Renegade Swords II: A Second Onslaught of Swords and Sorcery

DMR Books has traveled to the far corners of the Million Spheres and brought together a new collection of rare and overlooked works from some of the greatest writers of the sword-and-sorcery and heroic fantasy genres in their newest volume, Renegade Swords II. It’s apparent by the methodical selection and presentation of these works in this tome that DMR Books has given its readers a taste of works from some of the most influential creators in the genre, stretching as far back as the early 1920s with A. Merritt’s “The Pool of the Stone Gods” to the 1980s with works by John Morressy, Karl Edward Wagner, Keith Taylor, and a few other sorcerous staples.

This collection marks the first appearance of the famous Michael Moorcock’s works in the DMR Books lineup. His two stories reprinted in this collection, “The Roaming Forest” and “To Rescue Tanelorn”, feature the lesser-known but equally awesome incarnation of the Eternal Champion, Rackhir the Red Archer. While fans of Moorcock’s Elric of Melnibone stories will recognize Rackhir as a friend and aid of the White Wolf, the stories published in this collection follow Rackhir on his own adventures. A stark contrast to the cynical and brooding Elric, Rackhir is a relatively genial and adventurous man, whose skills with the longbow are the stuff of legends. Readers of Moorcock’s other works will find themselves right at home with these two tales.

There isn’t a fan of the sword-and-sorcery genre that wouldn’t recognize the name of Robert E. Howard and his famous creation Conan the Barbarian. One of the more often overlooked creations of Howard is James Allison, his 1930s Texan protagonist that has the mysterious ability to recall in vivid detail his past lives. This ability is the catalyst for many of the fantastic tales written by Robert E. Howard. Presented in this volume is arguably one of the best from this series of stories. “Marchers of Valhalla” presents the genesis of those subsequent tales, with James Allison’s chance encounter with a mysterious woman, which leads James to first evoke the memories of one of his previous incarnation, in this case, Hialmar of the Æsir. Followers of Robert E. Howard should read “Marchers of Valhalla” as many of the ideas that would appear time and time again throughout Howard’s stories are presented here for the first time.

One of the biggest surprises in this collection is the original version of “Killer”, a collaborative short story by David Drake and Karl Edward Wagner. While this reviewer has previously read the novel that would result from this expansion of this story, this original rendition significantly reduces the plot into a lean, mean, and fun as-hell read. The story involves the appearance of an alien beast during Roman times and a hunter named Lycon that comes face to face with it. Not to ruin anything, but in some ways, the story feels like a precursor to the movie Predator set in the Roman era. This summary does little justice to the actual story, so definitely check it out. If you love this one, check out the novel version for even greater action and adventure!

Keith Taylor’s featured works in the collection, “The Unlawful Hunter” and “The Haunting of Mara” are mystical and whimsical short stories that act as precursor tales for the writer’s popular “Bard” series. These stories follow the “Bard” series protagonist’s father Fal the Reiver in his youth. There is a charming quality to both tales that reminds the reviewer of works by the equally fantastic Jack Vance and his Lyonesse Trilogy. To fully appreciate these stories, it’s highly suggested to read through Taylor’s “Bard” series to understand some contexts in these short stories. The Irish and Celtic folklore that Keith Taylor heavily borrows from makes these stories quite refreshing takes on the heroic fantasy genre.

The author of the next story in this collection is arguably one of the major influences for many of the writers presented previously and throughout the sword-and-sorcery genre; Abraham Merritt. “The Pool of the Stone God” contains many of the concepts and themes found in works by later writers of the genre; the ancient remains of a mysterious civilization from prehistoric times, dark and eldritch powers beyond the understanding of modern man, and mysterious creatures the would-be explorers come to face with disastrous results.

It’s little surprise that H.P. Lovecraft, Michael Moorcock, and Karl Edward Wagner have sung Merritt’s praises considering how many of the same concepts found in this work appear in their very own. DMR Books has lovingly reprinted here in this collection, a criminally underrated example of Merritt’s work. While not the only author of the period to dabble in these concepts and themes, Abraham Merritt remains one of the best of the bunch.

The last story to finish off the collection is John Morressy’s “Stoneskin”. This is pure sword-and-sorcery at its finest. A lone warrior comes across a familiar setting of a woman being attacked by crude and merciless bandits. The warrior makes quick work of the ruffians and turns to aid the young woman whose beauty overtakes him. He has unknowingly saved a witch that, after a night of lovemaking, grants him a gift that makes him invulnerable to all harm. This spell will aid the nameless warrior to become more powerful than any king alive.  This story sounds familiar in many iterations of other sword-and-sorcery tales, but Morressy’s take has a powerful twist at the end that will make it a favorite for many.

Fans of both sword-and-sorcery and heroic fantasy cannot overlook the important work that DMR Books is doing here with releasing these rare and overlooked stories. Collections such as Renegade Swords II keep alive some of the best works of the genre that would otherwise become sidelined in the menagerie of works regularly reprinted. It’s apparent that the editors of the volume have great care for these works, as each story presented in the collection is given a brief explanation in terms of its historical relevance and background to each writers’ overall career.

Many of these stories are examples of experimentation by the authors and the beginning foundation for later and more influential works. Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this collection in either electronic or paperback. Both are available on DMR Books’. Their website offers a treasure trove of other collections and works by these writers, along with many others!

Be sure to purchase this gem here!