And like that, we reach the end of the Robert E. Howard Conan Adventures. Now I know there are plenty of others out there from other authors. But I don't want to travel that road yet. I've enjoyed reading the complete series in order, and it has given me a great view of this writer growing with each story. So for one last time, let us travel the open road with Conan.
Title: Red Nails
Author: Robert E. Howard
Blurb:
Pursing the beautiful Valeria in the Black countries, Conan happens upon a strange, walled city in the midst of a desert. Conan and Valeria become enmeshed in a civil war, a war driven by ancient hate and blood-lust that threatens the few surviving inhabitants of Xuchotl.
Robert Ervin Howard (1906-1936) is best known today for creating the sword-and-sorcery hero Conan, subject of two movies and dozens of books. However, during his short life Howard also published stories in a number of other genres. In addition to fantasy, Howard wrote boxing stories, westerns, detective stories, horror and created an number of compelling characters such as Solomon Kane, Bran Mak Morn, El Borak, Steve Costigan, Pike Bearfield, King Kull, and Conan the Cimmerian. Howard committed suicide in 1936.
Review
Glad we finished on a strong one rather than a weak fizzle. As I mentioned, this was the last Conan, and this was due to Weird Tales not paying their bills. During the Great Depression, Weird Tales had failed to pay Howard the $1500 owed for his work, so Howard took his pen elsewhere and wrote Westerns instead.
The story starts with Valeria, who, having just killed a would-be rapist, is now on the run. This classic strong, decisive, beautiful female lead soon catches Conan's attention, who gives chase. Upon reaching her, they talk as if they have a past, one I don't remember if it was ever written in another story. We then get a classic Howard sexual tension paragraph before a creature appears to feast on their horses. Soon the pair are working together to survive the story.
I'm glad this story happened. The last few kind of felt like a blend/retelling of the same story. Conan does what Conan does best, and we end up with a great little adventure piece set within an ancient city. Worth the read.
But where to next? Some Star Wars titles, with Judge Dredd and Aliens, have sat on the shelf for far too long. So some Sci-fi is in our future. Thanks for reading!
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