Richard L Tierney

All six original Red Sonja novels, co-written by sword-and-sorcery legends David C. Smith and Richard L. Tierney, available now in one volume for the first time. DISCOVER THE LEGEND. REVISIT THE GLORY. Since her introduction to the Hyborian Kingdoms, Red Sonja has become one of the most iconic characters in fantasy, spawning dozens of comics, novels, and multiple live-action films. Now, almost fifty years later, the original novels that established her legacy are collected for the first time in one omnibus edition. Follow Red Sonja's tale from sorcerous start to sword-slashing finish, and see, in the mists of legend, how the she-devil with a sword was born...

A FOE MORE FEARSOME THAN ROMANS. Simon of Gitta has journeyed to ancient Britannia to learn from the island's druids. There, he hears dark rumors of dragons rampaging across the countryside, smashing and scorching... but these are only rumors. A more pressing crisis arises when the Romans invade Britannia-again. At the Battle of the Medway River, the Britons manage to rout the Roman army, but at an enormous cost when their king is slain. Now the young new High King Pendragon must quickly secure his throne and defend his kingdom. Suddenly, at a secretive meeting of the Raven Druid and Eagle Druid colleges, the druids are slaughtered to the last man, trampled and burned, and the locals swear dragons are to blame. Alarmed, the High King sends the Merlin Druids (including Simon) to investigate-but, while an active war rages, he can only spare a handful of brave warriors to accompany them. Slowly, these impromptu investigators unravel a secret, complex conspiracy of Picts and Romans, rogue druids, and secret cults to unleash fiery spirit dragons on an unsuspecting country. With time quickly running out and the fate of all Britannia at stake, can a mere handful of druids and soldiers overcome such formidable enemies to thwart the nefarious plot unfolding around them? Or will Britannia burn? Dive into a world of ancient lore and mythical monsters in an epic adventure that will captivate readers to the last page.

A FOE MORE FEARSOME THAN ROMANS. Simon of Gitta has journeyed to ancient Britannia to learn from the island's druids. There, he hears dark rumors of dragons rampaging across the countryside, smashing and scorching... but these are only rumors. A more pressing crisis arises when the Romans invade Britannia-again. At the Battle of the Medway River, the Britons manage to rout the Roman army, but at an enormous cost when their king is slain. Now the young new High King Pendragon must quickly secure his throne and defend his kingdom. Suddenly, at a secretive meeting of the Raven Druid and Eagle Druid colleges, the druids are slaughtered to the last man, trampled and burned, and the locals swear dragons are to blame. Alarmed, the High King sends the Merlin Druids (including Simon) to investigate-but, while an active war rages, he can only spare a handful of brave warriors to accompany them. Slowly, these impromptu investigators unravel a secret, complex conspiracy of Picts and Romans, rogue druids, and secret cults to unleash fiery spirit dragons on an unsuspecting country. With time quickly running out and the fate of all Britannia at stake, can a mere handful of druids and soldiers overcome such formidable enemies to thwart the nefarious plot unfolding around them? Or will Britannia burn? Dive into a world of ancient lore and mythical monsters in an epic adventure that will captivate readers to the last page.

This issue of Spectral Realms is dedicated to the late Richard L. Tierney (1936-2022), one of the pioneering weird poets of our time. Included is an unpublished poem by Tierney and poetic tributes to him by Leigh Blackmore and Charles Lovecraft. As always, the issue contains scintillating work by some of the leading weird versifiers of the present day, including Wade German, Frank Coffman, Ian Futter, and Scott J. Couturier. John Shirley, Darrell Schweitzer, Don Webb, and Geoffrey Reiter demonstrate that they are masters of terror in poetry as well as in prose fiction. Lori I. Lopez explores the strangeness of cats in "La Gata," while LindaAnn LoSchiavo tells of the grim fate of Dante Gabriel Rossetti's wife. David Barker and Ngo Binh Anh Khoa write evocative poetry in the Lovecraftian mode, and Josh Maybrook contributes an acrostic sonnet on Poe. Adam Bolivar continues his work in Anglo-Saxon meter, while Carl E. Reed sends in a "ghoulish tale" in verse. Prose poems by Maxwell I. Gold and Manuel Arenas also enliven the issue. Among the classic reprints is a poem, "Vampire," by Bertrande Harry Snell, from a 1929 issue of Weird Tales, as well as a poem by veteran fantasy poet Lilith Lorraine. Marcos Legaria contributes an essay on R. H. Barlow's early poetry.

A REBEL AGAINST ROME Simon of Gitta, an escaped slave turned magician, roves the Roman Empire battling dark magic and demons, all the while pursued by Caesar's soldiers. Join Simon as he flees across the ancient world evading cultists and Legionaries, outwitting sorcerers and Centurions, and fighting gladiators and gods, even the deities of the Cthulhu Mythos. Yet all these foes cannot prepare him for his greatest challenge: the pursuit of his lost soul-mate Helen, a love so deep even death can't stand in its way for long. These stories were one of the inspirations for the Cthulhu Invictus campaign for the Call of Cthulhu role playing game by Chaosium. Enjoy sixteen stories combining superbly researched historical fiction with sword & sorcery and Lovecraftian horror, including: The Sword of SpartacusThe Fire of MazdaThe Seed of the Star-GodThe Blade of the SlayerThe Throne of AchamothThe Emerald TabletThe Soul of KephriThe Ring of SetThe Worm of UrakhuThe Curse of the CrocodileThe Treasure of HoremkhuThe Secret of Nephren-KaThe Scroll of ThothThe Dragons of Mons FractusThe Wedding of Sheila-Na-GogThe Pillars of MelkarthVengence Quest (poetry)

This thirteenth issue of Spectral Realms once again features many of the leading poets of our era--Richard L. Tierney, Ann K. Schwader, Adam Bolivar, Frank Coffman, Wade German, Leigh Blackmore, and K. A. Opperman. Several writers better known for their fiction--Darrell Schweitzer, Nicole Cushing, David Barker, Curtis M. Lawson, and Don Webb--contribute poetry of metrical precision and terrifying potency. Scott J. Couturier evokes the shade of William Hope Hodgson in "Amongst the Sargasso," while Adele Gardner writes an acrostic dedicated to Poe in "Nevermore." Among our prose poets, Maxwell I. Gold again stands out in his signature issue--the mingling of weirdness and technology. Manuel P rez-Campos's "After Verdun" evokes the horrors of war. Spectral Realms is now attracting an international cast of contributors. From Singapore, Christina Sng has long graced our pages, and here she is joined by Ngo Binh Anh Khoa from Vietnam, Andrey Pissantchev from Russia, and Tatiana Strange from Germany. The classic reprints feature poems by two colleagues of H. P. Lovecaft, R. H. Barlow and Arthur Goodenough. Donald Sidney-Fryer supplies an extensive review of David E. Schultz's landmark edition of the work of Leah Bodine Drake.