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Cormac Mac Art #3
Tower of Death: Cormac Mac Art
Forced into exile, Cormac Mac Art, a fifth-century Irish prince becomes a pirate with his companion, Wulfhere the Dane
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1982
83 people want to read
About the author
Andrew J. Offutt
209 books72 followersAndrew Jefferson Offutt was an American science fiction and fantasy author. He wrote as Andrew J. Offutt, A.J. Offutt, and Andy Offut. His normal byline, andrew j. offutt, had his name in all lower-case letters. His son is the author Chris Offutt.
Offutt began publishing in 1954 with the story And Gone Tomorrow in If. Despite this early sale, he didn't consider his professional life to have begun until he sold the story Blacksword to Galaxy in 1959. His first novel was Evil Is Live Spelled Backwards in 1970.
Offutt published numerous novels and short stories, including many in the Thieves World series edited by Robert Lynn Asprin and Lynn Abbey, which featured his best known character, the thief Hanse, also known as Shadowspawn (and, later, Chance). His Iron Lords series likewise was popular. He also wrote two series of books based on characters by Robert E. Howard, one on Howard's best known character, Conan, and one on a lesser known character, Cormac mac Art.
As an editor Offutt produced a series of five anthologies entitled Swords Against Darkness, which included the first professional sale by Charles de Lint.
Offutt also wrote a large number of pornographic works under twelve different pseudonyms, not all of them identified. Those known include John Cleve, J.X. Williams, and Jeff Douglas. His main works in this area are the science fiction Spaceways series, most of whose volumes were written in collaboration, and the historical Crusader series.
Offutt began publishing in 1954 with the story And Gone Tomorrow in If. Despite this early sale, he didn't consider his professional life to have begun until he sold the story Blacksword to Galaxy in 1959. His first novel was Evil Is Live Spelled Backwards in 1970.
Offutt published numerous novels and short stories, including many in the Thieves World series edited by Robert Lynn Asprin and Lynn Abbey, which featured his best known character, the thief Hanse, also known as Shadowspawn (and, later, Chance). His Iron Lords series likewise was popular. He also wrote two series of books based on characters by Robert E. Howard, one on Howard's best known character, Conan, and one on a lesser known character, Cormac mac Art.
As an editor Offutt produced a series of five anthologies entitled Swords Against Darkness, which included the first professional sale by Charles de Lint.
Offutt also wrote a large number of pornographic works under twelve different pseudonyms, not all of them identified. Those known include John Cleve, J.X. Williams, and Jeff Douglas. His main works in this area are the science fiction Spaceways series, most of whose volumes were written in collaboration, and the historical Crusader series.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 6, 2020
This is the last Cormac Mac Art book that appeared, though offutt wrote of having further ones outlined. He was a character created by the legendary Robert E. Howard, and andrew offutt wrote a half-dozen pastiches continuing his fifth-century adventures, the last two in collaboration with Keith Taylor. Chronologically this one falls just before When Death Birds Fly, which appeared earlier; they're both set early in the Cormac/Wulfhere saga. The Irish history and mythology aren't as rigorously prevalent in this one, which finds the heroic pair plying their trade as Vikings. They sail about having swashbuckling and amorous adventures and their reeving takes them to varied and exotic places such as Spain. It's a good entry in the series and a fun read for history buffs and heroic fantasy fans. Thanks uncle andy!
November 15, 2019
Cormac and Wulfhere's chosen occupation gathers a bit too much attention from the local government officials. The Count of Someplace French decides to lay a trap for them, and though they escape they are driven far out to sea and nearly lost. They come ashore in Spain and meet a much friendlier group of locals, mostly because they hadn't been there before to plunder and burn any of the cities. These Spaniards have a strange problem with people dying in their lighthouse, and they are willing to pay the reivers to solve their problem. Cormac and Wulfhere must fight off monstrous seaweed, magical wreckers, and an amorous teenage princess to earn their pay.
This is still not REH, but it's much better than Offutt's previous book. Perhaps the addition of Keith Taylor made the difference, but there's much more action and much less descriptive padding here. There is still a good amount of padding as we are not left without the total list of every person's attire, and Cormac does get lost in long periods of introspection at times. But it's leavened with blood and beheadings and lusty wenches. Everything goes better with lusty wenches.
One interesting aside; Offutt lived in Kentucky, and Taylor in Australia. Despite writing several books together, they had never been within 3000 miles of each other. And this before the advent of the interwebs.
This is still not REH, but it's much better than Offutt's previous book. Perhaps the addition of Keith Taylor made the difference, but there's much more action and much less descriptive padding here. There is still a good amount of padding as we are not left without the total list of every person's attire, and Cormac does get lost in long periods of introspection at times. But it's leavened with blood and beheadings and lusty wenches. Everything goes better with lusty wenches.
One interesting aside; Offutt lived in Kentucky, and Taylor in Australia. Despite writing several books together, they had never been within 3000 miles of each other. And this before the advent of the interwebs.
May 23, 2020
This sequel to "The Mists Of Doom" finds Cormac some eight years after his flight from Ireland in the company of the Danish Pirate Wulfhere and his crew.
After raiding along the coast of France, Cormac and co. are pursued into the storm-tossed Bay of Biscay and eventually make their way to a Suevic kingdom in Galicia commanded by King Veremund.
Employed to rid the coastal lighthouse of a menace of vampiric seaweed, they stumble on a much larger occult presence just off the coast.
A great little adventure/mystery. It's unfortunate that I don't own all of this now out-of-print series, so I'll have to make do with the four that I have and hope that I might see the others at a used bookstore someday.
After raiding along the coast of France, Cormac and co. are pursued into the storm-tossed Bay of Biscay and eventually make their way to a Suevic kingdom in Galicia commanded by King Veremund.
Employed to rid the coastal lighthouse of a menace of vampiric seaweed, they stumble on a much larger occult presence just off the coast.
A great little adventure/mystery. It's unfortunate that I don't own all of this now out-of-print series, so I'll have to make do with the four that I have and hope that I might see the others at a used bookstore someday.
August 6, 2017
Pretty strong sequel! Lots of battles and monsters and even contains a bit of the Cthulhu mythos, which was a very pleased surprise for me.
December 30, 2017
rousing adventure and cool characters but not quite as mysterious of plotted as robert e howards....seems to wander.....have no background theme...
July 23, 2010
Two and a half stars. Another pastiche in Offutt's series about Cormac Mac Art, the Robert E. Howard character. By the way, Keith Taylor is co-author on these, although I have no idea how much is Offutt and how much Taylor.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews