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justin92's review against another edition
3.0
BLUF: Not as good as the Conan stories due to so many fragments and untitled drafts. Full stories were pretty good, just not near enough.
steven_v's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
zare_i's review against another edition
5.0
Kull seems to be something like a blueprint for the later Conan. He is a barbarian but unlike Conan he does not try to solve everything with his sword. He uses his brains and one can almost feel his disgust with all the plotting and scheming around him that will only make him react with more force and more blood spilling. [return]He can easily be put aflame by disrespect of others and then there is no way that he will cool off without taking his revenge (in one tale he is even ready to go to the end of the known world to punish the man who openly called him a coward and usurper).[return][return]He seems to be a man placed in a wrong time and place - he got to the throne but soon he found out that throne is the most lonesome place in the entire world. Although he tries to do his best (and his kingdom does prosper) he is kept in contempt by his subjects only because of his origin. This seems to hurt him the most.[return][return]Only character that comes to my mind that is similar to the Kull in behavior and temper is Wagner's Kane - but unlike Kane Kull is not immortal and still has some faith in human kind.[return][return]Only thing (same as with Solomon Kane collection) that only makes readers want more is that only about half of the stories are finished stories - others are either unnamed drafts or semi-finished works.[return][return]Nevertheless great collection with some very nice illustrations.[return][return]Highly recommended.
dantastic's review against another edition
4.0
Here we are again; another installment of Dangerous Dan's Book Reviews, because after all, you can only hide from the law in a brothel for so long before the girls start demanding payment for services rendered.
Today I'll be reviewing a short story entitled Kings of the Night by the one and only Robert E. Howard. Kings of the Night can be found in both Kull: Exile of Atlantis and Bran Mak Morn: The Last King. That's because it stars both of the title characters.
"How can that be?" you ask. Kull lived in an age before the ocean drank Atlantis and Bran Mak Morn lives in England around the time the Romans came. The answer is simple: Magic. Kings of the Night is also a rarity among Howard's stories because there isn't a single monster in it.
Kull was a swords and sorcery character Howard created a few years before Conan and it shows, both in terms of concept and writing. Not to say the writing is bad. It isn't. It's just not as polished as Howard's later work. That being said, Howard's prose compared to other fantasy is like drinking your first bottle of Guinness after a lifetime of light beer. Where was I? Oh yeah, Kull. Kull is a barbarian who became a king and struggles between his savage ways and the statecraft involved in managing a kingdom.
Bran Mak Morn is the last king of the Picts, a savage people who were great allies of Kull's kingdom of Valusia thousands of years before Bran's time. When we catch up to Bran Mak Morn, the Picts have declined almost to the point of extinction. Bran's not all that different from Kull except that he knows that his fight against the Roman occupation is a losing battle.
A nigh-immortal Pictish sorcerer brings Kull to the future, convincing him he's dreaming in the process. Kull plays along with the sorcerer and soon ends up in command of a band of Norsemen against the Romans.
Before this story was published, Howard told his contemporary, H.P. Lovecraft, that it contained the best battle scene he'd written up to that point. Howard was right and it might be the best mass battle in fantasy ever written. This thing is Braveheart-violent once things get rolling. The tactics are written with a flair that keeps them from becoming boring but then how could you get bored with limbs being hacked off and a band of Picts and Vikings going up against colossal odds?
Until next time, keep your powder dry and your guns loaded.
Today I'll be reviewing a short story entitled Kings of the Night by the one and only Robert E. Howard. Kings of the Night can be found in both Kull: Exile of Atlantis and Bran Mak Morn: The Last King. That's because it stars both of the title characters.
"How can that be?" you ask. Kull lived in an age before the ocean drank Atlantis and Bran Mak Morn lives in England around the time the Romans came. The answer is simple: Magic. Kings of the Night is also a rarity among Howard's stories because there isn't a single monster in it.
Kull was a swords and sorcery character Howard created a few years before Conan and it shows, both in terms of concept and writing. Not to say the writing is bad. It isn't. It's just not as polished as Howard's later work. That being said, Howard's prose compared to other fantasy is like drinking your first bottle of Guinness after a lifetime of light beer. Where was I? Oh yeah, Kull. Kull is a barbarian who became a king and struggles between his savage ways and the statecraft involved in managing a kingdom.
Bran Mak Morn is the last king of the Picts, a savage people who were great allies of Kull's kingdom of Valusia thousands of years before Bran's time. When we catch up to Bran Mak Morn, the Picts have declined almost to the point of extinction. Bran's not all that different from Kull except that he knows that his fight against the Roman occupation is a losing battle.
A nigh-immortal Pictish sorcerer brings Kull to the future, convincing him he's dreaming in the process. Kull plays along with the sorcerer and soon ends up in command of a band of Norsemen against the Romans.
Before this story was published, Howard told his contemporary, H.P. Lovecraft, that it contained the best battle scene he'd written up to that point. Howard was right and it might be the best mass battle in fantasy ever written. This thing is Braveheart-violent once things get rolling. The tactics are written with a flair that keeps them from becoming boring but then how could you get bored with limbs being hacked off and a band of Picts and Vikings going up against colossal odds?
Until next time, keep your powder dry and your guns loaded.
gelatinousdessert's review against another edition
4.0
While some view Kull as a precursor to Conan, it is clear from these stories that he is very different from Howard's later creation. Although a barbarian by birth, Kull is more brooding, more troubled by the immortal questions of man. These stories are also more experimental than the Conan stories, which were written when Howard was more experienced. Some of the plots are more awkwardly handled than Howard's better stories, but a few of the stories rank among Howard's best. This volume includes several unfinished stories, which provide excellent glimpses into the creative process of the writer. Not a great starting point for getting into Howard's writings, but excellent if you are already a fan of his work. Includes excellent criticism in the back. A particular pleasure in this edition is the excellent art, which is my favorite of any of the Del Rey Howard books yet.
tgestabrook's review against another edition
3.0
Kinda goofy, very pulpy, fun but repetitive. Best stories were 'The Mirrors of Tuzun Thune' (for not being what I expected) and 'By This Axe I Rule' (for being precisely what I expected). Amusing that this was (afaik) the first appearance of a reptilian conspiracy in fiction.
peapod_boston's review against another edition
3.0
A collection of some of Howard's earliest stories. "The Shadow Kingdom" is a masterpiece (and worth reading the closing essay to understand what Howard was doing with this story and it's relationship to the Biblical Saul). The remainder of them are erratic in quality but interesting as a window into the past as Howard develops the vibrant style that would characterize the Conan stories. The inclusion of "Kings of the Night" only highlights the contrast, as it is a later story featuring two other Howard characters. Worth reading for the completist, but casual readers should stick to Conan.
parenthesis_enjoyer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Kull gets so much flak for being a weirder, or lesser, prototype version of Conan. He is that, but he's also, in my opinion at least, a character who's completely different in his own way. Howard gets much more philosophical and political with his Kull stories, diving into ideas far greater than a pulp action piece deserves. My one complaint is the occasional repetitiveness of the tales themselves, which I suppose is consistent with the pulp nature of them and how few of them were actually published in Howard's lifetime; recycled plots are to be expected.
-NOTE: I listened to this on Audible
-NOTE: I listened to this on Audible
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Minor: Xenophobia, Racism, Misogyny, and Alcohol
wildbillbourbon's review against another edition
5.0
Action packed. Gripping prose. You can feel the bloodshed.