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The Robert E. Howard Library #1
Tigres del mar
Después de largos años inéditos, por fin regresa uno de los héroes más oscuros que trazó la pluma de Robert E. Howard. Cormac Mac Art, apodado el Lobo, es un pirata celta con una inteligencia bélica que lo hará salir victorioso donde otros fracasaron. Preparaos a vivir hazañas trepidantes codo con codo con sus inseparables tigres del mar, el capitán danés Wulfhere Rompecráneos y su tripulación de vikingos. En la época del rey Arturo viajaremos por los peligrosos mares del Norte y sus islas, nos enfrentaremos a abominaciones sin nombre y esperaremos con anhelo la siguiente pirueta del destino.
El presente volumen recoge en una nueva edición los cuatro relatos protagonizados por el gaélico: “La noche del lobo”, “Tigres del mar”, “Espadas del Mar del Norte” y “El templo de la abominación”, algunos de ellos completados por Richard L. Tierney tras la trágica muerte de Howard.
El presente volumen recoge en una nueva edición los cuatro relatos protagonizados por el gaélico: “La noche del lobo”, “Tigres del mar”, “Espadas del Mar del Norte” y “El templo de la abominación”, algunos de ellos completados por Richard L. Tierney tras la trágica muerte de Howard.
200 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1974
About the author
Robert E. Howard
3,195 books2,732 followersRobert Ervin Howard was an American pulp writer of fantasy, horror, historical adventure, boxing, western, and detective fiction. Howard wrote "over three-hundred stories and seven-hundred poems of raw power and unbridled emotion" and is especially noted for his memorable depictions of "a sombre universe of swashbuckling adventure and darkling horror."
He is well known for having created—in the pages of the legendary Depression-era pulp magazine Weird Tales—the character Conan the Cimmerian, a.k.a. Conan the Barbarian, a literary icon whose pop-culture imprint can only be compared to such icons as Tarzan of the Apes, Count Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, and James Bond.
—Wikipedia
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
He is well known for having created—in the pages of the legendary Depression-era pulp magazine Weird Tales—the character Conan the Cimmerian, a.k.a. Conan the Barbarian, a literary icon whose pop-culture imprint can only be compared to such icons as Tarzan of the Apes, Count Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, and James Bond.
—Wikipedia
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
June 3, 2013
Four fantastic tales of vikings, piracy and violence in the classic Howard vein. These stories are set in Britain after the fall of the Roman empire. Cormac is a hero in the same line as many of Howard's characters, including Kull, Bran Mak Morn and Conan. He's not nearly as developed as Kull or Conan, little information is given about his past, but his great feats of cunning and combat make for an exciting read.
Richard L. Tierney, in his introduction, reveals that two of the stories were unfinished when the manuscripts were found. He went ahead and wrote 700 words to finish off "The Temple Of Abomination" and a whopping 5,200 words to finish "Tigers Of The Sea." Something about this practice rubs me the wrong way, though I can understand the need to provide finished stories for publication. I will say that one of the greatest pleasures for me, so far as reading Howard goes, was getting my hands on the Del Rey volumes in which his work is presented without the meddling hands of posthumous editors. It's not that Tierney's contributions are drastically different, it's just that Howard's fans, including this one, want to read Howard's writing, not someone's idea of what it was supposed to be.
Also, Tierney makes note of why he chose to present the stories in the order he did. One reference is to the viking longship, the Raven, that Cormac and crew sale around in seeking adventure. The thing is, they have the Raven in the first story ("Tigers Of The Sea") then end up acquiring the Raven in the third story ("The Night Of The Wolf"). Am I missing something?
Ultimately, none of this robs from the quality of the stories. Howard's ability to create thrilling, fast paced action packed tales of great heroism is unequaled.
Richard L. Tierney, in his introduction, reveals that two of the stories were unfinished when the manuscripts were found. He went ahead and wrote 700 words to finish off "The Temple Of Abomination" and a whopping 5,200 words to finish "Tigers Of The Sea." Something about this practice rubs me the wrong way, though I can understand the need to provide finished stories for publication. I will say that one of the greatest pleasures for me, so far as reading Howard goes, was getting my hands on the Del Rey volumes in which his work is presented without the meddling hands of posthumous editors. It's not that Tierney's contributions are drastically different, it's just that Howard's fans, including this one, want to read Howard's writing, not someone's idea of what it was supposed to be.
Also, Tierney makes note of why he chose to present the stories in the order he did. One reference is to the viking longship, the Raven, that Cormac and crew sale around in seeking adventure. The thing is, they have the Raven in the first story ("Tigers Of The Sea") then end up acquiring the Raven in the third story ("The Night Of The Wolf"). Am I missing something?
Ultimately, none of this robs from the quality of the stories. Howard's ability to create thrilling, fast paced action packed tales of great heroism is unequaled.
August 21, 2026
A writer posthumously becoming famous or, in Robert E. Howard's case, launching an entire subgenre tends to canonize the entirety of his work, no matter how raw or unpolished.
REH was a struggling guy all his life, trying to make ends meet selling pulp fiction, chasing trends and hoping this next one would hit big. One of his major passions was historical adventure fiction, and his invention of sword & sorcery wouldn't have come to pass if he had been more successful at that. If your pirate story don't sell, toss in a demon and a wizard as final bosses and you've upped your chances considerably!
Cormac Mac Art was such a guy who never sold, and the only reason we're talking about him now is because Conan did. Howard only finished two Cormac stories in his lifetime ("Swords of the Northern Coast" and "Night of the Wolf"), with a third ("Temple of Abomination") outlined and a fourth ("Tigers of the Sea") left without ending; this 90s collection from Baen Books also includes a wholly original David Drake novella, as well as a Drake-penned ending to "Tigers".
Yet another of REH's steely-eyed, black-maned self-inserts, Cormac is an Irish reiver aboard a Dane raider vessel who is super smart, super strong, super quick, you know the drill. I started with the pure uncut REH ones, "Swords" and "Wolf", and found them to be essentially the same story with some details switched out. Makes sense, he was probing the waters to see if a viking story would sell. Structure is essentially "Cormac is at a feast hall undercover, violence erupts when he's found out + he's gotta extract someone"; Howard an absolutely killer action writer, simply one of the best to ever do it.
The merely outlined "Temple" is the only one with supernatural elements, and it's good, atmospheric stuff for being unfinished. A real yarn-spinner, our Bob! See what I mean by adding some demons if your shit don't sell?
"Tigers of the Sea" is a wild goose chase across the Hebrides for a kidnapped princess, in which all the character drama and twists and reversals happen in the final 1k words penned by Drake. Lol, lmao, I dare say.
"The Land Beyond Sunset" (the full David Drake novella) finds Cormac and his buddy Wulfhere in ruined Atlantis after being zapped through a portal. This is definitely the one that leans hardest into fantasy, with dinosaurs and giant centipedes and life-draining staves. Good fun, but kinda sets a wrong tone by putting this one up front? This is definitely written by someone who came at it from a "the guy who wrote Conan wrote this so I better lean into the weirdness" angle.
Anyway, I just read this cuz that new Matthew John joint is a Cormac Mac Art tale and I wanted some context.
REH was a struggling guy all his life, trying to make ends meet selling pulp fiction, chasing trends and hoping this next one would hit big. One of his major passions was historical adventure fiction, and his invention of sword & sorcery wouldn't have come to pass if he had been more successful at that. If your pirate story don't sell, toss in a demon and a wizard as final bosses and you've upped your chances considerably!
Cormac Mac Art was such a guy who never sold, and the only reason we're talking about him now is because Conan did. Howard only finished two Cormac stories in his lifetime ("Swords of the Northern Coast" and "Night of the Wolf"), with a third ("Temple of Abomination") outlined and a fourth ("Tigers of the Sea") left without ending; this 90s collection from Baen Books also includes a wholly original David Drake novella, as well as a Drake-penned ending to "Tigers".
Yet another of REH's steely-eyed, black-maned self-inserts, Cormac is an Irish reiver aboard a Dane raider vessel who is super smart, super strong, super quick, you know the drill. I started with the pure uncut REH ones, "Swords" and "Wolf", and found them to be essentially the same story with some details switched out. Makes sense, he was probing the waters to see if a viking story would sell. Structure is essentially "Cormac is at a feast hall undercover, violence erupts when he's found out + he's gotta extract someone"; Howard an absolutely killer action writer, simply one of the best to ever do it.
The merely outlined "Temple" is the only one with supernatural elements, and it's good, atmospheric stuff for being unfinished. A real yarn-spinner, our Bob! See what I mean by adding some demons if your shit don't sell?
"Tigers of the Sea" is a wild goose chase across the Hebrides for a kidnapped princess, in which all the character drama and twists and reversals happen in the final 1k words penned by Drake. Lol, lmao, I dare say.
"The Land Beyond Sunset" (the full David Drake novella) finds Cormac and his buddy Wulfhere in ruined Atlantis after being zapped through a portal. This is definitely the one that leans hardest into fantasy, with dinosaurs and giant centipedes and life-draining staves. Good fun, but kinda sets a wrong tone by putting this one up front? This is definitely written by someone who came at it from a "the guy who wrote Conan wrote this so I better lean into the weirdness" angle.
Anyway, I just read this cuz that new Matthew John joint is a Cormac Mac Art tale and I wanted some context.
October 14, 2021
Cormac Mac Art was one of Robert E. Howard's best and least-known historical action/adventure pulp heroes. He was featured in two completed stories and two fragments, none of which appeared in his lifetime. Cormac and his Viking partner, Wulfhere Skull-Splitter, are renegades and reavers of a thousand years or so ago, who with their staunch crew seek fame and fortune and engage in mighty feats of derring-do. Only one of Howard's stories has a supernatural element, though there was a dandy series of novels written by andrew j. offutt that continued his adventures in which the supernatural was de rigeur. There have been several editions of the book with slightly different contents and versions; I have the 1975 paperback that follows the original limited-edition Donald Grant printing. The two fragments were competently finished by Richard L. Tierney, who contributes an intelligent and comprehensive introduction explaining Cormac's provenance and Howard's use of the name for several characters. Good cover by Jeff Jones and interior illustrations from Tim Kirk.
July 19, 2008
Some of the best Norsemen stories ever written.
September 16, 2026
After finishing and really liking the recent Cormac Mac Art Heroic Legends ebook, I decided that I would tackle the REH stories and I found them to be incredibly engaging and enjoyable.
July 19, 2008
How can you not like Vikings man?
September 6, 2021
In the vein of Conan and Solomon Kane, Cormac Mac Art is a barbaric viking hero who travels the darkest reaches of the land during the reign of King Arthur, lending his savage might to those in need. Along with his crew and his trusted righthand man Wulfhere the Skull-Splitter, they take on many horrific jobs that always end with a mountain of corpses in their wake. From rescuing a princess from a savage tribe of brutes who torture for sport and sacrifice infants to wicked gods, to banishing the influence of eldritch horrors who haunt shadowy tombs, Cormac has his work cut out for him.
Out of all of Howard's tales of dark heroes, I think Cormac is probably the most bloody and gruesome. Though not nearly as interesting or fleshed out as characters like Conan, Kane or Kull, his adventures are full of all the hardcore action, chaotic adventures and haunting dark fantasy imagery that will satisfy any sword & sorcery fan. I wish I could've learned more about Cormac as he seemed like a cool guy and his crew was fun and memorable for the short time they were around. I also would've liked to seen further depth to the influences of Norse mythology sprinkled throughout each story, but I think Howard passed away before he could fully flesh out this character and the lore surrounding him which is a shame. Still a slashy fun time regardless.
***
If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
Out of all of Howard's tales of dark heroes, I think Cormac is probably the most bloody and gruesome. Though not nearly as interesting or fleshed out as characters like Conan, Kane or Kull, his adventures are full of all the hardcore action, chaotic adventures and haunting dark fantasy imagery that will satisfy any sword & sorcery fan. I wish I could've learned more about Cormac as he seemed like a cool guy and his crew was fun and memorable for the short time they were around. I also would've liked to seen further depth to the influences of Norse mythology sprinkled throughout each story, but I think Howard passed away before he could fully flesh out this character and the lore surrounding him which is a shame. Still a slashy fun time regardless.
***
If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...
January 27, 2016
Robert E. Howard is my all time favorite writer, but for many years much of his work was heavily edited. This is another of the heavily edited collections of Robert E. Howard's stories. I am a purist when it comes to a writers works. I know some of these stories are no longer PC but they should be read as Howard wrote them and understood that he wrote in another time period. Don't read this book unless you just can't find any others of Howard's unedited books to read. Message me if you need a list of what is good from this awesome fantasy and action writer.
June 24, 2014
I was pleasantly surprised. This collection of short stories features a character named Cormac mac Art. It was interesting and well written, if you enjoy a moment-by-moment, non-stop-action adventure story. Lots of killing in these pages.
Yes, the violence is over the top, the heroes are all hyper-masculine, and the bad guys are everywhere (and everyone), but the stories hold together alright and take us to a new environment in REH-dom.
I liked it, two thumbs up.
Yes, the violence is over the top, the heroes are all hyper-masculine, and the bad guys are everywhere (and everyone), but the stories hold together alright and take us to a new environment in REH-dom.
I liked it, two thumbs up.
September 19, 2018
interesante, me gustaron los personaje y el contexto en general, pero todas las aventuras eran igual. Mismo plan, los descubren de la misma forma, mismo final... en fin, con leer una aventura ya sabes como siguen las demás. La única diferente fue la del templo, lo cual agradezco.
June 6, 2021
Lo más flojo de lo que he leído de este SEÑOR. Por momentos muy gaseoso que da la sensación de que escribió obligado.
April 24, 2016
This Cormac Mac Art book represents part of a big backlog of Robert E. Howard books I've been meaning to read. This one is 4 stories in large print, padded out with a forward and some illustrations. Also, two of the stories were never finished by Howard, so a Richard L. Tierney (apparently the co-author of a Red Sonja series?) fills in the blanks on those. The end result is a bit of a lightweight item, although Howard's rough and tumble adventures are still worth it.
If nothing else, these Zebra editions of Howard's stuff are pretty to look at. I'm looking forward to a more substantial volume from the old master of Sword & Sorcery in the near future.
If nothing else, these Zebra editions of Howard's stuff are pretty to look at. I'm looking forward to a more substantial volume from the old master of Sword & Sorcery in the near future.
March 3, 2008
NO bullshit.
Some serious ass kicking stories.
Some serious ass kicking stories.
June 28, 2013
I love this book.
September 15, 2013
It's Robert E. Howard, of course I like it. Not a big fan of David Drake normally but his stories weren't too bad in this edition.
May 31, 2018
Decepcionante. Me esperaba más del creador del personaje de Conan y de la sinopsis, más emoción, más monstruos.... pero me he encontrado relatos típicos de vikingos, eso sí, con muchas batallas.
November 1, 2019
Four stories by REH and one by David Drake about the Irish pirate Cormac Mac Art and his Danish partner Wulfhere Skull-splitter. Fun hacking and slashing on the Britsh coast in the seventh century. Cormac is an Irish exhile, worldclass swordsman, and unearthly fighting man. In a Viking longboat he and a group of Danes wander aimlessly looking for villages to loot and enemies to fight. Since they have made enemies of just about everybody fighting comes easy. The general outline of each story is Cormac goes incognito into some Norse or British village to gain inteeligence, gets recognized, and fights his way out. Lots of blood and and skull crushing.
Straightforward entertainment. Not as in depth as any of REH's other creations, usually the story dives into action almost immediately. The Drake story is by far the longest, but it still follows the same format, just stringing several scenes together, interspersed with fighting. Good reading if you're not into all that plot and character development stuff.
Straightforward entertainment. Not as in depth as any of REH's other creations, usually the story dives into action almost immediately. The Drake story is by far the longest, but it still follows the same format, just stringing several scenes together, interspersed with fighting. Good reading if you're not into all that plot and character development stuff.
February 6, 2021
Another book I've had hanging around in my collection for decades and finally got around to reading. This one has two long(-ish) stories from REH, both centering on an Irish pirate named Cormac Mac Art and his Viking pal as they go and just beat the shit out of Jutes, Danes, Picts, and Scots. Deeply satisfying Sword&Sorcery, to say the least. I didn't read the first story which was a pastiche by the author David Drake.
Read
August 23, 2008Tigers of the Sea by Robert E. Howard (1977)
March 16, 2009
I loved this stuff while in Highschool
December 9, 2015
Great little collection.Thankfully more sword than sorcery.2 strong lead characters,& while the stories can have a bit of sameness about them,it doesn't matter,still works for me.
March 2, 2016
read SOMETIME in 2001
April 3, 2019
Great writing from Robert E. Howard.A Gael & his Danish viking mates set in the times of King Arthur
February 15, 2021
Awesome viking tales. Loved them all. Good old fashioned sword and sorcery.
February 6, 2025
Не перестаю поражаться, насколько разносторонним талантом обладал Роберт Говард. Помимо слегка навязшего в зубах (но все равно нежно любимого) Конана, он за свою недолгую жизнь успел написать и про ковбоев, и про индейцев, и про гангстеров, и про нуарных сыщиков, и про моряков, и про боксеров... Оказывается, и про викингов тоже успел.
Все 4 новеллы сборника как на подбор — короткие, энергичные, запоминающиеся. Суровый быт северных дикарей, морские сражения, поединки, погони, сокровища! То Кормак с Вульфгером и своей бандой рыжебородых датчан-головорезов ищут похищенную принцессу, то попадают в бешеный замес между норвежцами и пиктами, то выручают из беды самого короля датских земель... и все это без капли так любимой Говардом мистики (разве что в последнем рассказе он не сдержался и подпустил таки шоггота, ну да ладно, простим).
Твердые 8/10. Всем ценителям исторических приключений — обязательно к прочтению.
Все 4 новеллы сборника как на подбор — короткие, энергичные, запоминающиеся. Суровый быт северных дикарей, морские сражения, поединки, погони, сокровища! То Кормак с Вульфгером и своей бандой рыжебородых датчан-головорезов ищут похищенную принцессу, то попадают в бешеный замес между норвежцами и пиктами, то выручают из беды самого короля датских земель... и все это без капли так любимой Говардом мистики (разве что в последнем рассказе он не сдержался и подпустил таки шоггота, ну да ладно, простим).
Твердые 8/10. Всем ценителям исторических приключений — обязательно к прочтению.
August 14, 2022
A pretty enjoyable collection of stories by Robert Howard focusing on a different character than what people know him for (Conan, Kull, or even Solomon Kane). This short story collection is mostly unfinished stories which the editor David Drake finished, although one is unfinished, and one story is by Drake entirely.
Cormac is smarter and more cunning than Conan, but also less powerful and intimidating. He is quite capable and mostly works with his friend the Dane Wolfhere. Wolfhere is technically the captain of the ship Cormac sails on, so technically is Cormac's superior, but Cormac mostly calls the shots.
Cormac is smarter and more cunning than Conan, but also less powerful and intimidating. He is quite capable and mostly works with his friend the Dane Wolfhere. Wolfhere is technically the captain of the ship Cormac sails on, so technically is Cormac's superior, but Cormac mostly calls the shots.
March 22, 2022
The first story is pretty much all-Drake, and it shows. The tone and style just doesn't fit - it feels more like a Roy Thomas Conan comics tale than anything else. But oddly, when he's finishing a tale started by Howard, it flows better, feels more like REH's prose. And the pure REH stories are much stronger, though it's easy to see why Cormac doesn't have the same resonance as his other more famous heroes.
July 28, 2025
Four excellent tales about Cormac Mac Art as he travels around Arthurian Britain with his friend Wulhere the Skull-Splitter.
All are excellent and filled with REH’s usual energy and incredible story telling.
The final story, although completed by the editor of this edition, from an incomplete fragment, I really enjoyed as it pulled together much of Howard’s mythology and put it into a coherent timeline to conclude the volume.
It’s Robert E Howard and Vikings! Arguably this says enough!
All are excellent and filled with REH’s usual energy and incredible story telling.
The final story, although completed by the editor of this edition, from an incomplete fragment, I really enjoyed as it pulled together much of Howard’s mythology and put it into a coherent timeline to conclude the volume.
It’s Robert E Howard and Vikings! Arguably this says enough!
June 15, 2024
This shouldn't come as a shocker, but this reads like Howard's Conan tales. The main character is even described in very Conan terms. In all likelihood, these are recycled tales as Howard was casting about for his place in the world.
In general, it's a fast and fun read, and interesting in way, but better to just stick to Conan.
In general, it's a fast and fun read, and interesting in way, but better to just stick to Conan.
December 18, 2023
Not as well fleshed out a character as Conan. Set in post Roman Britain, only two of the stories were completed fully by Howard. The first story by David Drake (The Land Toward Sunset) was not to my liking.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews