"Flashing Swords Presents: The Return of the Sword" edited by Jason M Waltz

Reviewed by Dan A Nelson  5/3/2008

     The editor says there may be "...no finer compilation of heroic tales of action and adventure..." and, at least in recent memory, he may be right.  Flashing Swords Press has been trying to present and create a place for Sword and Sorcery.  They have met that goal and gone beyond it as these stories are indeed fine heroic tales and are of a quality that extends beyond a genre offering.

    The book has language to thrill, a wonderful cover painting by Johnney Perkins, thoughtful introductions by the editor, Jason M Waltz, an article on writing fantasy by E E Knight and too few interior illustrations.

     The first story, "Altar of the Moon" by Stacey Berg fits right into the theme of the anthology's title as a sword does return.  The mysterious conversation between the characters that have and will fulfill their destinies postpones the confrontation in a delightful piece of pacing.

     Battle descriptions usually do not hold my attention as I usually rush through them but not here with my choice as most outstanding story.  As I read "The Wyrd of War" I felt as if I was seeing a Peter Jackson film.  Full of smoke and the fog of war, a very intimate and detailed soldier's experience is related.  I felt driven by the momentum of fate in this elemental tale.

     "The Last Scream of Carnage" by Phil Emery makes interesting use of formatting the spacing of the text which earned it the editor's choice.  It is a very intense tale which would make a great radio adaptation. Too bad Orson Welles is no longer around to read this for us.  Pay close attention to the way the sentences read, lending power to the actual words.

     "The Battle of Raven Kill" by Jeff Draper is another good blow-by-blow telling which kept me interested.  I liked the use of the rocks to frame the tale.  Really gave a lyrical feel to the end of the story.

     "What Heroes Leave Behind" by Nicholas Ian Hawkins also has a lyrical conclusion. The story plays with your expectations of a typical tale of a legendary warrior and an impressionable youth but quickly moves beyond the archetypes.  I really felt the age-fullness of Tolasun throughout the story, much as I feel my own through the day! Instead of being a cranky archetype, he was real and this is probably what is legendary about this story.

     By this point in the book, I was figuring I should be hitting a clunker but it was not to be.  While the demon sword in "Fatefist at Torkas Nahl" by David Pitchford was not the focus of the story, it was my favorite part.

     "Deep in the Land of the Ice and Snow" by Ty Johnston is a prequel tale for a character that figures in a trilogy the editor mentions.  Unfortunately, he does not mention any titles or details of the trilogy.  Mores the pity as the prequel whets my appetite.  The story moves along nicely in a smooth loping style not unlike the gait of a wolf moving silently through a forest.  Do you think there might be some wolves in this story?  You would be right.  This smoothness is great after the very tense preceding stories. Good job of story placement by the editor.

     "Mountain Scarab" by Jeff Stewart made me feel like I was reading Burroughs.  There is a leering brute and a plucky girl and a Conan-like bandit.  I loved it.

     "The Lair of the Cherufe" by Angeline Hawkes continues the Burroughs feel much to my delight as someone leaps on the back of a lion.  Well, not really a lion except for the body.  Tarzan had it easy since he did not have to deal with a Manticore. Ripping Good Fun.

     "To Be A Man" by Robert Rhodes is a curious tale.  It is a unique tale with a very strong moral core.  Adventure tales are filed with killings; some righteous, some fiendish, some callous.  This tale revolves around a murder already taken place and is refreshing in how Robert chose to tell his story.  This one gets the PG rating.

    "Storytelling" by E E Knight is an article about the basics of storytelling. It is a great straight-forward style guide for heroic tales and heroic writing.

     "The Red Worm's Way" by James Enge is a clever tale with an unusual twist as his Morlock character is an alcoholic and knows it.  Not only does Morlock fight with the evil that surrounds him but also with his alcoholism.  He is truly a unique character in literature, let alone heroic fantasy.

     "To Destroy All Flesh" by Michael Ehart is another tale with a moral center and an atypical scenario.  (I should note that many sword and sorcery tales have morals, usually about duty and courage, so when I mention the stories having a moral center I am thinking of ones that are not usual for hero stories.)   The story reads like a solid adventure story and does not get sidetracked by the uniqueness of the two main characters even though that is what it really is about.

     "Guardian of Rage" by Thomas M Mackey is the creepiest of the tales.  Wars, battle, and conflict changes things.  This story illustrates the transformative nature of heroes as they go beyond ordinary responses to conflict and danger.  You will no what I am trying to get at after having read this story.

     "Claimed by Birthright" by Christopher Heath features a hero in the classic sword and sorcery vein. Brom has stoic features but flaring nostrils.  This is straight ahead wizard vs. warrior and it is exciting.  Well done!

     "The Hand that Holds the Crown" by Nathan Meyer has royal treachery and knightly combat  "…with the sharp crack of hoof hitting bone…".  Need I say more?

     "The Dawn Tree" by S C Bryce is a tale of a desert elf.  Yes, a desert elf.  If you have delved into the Flashing Swords magazine online, and I highly recommend it, you may have run into Dermanassian.  This is the best of the stories to my mind.  It is a world-shaking story I think you will enjoy.

     "An Uneasy Truce in Ulam-Bator" by Allen B Lloyd and William Clunie features lots of sorcery and no lack of swords. It also is a fine yarn.

     "The Mask Oath" is written by my favorite author that I have discovered at Flashing Swords, Steve Goble.  He does a magnificent job of revealing what motivates the Faceless Son as the story plays out.

     "The Valley of Bones" by Bruce Durham reminds me of  "The Wyrd of War" because you are right in the trenches on the front line in the midst of battle.  Very Intense.

     The final story of the anthology is also the oldest.  Harold Lamb is a pulp-era historical fiction and biography writer who brings ancient times to life in his writing.  This story is a tale of raiders on the Volga and Cossacks on the Steppes.  His stories and books are always full of interesting details such as the trampled dirt outside a tavern is called the Cossack's bed.

    All around great reading wonderfully written in bold and strong voices.  For more of this kind of reading after you have bought and read the book, check out online back and current issues of Flashing Swords at http://flashingswords.sfreader.com/titlepage.asp.