance is reminiscent of Gunfight at the OK Corral. An extremely strong story
- HARVEST OF THE BLOOD KING - was first published in Jason Waltz's magnum opus; Neither Beg Nor Yield. I have yet to read this crowning achievement and thus, this is my first time reading this story. This last tale is an extremely strong outing for Mr. Dilks. This tale vies with The Horror from the Stars for my absolute favorite Bohun story. Every single one of the supporting cast members leap out at you here. The story was creative and engaging and one of the rare stories that have you gasping and worried about what might happen to each of the characters. There was a moment where I asked myself; 'How do they get out of this one - DO THEY get out of this one?' An absolute tour de force.
How is this author not winning awards or garnering nominations? This collection of stories are that good. 5 out of 5 stars! ALL of these stories are extremely entertaining and well written and move at a breakneck pace. The last three stories in the group were so strong, that there was a momentum building equivalent to that of a runaway train. It was like a crescendo in your favorite orchestra piece. The book goes out with the equivalent of a mic drop by the esteemed Mr. Dilks. I was breathless and sad all at the same time as I closed the book.
- FESTIVAL OF THE BULL - this is the first tale in this Bohun collection, and it was first published in Savage Realms #1, a magnificent magazine. This is my second time reading this tale and I must say that the ending is dark but rewarding and a real banger.
- THE HORROR FROM THE STARS - this is the third time I've read this short story, and I have to say that it may be Steve Dilks overall best work. If John Carpenter's The Thing and Invasion of the Body Snatchers had a love child, it would be The Horror From the Stars. Crisp, engaging, expertly written, this tale should have been nominated for an award somewhere. It's criminal that it doesn't get more recognition. It is an absolute MUST READ. If you have not read this, I suggest you drop what you're doing, leave work, stop making love to your partner, put off house chores, and sit down with your favorite beverage and read this story. Extremely strong. Dilks delivers a perfect ending and serves to paint Bohun as a tragic figure. If you want to measure this author against past and current greats, I suggest you read this offering.
- DARKNESS ENTHRONED - first published in Schlock! Webzine #24 and #25 finds Bohun embroiled in a web of dark vengeance. It is an original tale rife with sorcery and magical blades. While The Horror From the Stars did feature a terrifying alien parasite, the stories thus far, including the one that follows this one, have centered on the evil that resides within man. A tale burgeoning with dark magics and eldritch blades expands upon what we might see in Bohun's world and does not diminish the character. I loved the Witch-kings of Ungg in this story.
- INTRIGUE IN AVIENNE - is a shorter tale that finds Bohn involved in dirty politics. I love tales featuring strange monsters, alien entities, terrifying undead, but I find that some of the best stories are merely those that feature the evil that men do. Sometimes man with all of his cruelty can be the most terrifying monster of all. Dilks is in high form again in a tale that was first published in Heroic Fantasy Quarterly #48.
I am struck with the similarities between Howard Andrew Jones' Hanuvar Chronicles and Steve Dilks' Bohun adventures. Both featuring authors that are on top of their game with strong writing, great characters in a wonderful "fix-up" collection of tales that tell a larger story.
- BLACK SUNSET IN THE VALLEY OF DEATH - was first published in Savage Realms Monthly #10 and it was my second time reading this outstanding story. This one channeled Predator a bit for me - the ending was extremely suspenseful. A strong Bohun story.
- RED TRAIL OF VENGEANCE - was first published in Savage Realms Monthly #28. This was my first time reading this particular story as I am not yet caught up with current Savage Realms issues. This story is the epitome of why a good western and a sword & sorcery story can be compared and talked about in the same breath. In this tale Bohun crosses paths with a bunch who beats him up and throws him down a well. The only thing they didn't do was kill his dog. The ending of this tale of vengeance is reminiscent of Gunfight at the OK Corral. An extremely strong story
- HARVEST OF THE BLOOD KING - was first published in Jason Waltz's magnum opus; Neither Beg Nor Yield. I have yet to read this crowning achievement and thus, this is my first time reading this story. This last tale is an extremely strong outing for Mr. Dilks. This tale vies with The Horror from the Stars for my absolute favorite Bohun story. Every single one of the supporting cast members leap out at you here. The story was creative and engaging and one of the rare stories that have you gasping and worried about what might happen to each of the characters. There was a moment where I asked myself; 'How do they get out of this one - DO THEY get out of this one?' An absolute tour de force.
How is this author not winning awards or garnering nominations? This collection of stories are that good. 5 out of 5 stars! ALL of these stories are extremely entertaining and well written and move at a breakneck pace. The last three stories in the group were so strong, that there was a momentum building equivalent to that of a runaway train. It was like a crescendo in your favorite orchestra piece. The book goes out with the equivalent of a mic drop by the esteemed Mr. Dilks. I was breathless and sad all at the same time as I closed the book.
February 6, 2025
Bohun The Complete Savage Adventures by Steve Dilks
Carnelian Press
2024
Paperback
219 Pages
Cover art by Adam Benet Shaw
Frontispiece by Kurt Brugal
I am no stranger to the fiction of Steve Dilks. I remember back to those halcyon days when Gunthar was just a few single stories available for Kindle. Man, I devoured them on kindle unlimited! While Gunthar's world is set in what is possibly the distant future, Bohun's adventures take place in the distant past.
This collection has been a long time in the making. All of these stories have appeared elsewhere before being collected into one singular volume. Many of them I read in their initial printings. I was wholly unaware of a couple of them. Reading them for the first time in this volume. Whether you have read these stories before or for the first time this volume is a nice addition to any shelf.
Seven stories comprise this collection. The stories appear in chronological order. The first few follow closely upon the heels of the previous. The latter stories not so much.
Bohun is a man who has lost everything. A man unversed in the mores of northern civilization. Initially, I assumed that the series of his adventures would focus upon his mission from the first story. That search ends poignantly rather quickly. Thus his remaining adventures consist of him selling his sword arm or treasure seeking. At every turn danger lurks, whether hunted by man or savage beast. All too often something malignant and evil needs put down.
Dilks is not only a writer but also a fan. A fan who has an impressive knowledge of past and contemporary sword & sorcery. This knowledge permeates his writing especially within his Bohun stories. I hope to see more adventures featuring Bohun in the future.
Carnelian Press
2024
Paperback
219 Pages
Cover art by Adam Benet Shaw
Frontispiece by Kurt Brugal
I am no stranger to the fiction of Steve Dilks. I remember back to those halcyon days when Gunthar was just a few single stories available for Kindle. Man, I devoured them on kindle unlimited! While Gunthar's world is set in what is possibly the distant future, Bohun's adventures take place in the distant past.
This collection has been a long time in the making. All of these stories have appeared elsewhere before being collected into one singular volume. Many of them I read in their initial printings. I was wholly unaware of a couple of them. Reading them for the first time in this volume. Whether you have read these stories before or for the first time this volume is a nice addition to any shelf.
Seven stories comprise this collection. The stories appear in chronological order. The first few follow closely upon the heels of the previous. The latter stories not so much.
Bohun is a man who has lost everything. A man unversed in the mores of northern civilization. Initially, I assumed that the series of his adventures would focus upon his mission from the first story. That search ends poignantly rather quickly. Thus his remaining adventures consist of him selling his sword arm or treasure seeking. At every turn danger lurks, whether hunted by man or savage beast. All too often something malignant and evil needs put down.
Dilks is not only a writer but also a fan. A fan who has an impressive knowledge of past and contemporary sword & sorcery. This knowledge permeates his writing especially within his Bohun stories. I hope to see more adventures featuring Bohun in the future.
December 18, 2025
Conan the Barbarian but with ebon skin, to use the author's only adjective. Aside from repetitious adjectives, the narration is mechanical as it treads all the same ground as Conan and uses the same vocabulary, "corded thews" and all. Not a bad read per se, but so mechanically similar as to be devoid of anything interesting until the final story. The final tale in this collection, "Harvest of the Blood King" was actually fun and quite excellent, the faux-Roman characters he teams up with steal the show. Probably because for the first time Bohun has some actual personalities to interact with. Robert Howard's protagonists could read quite stoic but Bohun is so inflexible as to be uninteresting to read. Howard was (and is) knocked by many for his pulp stylings and plots but I remember feeling like there was much more to his Conan and his characters' world, though fictional, was written about with the language and attention to detail that the author absorbed from his historical reading. This collection suffers from too much modern idiom, and some D&D-influenced anachronisms that continue to plague too much of modern fantasy settings.
October 23, 2024
This is a collection of short stories about the mighty Damazahullan warrior Bohun, set in an alternate earth. Bohun comes from an African nation, serves in a replacement for Rome, explores alternate Arabia, etc.
Bohun is a pretty standard sword and sorcery hero with mighty muscles, huge stature, and nearly unstoppable warrior from a primitive culture, but the twist of making him African -ish, sets Bohun apart. He has a perspective that the standard Nordic barbarian lacks on the world around him and the peoples that he meets, less contemptuous and more sympathetic toward the less civilized peoples.
This is well written and enjoyable, great stuff for Conan fans, etc.
Bohun is a pretty standard sword and sorcery hero with mighty muscles, huge stature, and nearly unstoppable warrior from a primitive culture, but the twist of making him African -ish, sets Bohun apart. He has a perspective that the standard Nordic barbarian lacks on the world around him and the peoples that he meets, less contemptuous and more sympathetic toward the less civilized peoples.
This is well written and enjoyable, great stuff for Conan fans, etc.
July 15, 2025
It's been a long time since I've read Sword & Sorcery. I lucked out with this book. Instantly brought back fond memories of Robert E. Howard's Conan stories. Bohun is an exiled warrior from the losing side of a civil war. Think sub-Saharan Nubian warrior working as a mercenary in a Roman world. Bohun's surviving being dumped down a dry desert well and escaping to wreak vengeance in "Red Trail of Vengeance" is a deliberate homage to Conan's crucifixion in "A Witch Shall Be Born" and just as satisfying.
October 10, 2024
These are all fun stories in the Conan sword & sorcery tradition. The only reason I'm not giving these a total 5/5 is that some of the references to the Black main character being "savage" made me uncomfortable, although perhaps they're not totally inappropriate since he is a barbarian type like Conan.
January 26, 2025
A fair Sword & Sorcery story, though nothing groundbreaking I think Bohun does what it sets out to be. A romp through a low-fantasy world following the exploits of a barbarian character. While I wasn't blown away by any of them, none of them brought the collection down.
April 5, 2025
A damn good sword and sorcery book. Full of good, Howard-esque descriptions of blood shed and adventure. The author really has a knack for this genre.
October 5, 2024
I first encountered Bohun in the sword and sorcery anthology Neither Beg Nor Yield. This is sword and sorcery at its finest. Bohun is a character that is both brutal and honorable. He's a badass who's fun to root for.
The highlights for me in this collection are Festival of the Bull along with Harvest of the Blood-King (which also happens to be the same story I first read in Neither Beg Nor Yield... it's just that good). If you're looking for your fix of sword and sorcery, then give this collection of Bohun tales a try.
The highlights for me in this collection are Festival of the Bull along with Harvest of the Blood-King (which also happens to be the same story I first read in Neither Beg Nor Yield... it's just that good). If you're looking for your fix of sword and sorcery, then give this collection of Bohun tales a try.
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