Now taking Pre-Orders for Blood and Thunder second edition



The Spiffy-Looking Second Ed.



Hey folks, for those of you who are interested, you can now pre-order the signed and numbered limited edition of Blood & Thunder: The Life and Art of Robert E. Howard, second edition. Greatly expanded and updated, this handsome hardcover is published by the Robert E. Howard Foundation Press. To place your pre-order, follow this link here: http://www.rehfoundation.org/2011/12/10/pre-order-blood-thunder-revised-and-updated-edition/

There will most likely be a standard (that is to say non-signed and numbered) edition, but that comes later in 2012. If you are collecting the REH Foundation volumes, then you want to grab this copy to keep your numbering up.

I'm so happy this book is going to be available again to the legion of REH fans out there who are still indoctrinated by L. Sprague de Camp's various snarky asides in the introductions to the Lancer Conan books. And if anyone out there would like to buy a copy and send it to John Howe, you'd have my eternal admiration and respect.

My Halloween Reading

I love short stories, and I always have. As a reader, I love anthologies for one simple reason: more bang for the buck. Finding an anthology with short stories from authors I like is like finding little gems in the rock pile. Many times, I've bought an anthology full of stories I already had, simply for the one or two stories I didn't have. Especially if the other stories in the book were good. Then you know you're in for a treat.

These two paperbacks were bought at the same time, but I cannot recall which used bookstore I found these in. Regardless, I was impressed with the contents, as well as Christopher Lee's cogent remarks about the authors and stories. It's pretty clear he at least contributed the commentary for the first book.

In honor of this year's Halloween, I broke the books out and worked my way through the stories. Check out the punch in these two slim volumes!

Volume 1

The Spider - Fritz Lieber
I, the Vampire - Henry Kuttner
Talent - Robert Bloch
The Gorgon - Clark Ashton Smith
The Kill - Peter Fleming
Blood Son - Richard Matheson
The Black Stone - Robert E. Howard
The Monster Maker - W.C. Morrow
The Judge's House - Bram Stoker

Volume 2

The Adventure of the Sussex vampire - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Lurking Fear - H.P. Lovecraft
Rope Enough - John Collier
Lost Face - Jack London
It - Theodore Sturgeon
The Rats of Dr. Picard - Henry Slesar
The Beast With Five Fingers - W.F. Harvey
Skelton - Ray Bradbury
The 17th Hole at Duncaster - H.R. Wakefield
Gabriel-Ernest - Saki
the Avenging Film -Massimo Bontempelli

I haven't bothered to look and see if there is a From the Archives of Evil #3 or not. I've read most of these stories in other books, but the few I hadn't read before were all excellent.

It's Halloween. Go read something spooky!